Dear Dr. Seriki, Why are my gums bleeding?  

One of the toughest conversations I have as a dentist isn’t about losing a tooth or a complicated root canal. It’s telling a patient they’ve “graduated” out of a regular cleaning. The betrayal in their eyes says it all. But gum health isn’t just about shiny teeth—it’s about what’s happening below the surface. When plaque and tartar slip under the gum line, we’re no longer talking surface-level care—we’re talking gum disease. And that changes everything.