How Does Plaque Form?

Plaque forms from a lack of proper brushing and flossing that’s usually combined with a poor diet consisting of many sugars and refined flours, which can lead to a buildup of plaque in the mouth. The bacteria in plaque can cause damage to your enamel and can eventually lead to tooth decay, cavities, and gingivitis, which is the beginning of periodontal (gum) disease.Plaque can form in as little as 24 hours of not brushing. Over time, plaque can turn into tartar, which typically forms along the gum line and can only be removed professionally. Once plaque forms, it can still be removed. The sooner you remove plaque, the better, as it can be damaging to teeth the more time it has to form!

Preventing Plaque

Preventing plaque is as simple as engaging in proper brushing and flossing habits as well as eating a healthy diet. Foods like apples, carrots, and celery for snacks as opposed to cookies or pre-packaged foods can actually help clean your teeth, whereas sugars that sit on your teeth can become corrosive within minutes of being left in your mouth. In addition, sugars also contribute to the bacteria and acidic environment of your mouth, which can lead to even more problems with your smile!

Flossing once a day is ideal, but you may consider flossing more if food gets easily stuck between your teeth. Brushing once a day is enough, but twice a day is ideal. Proper brushing is more important than vigorous brushing, which can actually harm your teeth! Talk with your dentist about those hard-to-reach places in your mouth and which toothbrush and brushing techniques would be ideal for you.

Keeping Up with Plaque

It’s easy to keep up with plaque. Visiting your dentist is crucial because your dentist will be able to give your teeth a thorough cleaning and talk with you about all the places in your mouth you may not be reaching with your toothbrush. Even with proper brushing, spots can still be missed. Places in-between your teeth are particularly difficult to get, so this is why flossing is ideal. Remove food particles and bacteria from in-between tight spaces with floss.

Preventing plaque is easy, and as plaque can turn into a variety of other dental problems such as tartar, gingivitis, and cavities, brushing and flossing is very beneficial. Keeping up with plaque is as easy as getting regular checkups with your dentist, brushing and flossing, and making health snack and beverage choices during the day!

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Really, anyone who is missing teeth can benefit from the use of dentures. You don’t have to have all of your teeth removed to get dentures. It’s actually often better to get partials since the remaining teeth help the dentures stay in the proper place and help maintain the proper shape of the jaw. Plus, the dentures can protect the teeth you do still have from wear as long as you care for them properly. Of course, for anyone who needs to have all of their teeth removed, dentures are a beneficial option. This is also true even if you just need the top or bottom teeth to be replaced and not the whole mouth.

Rather than worrying about your age, your concern should be getting the benefits from a full mouth of teeth whether they be natural or artificial. Consider the following benefits of dentures.

Benefits of Dentures

Aesthetics – Dentures can improve the look and feel of your mouth. When a person loses his or her teeth, the face takes on a sunken look. Dentures can help restore a more natural and youthful appearance to the entire face.

Eating – Chewing with few or no teeth is just not possible. Dentures may not be able to chew like natural teeth, but it is certainly a step up from having to puree everything you eat.

Preserve Remaining Teeth – If you still have some teeth left, dentures can help to save them from further wear. Having some teeth to clip the partials too also keeps them in place. So having a few natural teeth left is a win-win when it comes to dentures.

Speaking – Having no or very few teeth distorts speech significantly. Dentures will make your words more easily understood.

Cost – Replacing lost teeth can be pricey. Dentures are definitely the most cost-effective option. They are also often covered by insurance.

Add to this modern procedures that can fix dentures in place, and you can see why they are not just for the older generation. Why not speak to your dentist and see if dentures are the right option for you?

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The “Don’t” List

Here are some of the things you need to avoid. These are the main culprits when it comes to staining teeth.

Quit Smoking – Smoking is the absolute worst thing you can do for the coloration of your teeth. Nothing else will stain teeth faster than cigarette smoke. Quitting is not easy, but this is just one more reason to do it.

Foods to Avoid – Try to keep foods with dark pigmentation to a minimum. For example, ice pops or hard candies that are filled with dark dyes will stain your teeth. You know the ones we mean. They turn your tongue, teeth, and lips blue, green, or purple.

Beverages to Avoid – Unfortunately, favorites like coffee, black tea, colas, and red wine are all tough on tooth coloration. Keep reading for some tips on how to enjoy your favorite beverages safely.

The “Do” List

Here are some things that you can do to keep your teeth white for as long as possible.

Use a Straw – Try having your coffee or tea iced. Drinking it through a straw will minimize contact with front teeth. Less time on the enamel means less time for staining to take place.

Brush Often – If you brush your teeth after each meal, you keep those stain-causing foods and drinks from staying in contact with your teeth.

Rinse or Drink Water – If you can’t brush, rinsing with or drinking water is the next best thing. Just get as much food and drink off your teeth as possible until the next time you can get to a toothbrush.

Get a Touch Up – If you follow the suggestions here, touch ups may be a year or two apart. If you can’t stay away from your regular cup of coffee (without a straw) or other staining habits, you may need to get a touch up every six months. Your dentist can recommend a schedule to help maintain the pearly whiteness of your smile.

If you follow the tips here, you can flash a glistening, white smile every time a camera comes out.

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Brush and Floss Before Sleep – Any food particles that are left on or around your teeth and gums need to be removed. Even if you already brushed after dinner, it’s still a good idea to do it again before eight hours of inactivity. Flossing is vital as well, especially if you do not floss every time you brush. This will make sure that no food particles get to stay between your teeth overnight. It will also help to prevent tartar from building up below the gumline.

Use a Good Technique – Of course, brushing and flossing before bed will only work if you use the proper technique. Cursory oral care before bed can lead to some surfaces still having plaque in place. It takes plaque a while to harden into tartar, but eight hours is longer than you should risk. If you struggle with using a circular motion while brushing, you may want to consider an electric toothbrush with a rotating head.

Use Mouthwash – A good mouth rinse does more than just make your breath smell nice. Some mouthwashes have ingredients that are intended for the strengthening of teeth. Others may be designed to fight off various forms of bacteria that are often found in the mouth. Of course, your standard bottle of mouthwash may not have any of those benefits. If you want your mouthwash to be more than the equivalent of a liquid Tic-Tac, you may want to ask your dentist for a recommendation.

Regular Checkups Are Vital

While you don’t go to the dentist at night, this is still a vital part of your oral care routine. After all, no matter how good you are at brushing and flossing, there will still be some plaque and tarter buildup. Once tartar develops, brushing and flossing alone can’t remove it. Your nighttime routine will help to maintain your oral health between visits, but be sure to schedule your checkup and cleaning every six months or however often your dentist recommends.

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How Implants Work

First, it is important to appreciate how dental implants work. One of the key factors when it comes to an implants is the integrity of the jaw bone. This will allow the implant to take hold and be grafted to the bone successfully. You also need the right amount of bone on the teeth next to the implant so that the papillae will grow properly. This adds to natural looking teeth by ensuring that the little pink triangles of gumline will regenerate after surgery. This also means that an implant will look more natural in between two regular teeth as opposed to being next to another implant. Finally, the thickness of your gum tissue will play a role. Gums that are eroding may eventually show the metal implant whereas healthy gums should cover it completely.

Matching Your Tooth Color

Every person’s teeth are a slightly different color, ranging from bright white to almost brown. Your dentist will be sure to match the color and shape of your implant to your other teeth so that everything looks as natural as possible. This is the aesthetic side of implants. Everything from the material the crown is made from to skill of the lab tech making the crown will affect how natural the final product appears, and well done implants are nearly indistinguishable from natural teeth.

A Word on Screw-Retained Crowns

Crowns are often fitted to the implant using a screw. This allows for easy maintenance in the future. The screw hole is then covered with a tooth-colored material. Some may choose to have front teeth cemented rather than screwed since the screw hole is more likely to be visible on a front tooth.

A Smile to Be Proud Of

In the end, the goal is to provide patients with a smile that they are happy to see in photographs. Dental implants are an excellent solution to replacing lost or missing teeth, they are absolutely the best option for both functionality and appearance.

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Proper Dental Hygiene

Since dental implants function just like real teeth, you’ll need to care for them just as you would your natural teeth. This involves eating a healthy diet, brushing and flossing regularly to remove plaque and keep bacteria balanced, and visiting your dentist. People with excellent oral hygiene can have dental implants that will last for the rest of their lives. They’re meant to be a permanent solution to your missing teeth, and they’ll help you keep a natural appearance and functionality of your teeth. Proper dental hygiene ensures that you can keep your dental implants for life and not have to do another reinsertion of the titanium base.

Crown Replacement

Although your dental implants are designed to last for life, the crown that attaches to your dental implant may only last for fifteen years. If you have great dental hygiene and get regular checkups with your dentist, your crown could last well beyond fifteen years. Each person and their mouth is different.

You can expect your crown to last for an average of ten to fifteen years. After this, you may need to get a new crown for your dental implant to maintain the natural appearance and function of your teeth. Getting a crown replaced is not as intrusive as getting the actual dental implant, so this maintenance to your smile will be minor and keep you looking great for years to come.

Location

The location of the dental implant in your mouth could affect its lifespan. If you have a dental implant in the rear of your mouth, it’s likely that this implant will experience more wear and tear from grinding and chewing than an implant that was placed more in the front of your mouth. The crown that’s on your dental implant will get more usage back there and therefore it will probably need to be replaced sooner.

Check with your dentist to make sure you don’t grind your teeth unknowingly as well—this could place extra strain and wear on your crown and dental implant that’s unnecessarily damaging. Implant failures are not common, but if you have extra pressure on your teeth, it could affect your implant’s functioning as part of your mouth.

Dental implants are a great replacement for your natural teeth. They provide excellent support for your dental crown, and your crown is durable and will last for years if taken care of properly. Keep your dental implants functioning great for life by taking proper care of your mouth and getting checkups regularly.

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What are some of the aesthetic benefits of full mouth reconstruction?

1. Appearance of Mouth

A full mouth reconstruction can repair damaged or worn down teeth. It allows you to have a full set of top and bottom teeth that are uniform in color, shape, and size. Gaps are no longer visible, broken teeth are repaired or covered, and unsightly stains are hidden away or professionally cleared away.

2. Sound of Chewing

Full mouth reconstruction can also involve taking care of a person’s jaw. This should take care of any clicking sound that occurs while chewing. For many, this can make it embarrassing to eat around others. It also causes pain and can make the eating experience less enjoyable. Thus, there is a two-fold benefit.

3. Better Breath

Having your teeth in order makes it far easier to keep them clean. When teeth are clean and there is no place for bacteria to hide, it results in better smelling breath. Cleaner teeth, however, mean more than just better breath. Good oral health also decreases risk of heart disease and other conditions that can be caused by poor dental hygiene.

4. Improved Sleep Patterns

A healthy mouth will allow you to get more restful sleep than if you are constantly in pain. You do not have to think long to recognize the aesthetic value of sleep, plus dark circles under a person’s eyes are never appealing! You can always tell when a person is well rested versus someone who had a rough night (or several years’ worth of nights with poor sleep).

5. Increased Sense of Well-Being

When someone is happy and confident, it is easy to tell. Such a good sense of well-being is very attractive, and with a picture perfect smile, you will always be the first one to smile for the camera. Improved self-esteem results in positive feelings of self, and that is a contagious good feeling which will make people want to be around you. A brand new smile could be the key to a happier, healthier new you. Talk with your dentist about full mouth reconstruction today.

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They’re Mini

About half the size of regular dental implants, mini dental implants are generally used for smaller teeth in your mouth. Although not always the case, many good candidates for mini dental implants lack the proper bone requirements for regular dental implants. You need an adequate amount of bone in your jaw to be able to properly support the implant. When this is impossible with regular dental implants, mini dental implants may be a great option for you.

Less Costly

Mini dental implants are also less expensive than regular dental implants. This is because the procedure does not require surgery, several dentist visits, or a screw. The anchors are placed directly in the jaw with a small hole and can stabilize your dentures and give you a full range of functionality as these mini implants can sustain a surprising amount of pressure and weight. Most mini dental implants can be installed in one simple visit, and most patients report no pain after the procedure is finished.

Faster Healing Time

Since the procedure is not as invasive and does not require a screw drilled down into your jaw, the healing time is much faster for mini dental implants than it is for regular dental implants. Of course certain healing factors still apply and you’ll need to be in good health without any gum disease and hopefully no smoking, but otherwise, your bone requirements are minimal and you should be able to easily heal up afterwards. This will help in the future too because you’ll now be able to enjoy your teeth
without worrying about food being caught in your dentures or things sliding around.

Mini dental implants can be a great alternative for regular dental implants, especially if you lack the proper bone requirements in your jaw to sustain regular dental implants. With a small size, low cost, and fast healing time, mini dental implants are a great option for a wider smile.

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The trouble with acid in the mouth is that many foods that are highly acidic are foods that are good for you, so avoiding an acidic diet is not recommended. Many vegetables, fruits and fruit juices contain acid, especially citrus fruits. Some of our favorite beverages are also acidic, including wine, coffee and tea.

Nature fights acid in the mouth with saliva and saliva washes away acids and food particles. Increasing saliva production after meals by chewing sugarless gum can help to get rid of extra acid on the teeth. Following meals with water has the same positive effect. A dry mouth is more likely to leave acid behind to damage the teeth, but because many beverages are acidic, water is the best thing to drink for acid removal. Tonic water, sports drinks, soda and most fruit juices contain high amounts of acid.

Another way in which diet affects the acid in our mouths is through acid reflux or stomach upset. Acid reflux and vomiting bring acid into the mouth and onto the teeth. People who have frequent problems with acid reflux or gastric problems may not be thinking about their teeth, but these problems actually increase the risk of enamel erosion and cavities.

Even though eliminating healthy acidic foods from your diet is not a recommended method of protecting your teeth, there are some healthy foods that are low in acid. Peanut butter, cheese, natural yogurt and bananas are all low in acid, as are wheat, rye and white bread. When you are looking for a snack, you could try substituting some of these foods for others that are higher in acid.

Using fluoride toothpaste every time you brush strengthens your tooth enamel and protects against acid erosion and cavities. People who are at higher risk of acid erosion due to their diets or to health conditions may be advised by the dentist to use fluoride mouth rinses for extra protection. Brushing and flossing daily gets rid of food particles, and regular dental checkups can catch problems in early stages.

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In the past, teeth had to be extracted, then the gums allowed to heal for roughly six months. During that time, patients would often have to wear dentures (false teeth). Once the gums had healed, patients often had to receive bone grafts. One those healed for another six months, then the implants could be put in. It was often a long and hard process for patients. The new All-on-4 system has revolutionized this process.

You are probably wondering if you are a candidate for this procedure. If you have experienced or are experiencing any of these major dental problems, you may want to talk to your dentist about the All-on-4 procedure. Some of these problems include:

• Missing more than five teeth to one arch (this means the top or bottom individually)

• Many of your teeth are damaged, worn, cracked or broken

• You suffer from a collapsed bite (a change in the bite and jaw structure from damage)

• Periodontal disease (which affects the gums)

• Severe and continuing acid reflux disease (which can damage teeth and gums)

• Many missing teeth or a heredity of missing teeth

• A history of oral trauma (such as damage from a car accident or fall)

• Are suffering from tooth decay, jaw decay, or other types of oral decay

While having any of these conditions doesn’t automatically quality you for the All-on-4 system, your chances of being able to have this procedure done are higher. Only your dentist will know how this procedure will work for you, if you are a candidate for this produce, and if it is something you need. They may recommend other treatments, or may encourage this treatment for you. Always be open with your dentist, be open to options and talk about any dental problems that you are experiencing. While this treatment may not be for everyone, it often helps many patients and may be the right one for you. It is one the most minimally invasive dental procedures that is sure to give you a beautiful smile and give you some confidence back! Talk to your dentist today to see if you are a candidate for this radical and new innovative treatment!

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