Always Choose Sugar-Free

There are a huge variety of sugar-free gums. Make sure you read the label, as not all gums are created equal. Some gums may still contain sugar, so it’s always best to check. Chewing gum that’s loaded with sugar is basically like sucking on candy, exposing your mouth to acidity and raising your risk for enamel damage and tooth decay.

When you chew sugar-free gum, you increase your saliva production, which actually helps to combat bad bacteria and balance the pH of your mouth. This lowers your chances for having tooth decay in the future. Stimulating saliva flow also makes it more difficult for plaque to stick to your teeth, so you have less plaque and more shine!

Xylitol Is Your Best Pick

Of all the sugar-free sweeteners out there, xylitol takes home the trophy for being the best one for your smile. Why is this? Xylitol has been proven to be a cavity-fighter as it helps neutralize bad bacteria and keeps plaque away. Xylitol has also been found to help improve your enamel, and may even help repair damaged enamel!

Xylitol also packs another punch—it’s more alkaline than other sugar-free substitutes. This means less acidity for your mouth and a more neutral pH. This further helps to balance bacteria and keep your smile healthy and fresh. When choosing sugar-free chewing gum at the store, look for ones sweetened with xylitol for the most benefits.

Don’t Use as a Brushing Replacement

As popular as chewing gum is and as many benefits as sugar-free gum has for your smile, you should never chew gum in place of brushing. Although sugarless gum can help keep bacteria from sticking to teeth and ruining your smile, you still need to brush and floss every day to manually remove plaque and keep your teeth healthy.

You can chew gum between meals or after meals for fresher breath. If you’re running late one morning, chewing on gum with xylitol can help freshen your breath and cut down on plaque growth throughout the day. Never make this a regular habit and use only for emergencies! Brushing and flossing are essential practices for a healthy, strong smile along with dental checkups.

Keep sugar-free gum sweetened with xylitol at the top of your list when it comes to the best chewing gum for your smile. This gum can help prevent cavity formation, restore proper mouth pH, and keep bacteria from attacking your tooth enamel. Chewing gum can be helpful when it comes to your teeth!

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The type of gum is the most important factor in whether or not chewing gum is bad for your teeth. This is because chewing gum that contains sugar is actually bad for your teeth—the consequences outweigh the benefits. Your teeth are being exposed to acidic sugars over a period of time, therefore increasing your risk for cavities.

However, sugarless gum can actually be beneficial for your smile. It stimulates saliva production, therefore promoting a healthy environment for good bacteria, and therefore can help decrease plaque and acid-forming bacteria. The increased saliva flow can also help to free trapped food particles from your teeth!

May Help Reduce Cavities

Not all sugarless gum is created equal. Sugarless gums created with xylitol are better for your teeth than gums created with other artificial sweeteners, which tend to be more acidic. Xylitol is alkaline-forming, which means it can help promote a healthier bacteria balance in the mouth and minimize your chances of enamel erosion and cavities.

Sugarless gum sweetened with xylitol should be your top pick because it may help reduce cavities. Xylitol can also hinder the growth of the bacteria involved in cavity formation. Regular chewing of sugarless gum with xylitol may help promote a healthier bacteria balance of over time because it can inhibit harmful bacteria from bonding to tooth surfaces!

When Chewing Gum Is Bad for You

Chewing gum isn’t the best practice for everyone, regardless of whether or not it’s sugar-free! There are times when chewing gum actually is bad for you. These occasions include:

 If you’re experiencing symptoms of TMJ. Temporomandibular Joint disorder, or TMJ disorder, affects your jaw and the muscles that operate your jaw. People who experience jaw locking, tenderness, or facial pain should avoid chewing gum and visit their dentist.

 If you chew gum with sugar. Chewing gum with sugar is not recommended. It’s better to sip water or crunch on vegetables than to chew gum with conventional sugars!

 If you use it to replace brushing and flossing. We’ve all been running late and popped some gum into our mouths instead of brushing our teeth—but if you do this on a daily basis, you’re robbing your mouth of the best oral hygiene practices that can save your smile! Chewing gum—even sugarless gum—should never replace your regular brushing and flossing routine.

Chewing gum can be very beneficial for your smile if you choose a quality sugar-free gum that’s sweetened with xylitol. This can help prevent cavities, encourage healthy bacteria, and result in a healthier mouth. Avoid chewing gum if you have TMJ disorder or favor gum with sugar, and as always, visit your dentist to ensure your teeth are healthy!

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Smoking and Periodontal Disease

Smoking can affect the normal function of the cells that make up gum tissue. The result is gums that are susceptible to infection. When a person smokes, the type of bacteria found in the mouth changes. More aggressive forms of bacteria take hold and make gum infections more common. Smoking also increases calculus on the teeth. Calculus, along or under the gumline, can cause serious gum damage if not regularly removed by a dental professional.

Because smoking also impairs blood flow in the gums, the healing process is slowed. This makes it difficult to recover from periodontal disease even if the infection can be cleared up. Unfortunately, even those who wish to kick the tobacco habit often have a difficult time due to the addictive nature of nicotine.

Is Smokeless Tobacco Better for Your Gums?

Absolutely not! Using chewing tobacco can result in a receding gumline. This not only leaves your gums open to infection, but it increases the odds of suffering from tooth decay. Since chewing-tobacco contains more nicotine than cigarettes, it may be even tougher to kick this habit. Nicotine is not only addictive, but it also contributes to faster calculus build up and gum problems.

Quick Facts About Periodontal Disease and Tobacco

– Smokers have double the odds of getting gum disease than non-smokers.

– Risks increase based on how much a person smokes and how long they have been a smoker.

– Gum disease treatment is not as successful for smokers.

– Chewing tobacco and pipe tobacco also increase the risk of periodontal disease.

Other Dental Health Conditions Related to Tobacco

Gum disease is not the only thing that tobacco users need to be concerned with when it comes to oral health. Other conditions related to smoking and chewing tobacco include:

– Various oral cancers (especially when using chewing tobacco)

– Receding gums

– Poor bone density

– An increased risk of dental implant failure

You Can Kick the Habit

There are various medications, gums, and patches on the market to help people break away from tobacco and nicotine. If you need assistance, ask your dentist for recommendations. Your dentist will be happy to help since kicking the tobacco habit is the best thing you can do for your periodontal health.

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Linked to Other Health Ailments

The inflammation is what ties gum disease to other health ailments. The inflammation in your mouth when periodontal disease is present is linked to heart disease, diabetes, stroke, rheumatoid arthritis, and premature birth in women who are pregnant. These are all serious health conditions that affect your quality of life and your lifespan—and let’s not forget that heart disease is the primary cause of death in men and women in the United States. Gum disease is linked to all of these health problems by the common factor of inflammation. By treating the gum disease in your mouth, you’re making it easier for your body to maintain health and eliminate the inflammatory response that comes with infection. By alleviating inflammation in your body, you can help reduce and prevent your risk of heart disease, stroke, and arthritis. Not to mention you can help save your teeth! Be aware of the signs and symptoms of gum disease—this includes bleeding gums when brushing, chronic bad breath, red gums, loose teeth, and buildup of plaque that looks brown along the gum line.

How to Treat Gum Disease?

Gum disease happens when plaque builds up on your teeth over time and eventually turns into tartar—a very hard substance that can only be scraped off and removed by a dentist. This tartar will affect the space where your gums meet your teeth, causing the gums to pull back from the teeth, infection to breed in this space, and inflammation. Inflammation of the gums is simply gingivitis, but gingivitis is a serious condition that can easily lead to periodontal disease. You can treat gingivitis or periodontal disease by visiting your dentist—he or she will properly clean your teeth and gum line to get rid of the tartar and help reduce the infection. Prevention is the best measure to take when it comes to gum disease or gingivitis. Brushing regularly (and properly), flossing to get at the hard-to-reach areas in between your teeth, and visiting your dentist regularly for check-ups are all important practices for your oral health—and your body!

Being aware that inflammation in your mouth in the form of gum disease is linked a variety of other serious health ailments is important. Taking care of your oral health is just as important as taking care of your body. One affects the other and by taking care of your oral health, you help to decrease inflammation in body. If you’re experiencing any of the symptoms of gum disease, visit your dentist today!

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Alcohol Irritates Mouth Tissues

The soft tissues in your mouth can become inflamed when exposed to alcohol repeatedly. Irritating your gum tissues can lead to inflammation, which over time can damage the roots of your teeth. The
components of alcohol (mainly acidic components and sugar) can also be very eroding to the enamel of your teeth, meaning you’re even more at risk for sensitive or painful teeth over time. In addition, alcohol dehydrates you, and these dehydrating effects take a big toll on your mouth. Our saliva protects our teeth and helps keep our oral bacteria balanced, but when drinking alcohol, the mouth becomes dry and is therefore a breeding ground for bad bacteria and plaque. If you are going to drink alcohol in moderate amounts, be sure to stay hydrated while doing so. Alcoholic drinks do not count towards your hydration fluids.

Poor Oral Health

People who drink alcohol excessively tend to neglect their oral health by not brushing and flossing
regularly in addition to not getting dental check-ups. This combination of practices can lead to buildup of plaque and bacteria over time from the dry mouth that alcohol creates as well as symptoms of tooth decay and gum disease. Frequent drinkers tend to not notice or ignore any symptoms they’re experiencing when it comes to their oral health, such as gums that are red and inflamed, bleeding, sensitive, or pulling back from their teeth. It’s important to get regular check-ups at your dentist so that your dentist can help you treat any symptoms you have before they get worse. Alcohol can be very harsh on the gums and can eventually lead to tooth loss because of gum disease, tooth decay, or cavities.

A Maintenance Routine Is Important

If your drinking habits are causing you to forget to brush once in while, this is not a big deal. If, however, this is happening regularly or several times a week, you’re giving bacteria and plaque time to build up on your teeth. Many people enjoy mixed drinks, which can be very high in sugar and damaging to the teeth. The combination of the sugar and alcohol can irritate your gums, damage your tooth enamel, and if left with enough time in an ideal environment such as a dry mouth, can wreak havoc on your teeth.

Nearly everyone has different ideas about what they consider abuse of alcohol to be. When it comes to your oral health, drinking alcohol can be considered abusive when it interferes with your oral health through gum disease or other problems with your mouth. Keep to a routine and remember to brush, floss, and visit your dentist regularly—your teeth depend on it.

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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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Periodontal disease begins with bacteria. There are always bacteria present in our mouths, but when left behind, they can build up and cause plaque, a sticky film that attacks the gums. Hardened plaque is called tartar, which has to be scraped off with dental instruments. As periodontal disease continues, it harms the gums and causes them to separate from the teeth. It weakens the connection between the bones and the tooth roots, and if not treated, it can eventually cause tooth loss.

Symptoms of periodontal disease that you may notice include swollen or reddened gums, painful gums or teeth or bleeding gums, especially after brushing. If you have any of these symptoms you should get to the dentist right away. Chronic bad breath that is not directly caused by food or beverages may be a sign of gum disease as well.

Periodontal disease is easy to treat when it is caught early. Simple gingivitis, the first stage of gum disease, is reversible with a thorough cleaning at the dentist’s office. When the disease is below the gum line, a deep cleaning can remove the plaque and tartar. At this stage the disease is called periodontitis.

A deep cleaning, called scaling, goes below the gum line with special instruments, and then the roots are smoothed to prevent reinfection. Antibiotics may be prescribed after treatment. In severe cases of periodontal disease surgery may be required for treatment.

Because genetics and illness can cause gum disease, even the most ardent brushers and flossers need to be aware that they may get gum disease too. The dentist can often diagnose gingivitis before you will see symptoms yourself. Dental checkups can catch periodontal disease early and treat it easily before it can get worse and require extensive treatment.

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The terms periodontal disease and gum disease are often used interchangeably. Both phrases refer to two types of gum problems. The first is Gingivitis which is gum inflammation. The second is Periodontitis which involves bone and ligament loss inside the gums which can result in loss of teeth. Both conditions are detrimental for oral health, but also have far reaching effects on the body, even being responsible for certain forms of cardiovascular disease. The good news is that periodontal disease can be reversed.

How do you know if you have periodontal disease? Your dentist is in the best position to diagnose the condition, and sticking to regular cleanings will allow your practitioner to catch the disease before it progresses. You can also tell at home, often when brushing or flossing. Diseased gums are quite tender and are more likely to bleed. Darker red or swollen gums are tell-tale signs of Gingivitis. What can your dentist do to help?

The treatment will depend on how severe the condition is. A professional cleaning will remove all of tartar and plaque that are causing the irritation. Then you will need to do your part at home by brushing and flossing regularly. Some who are unfamiliar with proper brushing techniques can benefit from using an electric toothbrush which will provide the right brushing motion for you. If you find using floss difficult, floss pics may help you to stay regular.

What if your condition has progressed? If you are experiencing Periodontitis, additional scaling on the part of the dentist may be necessary. Medication may also be provided. If you will need to continue applying medication at home, you will be given instruction on how to do so properly. Finally, don’t wait another 6 months to see your dentist. If the condition is serious, your dentist will want you back in about 4 weeks to make sure you have kept up with the routine and are making progress in fighting the disease.

In the worst case scenarios, your dentist may refer you to a periodontist who specializes in treating conditions of the supporting structures of the teeth. Surgery can be used to combat deep gingival pockets and sure up the bone structure. Sometimes a tooth or two needs to be sacrificed to save the rest.

Yes, periodontal disease is treatable. Early detection is the key to a full and speedy recovery. It is also vital to follow the instructions received by your dentist closely. Of course, the best way to fight periodontal disease is to avoid it in the first place through regular checkups and a good oral care routine at home.

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