1. Apples – An apple a day keeps more than just the doctor away. Apples are also good for your teeth. How can this be? After all, apples are mostly sugar, right? The fact is that apples are really good at increasing the amount of saliva produced. Saliva keeps the amount of bacteria in your mouth low. This is really true of most fresh fruits and vegetables, so if apples aren’t your favorite, you can eat more carrots, celery, or other crisp foods.

2. Xylitol Sweetened Gum – Xylitol is a natural sweetener and is superior to sugar and artificial sweeteners when it comes to oral health. Xylitol actually fights the bacteria that many other sweeteners promote.

3. Milk – When you hear milk is good for teeth, your first thought may be that calcium is the most important factor. While calcium is good for your teeth and bones, that’s not why milk makes the list. Milk acts as a base in the body, meaning that it raises the pH level in your mouth. Since bacteria in the mouth thrive on an acidic pH, drinking milk works against sugars and other acidic foods. In fact, one study showed that when milk is imbibed after a bowl of sweet cereal, teeth are helped to resist decay.

4. Unsweetened Tea – Green and black tea both fight bacteria that is commonly formed in the mouth. Unfortunately, adding sugar to the tea negates these benefits, so you may have to switch to unsweet depending on how you presently drink your tea. Tea not only delays that formation of plaque, but it also helps keep gums healthy.

5. Water – Adding more water to your diet can wash bacteria from the mouth, keeping your teeth cleaner between brushings, and raise pH levels, thus restricting plaque formation. Also, tap water often has higher levels of fluoride. Of course, bottled water may have fluoride removed, but you can fix that by the brand of toothpaste you choose. The fact is that fluoride is not the reason you need to add more water to your diet.

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Why May a Damaged Tooth Turn Black or Gray?

Much like other parts of your body, your teeth can bleed internally after an injury. The blood leaks in through the dental nerves and discolors the pulp of the tooth. The cause of tooth discoloration is usually due to blood getting into the pulp of the tooth. Darkening can continue over several days, weeks, or even months if allowed unchecked. A damaged tooth, however, doesn’t need to end up becoming a dead tooth. Here is a way that your dentist can help.

Pulp Removal Can Recover Your Tooth

Pulp removal, or a root canal, may actually reverse the color change. Since the pulp of the tooth has become stained, leading to the change in color, removing the dead or damaged pulp can restore your natural brightness. You will want an experienced dentist to carry out this process so that the stained dentin can be carefully removed.

Does My Child Need a Root Canal?

Most of the time, the color will return to a child’s tooth within a few days. If this does not occur, it is a good idea to see an endodontist. If the tooth is not one of the child’s permanent teeth, consideration will be given to whether or not the damage will affect the tooth falling out naturally. If your child already has his or her permanent teeth, a root canal may save them from the embarrassment of a dead tooth.

Pearly Whites Despite an Injury

Anyone can fall, get into an accident, or in some other way end up with a discolored tooth. The secret is not to allow time for the damage to continue and spread. Your dentist can help you to restore your tooth back to its natural color using a root canal.

While a scar may be considered a good conversation piece, a black tooth is not something that anyone wants to have. If you’ve been injured, see if your dentist can fix the problem with a root canal. Before long, you’ll be back to smiling widely for the camera.

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Insurance May Not Cover Everything

Dental insurance unfortunately doesn’t always cover 100% of your procedures. Dental insurance will typically cover all costs of preventive and diagnostic services, such as check ups or estimates for dental work. For things like endodontic treatment (root canal), implants, or cosmetic dentistry, and even orthodontics, your insurance may only cover a percentage of these costs. The insurance doesn’t usually cover the entire cost of things like porcelain veneers, crowns, or bonding work if there’s another option. If your child needs braces to help him chew his food properly, the insurance should cover the cost. If you want cosmetic dentistry done to help your smile look more beautiful, insurance likely won’t cover this, or only a percentage. Check with your insurance company to see what will be covered so that you can prepare a budget for your specialty dental treatment.

Options for Your Perfect Smile

In light of the fact that some treatments are only partially covered, dental specialists will work with you personally to create a plan that works for you and fits your budget. Consider all of your options when it comes to specialty dental work—while options such as resin bonding or ceramic crowns may work well, porcelain is the most durable, so you’ll need to choose what will be best for you and your smile with your dental specialist. You have options when it comes to payment. If you find that insurance will only cover part of your specialty dental costs or if you find that it won’t cover any costs for your preferred treatment, discuss this with your dentist. Options are always available for your perfect smile.

Treatment is Always Available

You should never stray away from treatment just because your budget is tight. Treatment is always available no matter what you can or can’t afford. Specialists are more likely to accept alternative forms of payment such as Care Credit or Citi Health Cards. The cost of specialty dental work isn’t always budget friendly for everyone, but many times it is a necessity if you’re missing a tooth or need a root canal. You can create a budget after speaking with your insurance company and discussing what treatment will be best for you with your dentist, and then come up with a payment plan that is budget friendly for you. Dental specialists will work with you to make sure treatment is always available.

Specialty dental treatment is necessary for certain situations, and others just want their smile to look the best it can. Regardless of your needs or wants, specialty dental treatment can fit your budget. Speak with your dentist to discuss options and payment plans today.

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Pain

Pain in your mouth is never a good thing, and when it’s an intense pain that lingers, that’s even worse. The pain could be coming from a single tooth or several teeth. You may experience pain from pressure such as biting or stimulus such as chewing. You may also experience extreme sensitivity to hot and cold if you need a root canal. When the nerve of the tooth is infected—and the nerve is where the feeling happens—chances are you need a root canal. The pain could range from mild to intense and may linger, even when you stop the action that caused it to start in the first place. At times the pain could be random and be so intense that it will wake you up in the middle of the night.

Swelling

Swelling in your gums could be an indication that you need a root canal. The swelling could be slight or pronounced. Swelling could also indicate an abscess of the tooth—meaning the infection has extended to the tip of the tooth’s roots and is now extending into areas beyond and creating a pus-filled sac. Abscesses usually feel hard to the touch and are painful. The swelling could also be visible on the outside of your jaw or even extend down into your neck. This swelling could mean you need a root canal and should be evaluated by your dentist.

Discoloration

When one of your teeth or several of them begin to turn a different color from the rest of your teeth, you’ll probably feel alarmed. This is a good time to go and see your dentist because you may need a root canal. When there is a problem with the pulp of your tooth, it can cause the tooth to discolor and appear noticeably different from your other teeth. Your tooth doesn’t actually need its nerve to be healthy when you’re an adult, so removing this nerve and sealing the tooth may help with any discoloration you’re experiencing.

Although root canals have a reputation for being painful, the average patient reports little pain and it can be as simple as getting a cavity filled. Be aware of these top signs that you may need a root canal such as pain, swelling in the gums or face and neck area, and discolored teeth. These are not the symptoms of a healthy mouth and you should follow up with your dentist.

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Nearly all smokers will experience bad breath and stained teeth. You can whiten your teeth with professional whitening, but if you continue smoking, your teeth will stain again. Bad breath can become chronic when tar and nicotine settle in your mouth. Smoking also causes dry mouth, which can make bad breath worse. Covering up bad breath with mints or mouthwash does not eliminate the problem. As long as you continue to use tobacco, “smoker’s breath” will exist.

Periodontal or gum disease is common and can happen to anyone, but smokers are at increased risk. This is because tobacco interferes with cell tissue in the gums and causes separation of the gums from the underlying bone. This makes the area more susceptible to the entrance of bacteria and infection. This advanced risk of gum disease in turn creates a greater risk for smokers of tooth loss.

Compounding the issue with the bones under your gums is this fact: If you do lose teeth and desire to have them replaced with dental implants, smoking makes it less likely that implants will be successful. Implants need strong healthy bone in order to work. Healing after oral surgery also tends to take longer for smokers than nonsmokers because smoking impedes blood flow to the gums.

Oral cancer is the most dangerous threat smoking poses to your mouth. Oral cancer is any cancer that occurs in the mouth, around the mouth including the lips, or in the throat. Men and older people are the most likely to get oral cancer, though diagnoses in younger adults are increasing. Smoking and other tobacco use is a major risk factor for oral cancer. Oral cancer screening can detect oral cancer early, and people at higher risk, including smokers, may benefit from having oral cancer screening as part of their dental checkups.

If you are a smoker or use tobacco products, quitting can not only benefit your overall health and reduce your cancer risk, it can greatly improve the condition of your mouth and help your teeth and gums to be cleaner and healthier.

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A root canal procedure cleans out dead and diseased tissue from inside the tooth. Root canal has a success rate of around 95%, but in rare cases, infection can return after a root canal. Another problem that arises in some cases is that the canals are too narrow for the dental instruments to enter. When a root canal fails to clean out the infection entirely, or when infection recurs after a root canal, an apicoectomy may be the best way to save the tooth.

During an apicoectomy, the dentist or endodontist opens the gum tissue to expose the bone and root of the tooth. Any infected tissue is removed, and the tip of the root is also removed. The root tip is usually sealed, and then stitches are made. As healing progresses over the next few months, the bone heals around the tip of the root.

Apicoectomies are performed under local anesthesia and are considered to be minor surgery. Because of the precision instruments involved and the frequent use of a microscope during the procedure, apicoectomy is a type of microsurgery. It usually takes about half an hour to 90 minutes to complete.

An apicoectomy is only performed after one or two root canal procedures have been performed and infection has returned or is still present. All endodontic procedures aim to save teeth; the only other alternative to having these procedures performed is to have the tooth extracted. While there are viable options for tooth replacement such as implants or bridges, saving your natural teeth is the most often recommended course of action.

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Dental implants are the alternative to dentures that many people today are choosing. They are permanent false teeth that are the next best thing to natural teeth. Dental implants can only work if you have enough bone left under your gums to support them. The crowns or artificial teeth are supported by metal posts that are implanted through your gums. If there isn’t enough bone to support them, the implants cannot become permanent and will fail. The problem for many people who want dental implants is that they have been without their natural teeth for so long that they no longer have enough bone left to support implants. Sometimes people in this situation feel that they have no choice but to stay with dentures, but there can be a solution.

In a dental bone graft, bone is removed from somewhere else and added to the bone under the gums. Usually the bone can be taken from the chin or back of the jaw. Other places your own bone can be taken from include the hip or shinbone. It is also possible for artificial material to be used to build up the bone under your gums, or bone from animals (usually cows) can be used.

If bone is taken from your shin or hip, this is done in a hospital under general anesthesia. Other dental bone grafting procedures can usually be done in the implant dentist’s office. After the bone graft procedure, healing time of several months is necessary before the dental implant procedure can begin.

Bone grafts are also sometimes used to treat severe cases of gum disease or periodontitis. Dental bone grafts can fail, but the success rate is very high. The chances of success are highest when your own bone is used.

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The first step is to define and clarify what root canal therapy is. A root canal is a common dental procedure, and it is performed for two primary reasons that affect the pulp that lies at the center of teeth and in their root canals. Made of blood vessels, connective tissue and nerves, pulp provides the teeth with nourishment once they first surface from the gums. After the teeth reach maturity, nourishment is provided by the gums’ blood supply, and the pulp can safely be removed without causing damage to the teeth.

The pulp may need to be removed due to infection. This is the most common reason root canal treatments are performed, and it is caused when decay affects the dentin and enamel of a tooth. When decay reaches the pulp, bacteria can cause an infection that cannot be reached by antibiotics. The infection may also cause inflammation that restricts the supply of blood to to the tooth and prevents the pulp from naturally healing, and it may even cause an abscess to grow. The pulp must be removed to eliminate the infection and save the tooth.

A root canal treatment may also be necessary after trauma causes damage to the pulp. A blow to the tooth may do enough damage to necessitate a root canal, even if the damage is invisible to the naked eye. Fractured teeth may also require a root canal treatment.

Certain symptoms may point to the need for a root canal treatment. An infection may cause pain when the tooth is touched or pushed, and a root canal may be necessary if the tooth is sensitive to cold or heat, discolored or broken. Swelling near the tooth may also indicate a need for a root canal.

To determine if you need a root canal treatment, your endodontist may use an electric pulp tester to assess the health of the pulp and look at X-rays that show the tooth and the surrounding bone. If after an examination, a root canal treatment is deemed the appropriate treatment, it is important to remember that it is being performed to improve your oral and overall health, as well to help preserve your natural teeth.

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