It is our job as a dentist to make sure our patient's teeth are cleanable and it is their job to keep them clean. If we can encourage our patients to have excellent daily home care, they will have their teeth for a lifetime. The best age to do this is at a young age. It is more important to encourage excellent daily home care at hygiene appointments then it is to get every piece of tarter removed. Having a philosophy like Bob's book explains is paramount to long term dental health. Without the patient's comittment to daily home care, any dentistry we do will fail sooner than later. This is such a simple concept but yet we tend to get caught up in how nice of a dental restoration we camn do. The very best thing we can do for our patients is to teach them how to stay healthy with nutrition, and home care. >Our fancy restorations mean nothing if they last a short time. Teach your patients how to wash and wax their new car before they buy.