Can I Get by with Brushing Once a Day?

Yes, provided you’re brushing correctly and at the right time. Brushing every tooth surface and even your tongue is important. The best time to brush is first thing in the morning. Although brushing twice a day is certainly recommended to keep plaque away, once a day is better than not at all!

Are My Silver Amalgam Fillings Dangerous?

Unfortunately, yes, they can be. Over 50% of these fillings are made of mercury, which can actually escape into the mouth and the body, causing adverse health effects and even disease. If you have silver fillings, talk to your dentist about replacing them, especially if you grind your teeth or drink hot beverages often.

Is Flossing Really That Important?

You bet it is! Flossing helps you clean every tooth surface, not just the ones you can reach with your brush. In fact, it’s been estimated that you’re missing about 40% of your mouth when you skip flossing. All you need is once a day to remove plaque and experience the benefits!

I’m Too Old for Braces, Right?

Nope. As long as your teeth are healthy, you’re likely a candidate for braces or Invisalign. There’s no time limit for getting your smile fixed. Whether you have an overbite, crooked teeth, or just want your smile to be a little straighter, talk to your dentist about recommending an orthodontist who can discuss how to make your smile its best.

Does My Baby Really Need to See the Dentist?

Absolutely. Children are more prone to tooth decay now than ever before. We recommend that babies see the dentist right around the time that their first tooth comes in, which is right around their first birthday. Your children’s baby teeth set the stage for their adult teeth, so their placement in the mouth is important. We can help you set your child up for dental care success for life! Getting your child used to the dentist will also save you lots of work later.

What Type of Toothbrush and Toothpaste Do You Recommend?

For your toothbrush, choose one with soft bristles. Hard bristles and hard brushing can damage teeth more than you think—they can actually remove enamel over time, therefore increasing your risk for tooth decay. For toothpaste, it really doesn’t matter as long as you’re using it!

We hope this helped to answer some of your most common questions about oral health care. Keeping your smile healthy and bright is simple—just brush, floss, and visit your oral health care professional. They can help you prevent tooth decay and gum disease and keep you smiling for life!

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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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Oral Cancer

During your professional cleaning, your dentist may conduct an oral cancer screening. An oral cancer screening involves both a visual and physical exam of your mouth to ensure no signs of oral cancer are present. If you have a sore in your mouth that won’t go away or a lump around your face or neck, you could have oral cancer. A dentist can help identify potential oral cancer. When you skip your cleanings, you miss this important screening that could save your life!

Gum Disease

The symptoms of gum disease can be sneaky: bad breath even after brushing or using mouthwash; bleeding while brushing once in a while; gums that look red or irritated. Many people don’t know that common symptoms like bad breath, bleeding while brushing, or red gums could be symptoms of gum disease! Gum disease can progress and eventually lead to tooth loss if not treated. Your dentist can examine your mouth for gum disease during your cleanings—but if you skip these, gum disease could be progressing and be much more difficult to treat!

Physical Health

Research links oral health to physical health! The amount of plaque in your mouth has been linked to the amount of plaque in your arteries. The healthier your mouth, the healthier your heart! Getting professional cleanings twice a year ensure that your mouth is clean and healthy. Your dentist can identify spots you’re missing while brushing or the proper techniques for flossing. When you miss your appointments, these spots keep getting missed and plaque builds up.

Tooth Decay

Cavities are very common and like gum disease, can progress if left untreated. Cavities can be difficult to notice, especially since they usually start out small. By the time you can see a cavity, it likely needs to be treated with a filling. Skipping your bi-annual teeth cleanings could leave cavities to progress in your mouth. If you consistently miss your dentist appointments, you could have cavities that get so large they’re unable to be treated with a filling—an extraction, root canal, or other form of treatment may be needed.

Scheduling an appointment at your dentist office for a teeth cleaning is easy and the appointment generally doesn’t take long. By keeping up with your oral health, you can ensure your body stays healthy as well as your mouth. You can also prevent tooth decay, gum disease, and catch oral cancer before it progresses. Keep up with your teeth cleanings— they could save your life!

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Plaque Needs to Be Scrubbed Away

Plaque is that fuzzy feeling you get on your teeth after waking in the morning and generally a few hours after brushing. Bacteria in our mouths as well as foods can cause this substance to build up on our teeth. Plaque typically doesn’t pose a risk to our teeth and gums as long as it’s sufficiently removed every day via brushing and at the dentist office during regular professional cleanings.

Mouthwash by itself can’t remove plaque—plaque needs to be gently scrubbed away with your toothbrush as well as with proper flossing. Swishing mouthwash around in your mouth can compliment your oral hygiene after brushing and flossing, but it won’t help to remove harmful plaque after an entire day of not brushing!

Mouthwash Can Help Remove Food

Mouthwash is beneficial to your smile in addition to brushing because it can help remove food that’s stuck between your teeth as well as make your breath fresher. Although getting food particles out from between your teeth is important, this is something that’s best done physically with floss rather than general rinsing—flossing will actually help to scrape plaque away as well!

Before bed, flossing to remove those food particles can be beneficial along with mouthwash. Mouthwash can help prevent buildup of food particles as well as the bad bacteria that can contribute to bad breath and gum disease. If you have chronic bad breath even after brushing and using mouthwash, visit your dentist—this is a symptom of gum disease!

An Occasional Substitute

We all forget to brush our teeth once in a while, or else we find ourselves in a situation without a toothbrush. When this happens, using mouthwash is better than not doing anything at all. If you’re without a toothbrush, swish with mouthwash as you normally would—overuse of mouthwash is just as damaging as not using it at all!

If you’re without floss, mouthwash can help with that as well. It can help remove that stuck food and kill bacteria associated with oral disease. However, remember that mouthwash is best used in combination with these practices—but if you forget your toothbrush once in a while, some mouthwash can help you make it through the night!

Mouthwash might seem like a quick and easy solution instead of brushing and flossing before bedtime, but the truth is that it’s just not an effective replacement to actually cleaning your teeth. Mouthwash can help prevent harmful bacteria and give you fresh breath, but you should never stop brushing your teeth in favor of mouthwash before bed!

Image provided by nenetus at Freedigitalphotos.net

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Always Rinse After Use

Rinsing your toothbrush after use is crucial. You don’t need hot or even purified water to do this—a careful rinse with tap water is all that’s needed. Rinsing your toothbrush removes the used toothpaste, food particles, and can help remove other bacteria from the bristles, which can help extend the life of your toothbrush.

Never Share

Sharing toothbrushes is never recommended. You can expose yourself to dangerous bacteria, viruses, and even blood borne pathogens from people who bleed while they brush. If you’re in need of a toothbrush, you can chew gum, use your finger, or floss and use mouthwash—but never borrow a friend or family member’s toothbrush!

Keep in an Open-Air Space

After your rinse your toothbrush, it’s important to let it dry out in a place where there’s sufficient air circulation. Keeping your toothbrush in a drawer or even behind the mirror isn’t a good idea—these places don’t allow the toothbrush to properly dry out and can even encourage the growth of bacteria and mold. Toothbrush cases can easily harbor bacteria as well!

The best way to store your toothbrush is by keeping it upright in a container that allows it to dry out. If you share a toothbrush container with another person or several people, it’s important to not let these toothbrushes touch. Storing your toothbrush upright allows water to drain off the bristles and the open-air space allows it to dry out and not harbor dangerous bacteria.

Replace Every 4 Months

Our toothbrushes need to be replaced whenever they begin showing signs of wear—this is just as true for electronic toothbrushes as for standard ones! You can easily get rid of the attachment of electronic toothbrushes and get a new one when needed. Standard toothbrushes are inexpensive and affordable to replace!

A good way to tell if your toothbrush is reaching the end of its use is to examine the bristles. If the bristles are frayed, they’re not properly cleaning your teeth and gums. You may also want to replace your toothbrush after an illness or if you’ve recently received treatment for tooth decay or gum disease, as your toothbrush may be holding on to bacteria that could re-introduce these problems to your mouth.

A general rule is every four months—keep track of when you last replaced your toothbrush, and always keep a spare in your home for easy replacement when the time comes!

The post How to Keep Your Toothbrush Safe and Clean! appeared first on Your Dental Health Resource.

Gingival surgery is a treatment for gum disease that involves grafting the gums so that they can heal from the bacteria and infections that caused gum disease, and most importantly, protect and support your teeth as they were meant to do.

Gum grafting is a procedure that many patients with advanced gum disease need in order to have a successful treatment. During this treatment, healthy gum tissue will be taken from one part of your mouth (typically the roof) and attached around the affected tooth or teeth to repair the damage done from the gum recession.

When Should Gingival Surgery Be Considered?

If you have gum disease, your dentist will likely recommend a deep cleaning procedure to see if this will help your gum disease. During this procedure, your dentist will do what is called root planing and scaling, which is also called periodontal therapy. During periodontal therapy, your dentist will remove plaque, tartar, and bacteria that are contributing to your gum disease. This is the scaling part; the root planing part helps to smooth your tooth’s root in order to keep the bacteria and plaque from going back beneath the gums. This procedure is meant to allow your mouth to heal from gum disease.

However, if periodontal therapy is unsuccessful and your gums have receded past a certain point, your dentist may suggest gingival surgery. Gingival surgery should only be considered after periodontal therapy has proven ineffective.

What Can Patients Expect During the Procedure?

During the procedure, a piece of healthy gum tissue will be removed from one part of your mouth and be attached to the receding gums of your tooth or teeth. After the procedure, you’ll be allowed to go home with aftercare instructions.

Your oral surgeon will advise you to avoid brushing or flossing the tooth or teeth that received the gum grafts, and you may have a special rinse to help your mouth remain clean while it’s healing. You may also need some over-the- counter pain medications to ease your discomfort of the portion of your mouth from which the graft was taken.

Healing time is different for everyone, but talk with your oral surgeon and be sure to carefully follow his or her instructions. Always seek help if you have questions or concerns! Gingival surgery is considered a safe and effective treatment when it comes to significant gum recession as a result of gum disease. Gum recession often happens slowly, so you may not notice a changed appearance or the symptoms until it’s too late. Regular checkups can help your dentist spot gum disease before gingival surgery is necessary!

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There are several different types of fillings these days. Although the traditional amalgam (silver) fillings aren’t as popular anymore, composite fillings, ceramic, and glass ionomers are all options you may have. You and your dentist will decide on the best one for you based on the size and location of your cavity. Talk with your dentist about what to expect the setting time for your material to be—not every material has the same one!

Brush and Floss Gently

After you get your cavity filled, you can brush and floss as normal—and this means gently! Always choose a soft-bristled toothbrush and gently brush your teeth twice a day and floss at least once a day. No need to take special care when brushing around your cavity, just ensure your brushing is gentle so to not damage your enamel or your new filling!

Avoid Extreme Hot or Cold Foods

Sensitivity may happen as a result of any food you consume with extreme temperatures for the next few days or weeks. You’ll want to try and avoid foods with extreme temperatures; these could not only hurt you but your filling! You may also experience sensitivity when biting down, a sensation that should go away as your mouth heals.

Take Caution When Chewing

Be gentle when chewing. It may help to chew on the opposite side that your cavity was filled on. Be careful while eating and drinking, especially because of the local anesthesia as well as the time it’ll take your filling to set. Avoid eating or drinking for a couple hours while the anesthesia wears off and you can comfortably chew food again, and if you can, avoid chewing directly on the filling for a couple of days.

Contact Your Dentist

It’s always best to follow up with your dentist to ensure the filling has set properly, but in the meantime, call your dentist if you have extreme pain, trouble biting down on the filled tooth, or notice cracks in the filled tooth. Your dentist will advise you on which symptoms are normal and which aren’t. Always call your dentist if you have any questions or concerns!

With the proper care, your filling will set securely and your tooth will be protected for years. Talk with your dentist about the best filling material of your tooth, and treat your mouth with care in the days after the procedure. This includes avoiding hot and cold foods, chewing carefully, and brushing gently!

The post The Best Ways to Take Care of Your New Filling appeared first on Your Dental Health Resource.

Vegetarians Live Longer

First, let’s define the difference between vegetarians and vegans: vegetarians do not consume any meat products, including fish (vegetarians that consume fish are called pescetarians). However, vegetarians still eat dairy and eggs and wear animal products. Vegans, on the other hand, adopt an animal-free lifestyle when it comes to any type of consumption. Vegans do not eat meat, eggs, or dairy, will not wear leather, and tend to ensure all their beauty products are cruelty-free.

Both of these diets have a range of health benefits if done properly. Physicians see less heart disease and cancer among vegetarians as opposed to meat eaters. Vegetarians may also be more health conscious, and will limit their alcohol consumption, sugar intake, and drink more water as well as exercise. People who eat a vegetarian diet tend to have a greater awareness of how food impacts their bodies as well as the planet, and their health benefits from this!

They Tend to Consume Less Vitamin D and Calcium

Many people are deficient in vitamin D, not just vegetarians! However, because of their diets, vegetarians tend to consume less vitamin D3 than non-vegetarians, and vegans tend to do worse on this scale due to the fact that they don’t eat eggs and dairy. Vegetarians also tend not to get as much calcium, although calcium is certainly feasible for vegetarians to consume as they have the option of eating yogurt and cheese.

Vitamin D and calcium are essential nutrients for a healthy smile! Both calcium and vitamin D contribute to formation of strong, healthy bones—and your teeth are rooted in your jaw bones! Vitamin D is essential for calcium absorption and can also help with gum disease as well as gum inflammation.

How Vegetarians Can Ensure Proper Nutrition for Their Smile

By consuming enough vitamin D and calcium in their well-balanced diet, vegetarians can have excellent dental health as well as bodily health. Vegetarians have the option of consuming dairy products high in calcium and vitamin D including cheese, yogurt, and milk. If you’re a vegetarian that avoids dairy, look for non-dairy alternatives to these products, and find quality supplements. Vegetarians can also aim to get 10-20 minutes of sunlight every day. Our bodies make vitamin D when exposed to sunlight, and can store vitamin D in the body.

If you eat a vegetarian diet, get enough calcium and vitamin D to ensure excellent dental health! Your teeth need strong bones and healthy gums to thrive. As vegetarians are usually healthier than non-vegetarians, ensuring proper vitamin and mineral intake can make for a super-healthy smile!

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Determine What’s Causing the Swelling

After your dentist visit to check for gum disease, discuss what could be causing the swelling. You may have just gotten braces, your wisdom teeth removed, or had an injury to your mouth. These are the more obvious causes, but there are less obvious ones as well. Pregnant women tend to experience swollen gums, or you may not be brushing and flossing properly. Only when you determine what’s causing the swelling can you take effective steps to treat the problem!

Brush and Floss Gently

Are you brushing too hard? This could be causing your gum irritation. You want to be sure to choose a soft-bristled toothbrush and brush gently. Plaque doesn’t require much effort to remove, and if you’re brushing twice a day, soft brushing will certainly do the trick to remove this sticky substance. Flossing gently once a day can also help to remove any plaque that’s built up and could be irritating your gums. The American Dental Association recommends you use about 18 inches and use a clean section for every tooth!

Rinse with Salt Water

A salt water solution could help soothe your gums and remove any irritants such as bacteria or trapped food particles. Try a quarter teaspoon or up to a teaspoon in a cup of warm water. Swish the salt water around gently in your mouth for a minute or so, then spit out. Be sure not to swallow as this solution could contain bacteria and food particles that you don’t want in your body!

Do Warm and Cold Compresses

Alternating warm and cold compresses to the outside of the affected area can increase circulation and help reduce your gum swelling. While warm compresses tend to be soothing, cold compresses are more effective at helping to reduce pain. Alternate warm and cold and hold against your face, don’t apply the compress directly to your gums. Always be sure to use a clean cloth and never apply extreme temperatures to your skin.

Check Your Diet

If you and your dentist are stumped about what’s causing your gum swelling, it might be time for some blood work. You could be deficient in key nutrients that could be leading to circulation or healing issues. Always ensure to eat a well balanced diet with plenty of fresh vegetables, protein, and healthy fats. These foods will help encourage total oral health in addition to reducing your gum swelling.

Gum swelling can be unsightly and painful. Your first step is a trip to the dentist to ensure you’re not suffering from gum disease. Then, you can try the steps listed above to try and improve your gum swelling. Soothing compresses, salt water rinses, and proper brushing and flossing can help!

Photo courtesy of nenetus at FreeDigitalPhotos.net

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Consider CareCredit

Many dentist offices work with CareCredit, which is a third-party financer that will often finance your dental work for 0% interest. CareCredit can be used to pay for any dental work, not just cosmetic work.

If you don’t have dental insurance and are worried about getting check-ups and cleanings, CareCredit can help there too! CareCredit can help you to pay for out-of- pocket costs that your insurance can’t or won’t cover when it comes to cosmetic dentistry. From veneers to dentures, you can finance your cosmetic densitry. You can even use CareCredit for Invisalign and braces! Find out more about what CareCredit offers through your dentist’s office or through CareCredit.

Talk with Your Dentist Office

Your dentist office is there to provide you with the best care for your oral health. Your dentist office should work with you to finance any dental care that you need, whether it be a checkup or a cosmetic dentistry procedure. Talk with the receptionist at your dentist office whether you have insurance or not.

He or she can help you find out if financing is possible with your monthly budget and they can also help you navigate what your insurance will cover and what it won’t. You should never have to forgo dental care just because you can’t afford it, so talk with your dentist office about what you can afford and how they can accommodate you!

What Is Your Smile Worth?

It’s hard to have strong self confidence without a great smile. It’s often the first thing people notice about you! Don’t put off your dream smile just because you think you can’t afford the procedure that you need to make your smile healthy and beautiful again. Any cosmetic dentistry procedure you’d like to have done can be financed either through your dentist office or CareCredit. Although some procedures may be more expensive than others, consider how it will feel to have a gorgeous, confident smile when your cosmetic dentistry work is done. What is having a beautiful smile worth to you?

Cosmetic dentistry is more affordable than you think! Talk with your dentist about your monthly budget and what you can afford to pay for your care. Your dentist office may also work with CareCredit in order to help you finance any cosmetic dentistry work you’d like done. You always have options when it comes to paying for your smile, and remember—the end result will make your cosmetic dentistry totally worth it!

Image courtesy of nenetus at FreeDigitalPhotos.net

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