Featuring Flavored Floss

The advertisement for this floss made it sound like you could feel more motivated to floss if your floss had the "amazing flavor of crispy fried bacon".  I'm not sold, however, giving it more thought, I guess I do feel like brushing my teeth and flossing when I have the after-taste of bacon, that filmy, savory taste that isn't content to stay in my mouth, but permeates the fabric of my clothing and attaches itself to furniture and the air in my house like lichen.
Really this is for the single ladies seeking competing cohorts of cavemen.  What better way to get him to pop his heel during your first kiss?  Best stick with mint, in my opinion, but here is the website if you're interested.  Apparently there is a whole line of scents and other bacon products for that guy you think will only like you if you appeal to his hunger for crispy pork fat.
 http://www.mcphee.com/shop/products/Bacon-Floss.html

In all seriousness, though, bacon or other flavor, floss will help you prevent decay and gum disease.  The bacteria we all carry around in our mouths needs only roughly twelve hours to begin building colonies, and the colonies are taking minerals from your teeth even before the twelve hours.  So, at least once per day, make sure you floss.

Leave It to the Kids!

Maybe you are familiar with what happens to some unsupervised children and food:  it becomes a war!  Amazingly enough, it is easy to let kids decide how clean their teeth will be.  It just seems easier to let them brush their own teeth, especially those strong-willed-independent-types.  Besides keeping the kids from hosing $5 in toothpaste into the sink to make it look  like in the commercials, kids need supervision to help them brush correctly until they are about 8 years old.  Each parent will need to make the decision as to when they think their child is ready to brush solo.  Preventing cavities is vital both to prevent spending a lot of money on baby tooth fillings, and to prevent the fear that some children may develop if they have to have cavities filled at a young age.  Talk to your dentist about when your child is ready to brush their own teeth, and how they are doing brushing their own teeth.  Two other posts that may be helpful are:  No Bottles for Bed and Remember!.

One Piece of the Puzzle...

Having a healthy mouth is only one piece of the puzzle when it comes to overall health, but it is just as vital a piece!  Our mouth is connected to the rest of our body.  Our mouths have a great capacity to heal when they are healthy, and sometimes this can mean that your mouth is easy to ignore when it comes to prioritizing your health.  You may be tempted to say that the gum disease or cavities are not hurting right now, so they can wait for treatment.  As far as gum disease is concerned, oral health physicians are still unable to predictably re-grow the bone you lose, so at this point, any bone you lose to gum disease is lost forever.  Also, once a tooth is drilled to remove a cavity, only a filling or other non-tooth material can be used to fill the space.  Let's face it, no dental material is as good as what your body formed to begin with.  And even though our parents or grandparents got by fine with dentures, they had resigned themselves to it.  If we ask them whether they prefer real teeth and tasting their food, or getting dentures, they would probably say they wished they could go back and take better care of their mouths.  All of this is why our attitude toward our mouths today should be one of prevention and pro-activity.  This is our health after all!

Bacteria!

There are millions of different bacteria, and many different kinds live in our mouths.  A handful of species are known to cause cavities.  Recent research into possibly eliminating only the harmful bacteria produced the future possibility of a mouthwash that keeps us from getting cavities.  Here is a link to a summary article:  http://www.procprblog.com/ucla-develops-innovative-anti-bacterial-mouthwash-to-wipe-out-tooth-decay .

It seems that if the mouthwash proves safe, we will have a powerful tool to prevent oral health problems.

The Power of Sight

This is an enlarged photo of between two teeth.  The pink skin is gum tissue.  The blue arrows are pointing to a fracture in the tooth above a silver filling.  When you go to the dentist, you are not just having your teeth cleaned.  You clean your teeth at home.  One of the important parts of your regular dental office visit is to have your dentist check for fractures and signs of failing restorations, such as the one pictured here.
With this information and your oral health doctor's recommendations in mind, you can make wise decisions about what to do to maintain your oral health at the optimum level.  One part of the optimum level is having teeth that can be cleaned at home.  The crack pictured here not only weakens the tooth, but it can be a microscopic crevice where bacteria build-up and create a cavity.  There is a possibility of fracture in this tooth, maybe even to the point where the tooth cannot be saved.  Regular visits to your dentist's office will help you stay ahead of the game.

No Bottles For Bed

Having four children myself, I am aware of the ease of giving a baby a bottle to put it to sleep.  Did you know that this may be very bad for a baby?  If a baby is put to sleep with a bottle, there is a chance that the child will develop cavities.  Babies should be helped to go to sleep without a bottle if possible.  A bottle should only be given to a child during the day and only up to one year of age, then they should be taught to use a sippy-cup or cup.  As soon as they're born, the baby's guardian can brush the gums with a finger, getting the baby used to having their mouths cleaned every day, which they will learn to do themselves once they are older.  Parents should help their children brush their teeth until they are eight years old.  Once the teeth come out, or erupt, the baby can be taken to their first dentist's office visit.  This helps the child to become accustomed to the dentist having instruments in their mouth, which they will need to learn in order to maintain their teeth.  Sometimes, a pediatric dentist's office has an easier atmosphere for children.  If you see any staining on an infant's teeth, get them to a dentist as soon as you can to prevent any tooth decay.

The Frayed

Maybe it's been a while since you replaced your toothbrush, but hopefully it doesn't look like this...Frayed toothbrushes don't clean our teeth as well, but they do a good job at creating a false sense of security.  The stiff, frayed bristles don't clean the pits of our teeth anymore, and they also don't reach down into small areas near the gums where cavities and gum disease form.  For the same reason that you wouldn't want to use a frayed toothbrush, you'll want to stick with soft bristles:  the hard bristles just don't clean as well and they may even hurt your mouth.  The American Dental Association recommends replacing your toothbrush or toothbrush head at least every three months.  See ada.org for more information.

An Erosive Relationship...

Some of us enjoy lemonade as our preferred drink.  And you might enjoy an ice-cold Coke or Pepsi, also.  There is also a very acidic substance that some of us deal with on a daily basis:  stomach acid.  If you have acid reflux or anything like it, your stomach acid is probably doing a number on your teeth!  In addition, acidic drinks, like soda and lemonade, can make your enamel thin or even etch it away, which exposes the live part of your teeth.  If the live part is exposed, then your teeth may be sensitive to temperature and sweets.  Although it may be unrealistic to stop drinking soda or sucking on lemons entirely, controlling you diet and what you drink and eat is important to keeping your mouth healthy.  There are things you can do if you suspect that your drinks are too acidic.  You can rinse your mouth out with water after drinking.  Also, you can chew sugarless gum or suck on sugarless candy to stimulate your saliva.  Saliva is your natural protector because it can buffer the acids in your mouth to a degree.  If you have questions about erosion, ask your dentist.

Prevention is Better Than Patching!

If while driving, heaven forbid, you have ever accidentally zoned out and struck another vehicle with your front fender, you know how much easier it is to prevent an accident than it is to pay for one in time and money.  Nowadays, we have the luxury of having fenders and our car bodies replaced with new parts, but there was a time when hammering out the dents and using Bondo before repainting were the only options.  In a way, this can be compared to what happens when we 'zone out' and neglect our oral health.  It costs much less in time and money to prevent the decay or gum disease than it is to patch things up.  Most unfortunately, we have no current method to regrow your teeth or your gums/bone, so once we remove the cavity or once the gum disease has taken your bone, we have only the option of patching things up, or cleaning things out, and maintaining the new condition.  As your dentist knows, once the tooth is patched, it is susceptible to needing another patch later, often progressing to larger treatment.  It is better to prevent than patch!

What if I have braces?

Braces, or any orthodontic appliances, make it so we need to do a lot of extra work to clean our teeth.  The metal from the appliances can keep food and bacteria stuck to our teeth easier, increasing our risk of cavities, gum disease, and bad breath.  There are things you can do to help clean your teeth with braces.  One, you can purchase an electric toothbrush.  Electric toothbrushes can help to do more work for the amount of time you brush.  There are even inexpensive electric toothbrushes that can help.  Flossing can be very tedious when you have to work around braces.  Floss threaders can be used, and there are other options that you can ask your oral health professional about.  Another vital time to have your teeth checked is after the braces come off!

Getting rid of the tartar...

http://www.lifesambrosia.com/2009/10/homemade-tartar-sauce-recipe.html

Tartar sauce is great with fish, but the tartar we all need to get rid of frequently is the tartar on our teeth.  Another name for it is calculus, and we all know what that word means:  a hard math class.  The tartar we're talking about is a build-up of bacteria, literally a colony of bacteria, and they've moved in!  The hard tartar usually can only come off during a visit to your dentist for a check-up and cleaning.  Where tartar is more of a problem is if it builds below your gumline, where your tooth brush can't reach.  This tartar is irritating to your body and in response, your body can stay inflamed in the area.  Over time, the inflammation can cause the bone around your teeth to withdraw, making your teeth loose.  The inflammation is what we call active periodontal disease, or active gum disease.
You can do something about tartar to prevent it!  As you brush and floss daily, you are breaking up the bacteria so they can't build tartar.  Without their removal the bacteria can colonize, and this can lead to active gum disease and cavities.  See your oral health professional today to determine any needs you have, and you can ask if there are any areas in your mouth where tartar can get trapped.

Amalgam VS. Composite

What is the difference between composite fillings and amalgam fillings?  They are different in color, obviously one being tooth colored and the other being silver.  In addition, there are structural differences and differences in placement technique that are important to consider when you are deciding between the two.  Silver fillings tend to cost less, however, silver fillings require that a certain amount of your tooth be removed so that the silver will be strong.  This means that even if the cavity is small, the filling requires that healthy tooth structure may be removed.  A composite filling is bonded to teeth, and can remain small:  only the cavity need be removed to restore the tooth.  New advances in composite fillings are making them more similar in longevity and strength as silver fillings without having to drill so much of the tooth out.  Ask your dentist to recommend a filling material to you according to your individual needs.

Perhaps one of the largest contributors to gum disease in recent years is smoking.  Smoking, like diabetes, causes the blood supply to the gum tissue to decrease, leading to lessened healing.  Remember our mouth usually heals rapidly when compared to tissue outside of our mouth.  With less blood supply, gum tissue is more easily overrun by bacteria.  Also, smoking can cause a dry mouth, which the bacteria love:  they grow more rapidly without saliva to wash them away.  Finally, smoking is one of the leading causes of oral cancer.
A crash course in the process of gum disease is as follows:  first, the bacteria build "soft houses".  This is the fuzzy feeling on our teeth that we want to brush off when we notice it.  If given enough time, the bacteria build "hard houses" otherwise known as tartar, or calculus.  This is similar to the build-up found in old plumbing.  Most of us will remove the bacteria when we feel the fuzziness, but when gum disease is present, we cannot clean deeply enough to remove all the bacteria, so they are free to keep building.  This, in turn, causes more swelling and deeper pockets, which trap more bacteria.  All of this bacteria must be cleaned out by a professional at your dentist's office.
There are resources to help you quit smoking, which will save your mouth from the nasty side effects and definitely cost less from both the cost of buying smokes and the cost of repairing the damage done.

Keep the SeeSaw at Your End!

Good oral health may seem to come naturally to some people and seem completely out of reach to other people.  Like many seemingly impossibilities, oral health is possible for everyone who understands how our mouth is like a seesaw!
On one end of the seesaw is the bacteria, and on the other side are the things we do to combat the bacteria.  The bacteria tip the seesaw to their side when we eat because the bacteria eat what we eat and then produce acid.  We tip the seesaw to our side when the acid doesn't effect us.  We can do many things to tip the seesaw to our side, which will prevent cavities and gum disease.  Here are five things we can do to make sure the bacterial acid doesn't win:

     1.  Sugarless gum or candy.  For the first thirty minutes after eating we are most susceptible to acid, so we can combat it with chewing sugarless gum, sucking on sugarless candy, or at the very least swishing with water.  Anything to promote our saliva, which acts as a natural acid buffer.
     2.  Promote saliva.  On that same note, our saliva is our natural protector from cavities and gum disease, so if we are taking medicine that gives us dry mouth as a side effect, or if we just notice that we have a dry mouth, we should do things that make saliva, keeping our mouth wet as often as we can, perhaps discussing changing medications if possible, or cleaning our teeth frequently to prevent the build-up of bacteria.
     3.  Brush and floss.  Brushing our teeth and flossing between our teeth both mechanically remove build-ups of bacteria.  The less bacteria, the less acid can be produced.
     4.  Fluoride.  When we use fluoridated toothpaste, we are helping remineralize places where the bacterial acid has demineralized our teeth.  The acid produced by bacteria can make small white spots on our teeth that are whiter than our natural tooth color.  These "white spots" can be a precursor to cavities, so if you see white spots on your teeth, have your health professional evaluate them.
     5.  Regular visit to the dentist.  As previously posted, getting your teeth clean is more than just a gimmick:  at the dental office, your teeth are cleaned below the gums to a degree, and all of your teeth, gums, and bone levels are evaluated to let you know as soon as possible of any trends you should be aware of.

These five suggestions can help to keep the seesaw on your side, in other words, the bacterial acid will be neutralized.

Is It Really Just a Cleaning?

"I have my cleaning at the dentist tomorrow..."  Although we may have been raised calling it a dental cleaning, the truth is that much more is going on than cleaning.  Like getting your oil changed as needed, going to the dentist regularly for a "cleaning" is actually much more.  The auto mechanic checks other fluids, asks if there are any concerning noises, malfunctions, etc., and examines everything for any other needs your car may have.  Well, when you see your dentist for your previously agreed upon maintenance visit, you are either given a clean bill of health, or a plan of action is discussed to bring your oral health back up to optimal.  Also, the cleaning that is performed ensures that even the spots you can't reach are cleaned.  By this we mean deep in between your teeth and gums where your tooth brush doesn't reach.  In addition to the cleaning, however, the teeth are examined for any decay, the gums and bone are examined for any trends of recession or inflammation, and any of your concerns can be discussed.  So a "cleaning" is really an oral health maintenance visit!  Don't worry, if you get behind on your maintenance, you can always get back on schedule.

Who's in Charge?

     Ah, the '80's...many of us recognize the phrase "Charles in charge" from the sitcom made famous by an in-house, male sitter.  Although we may not select someone like Charles to make decisions for us, it can be tempting to have someone else take responsibility for big decisions.
     It is wise to realize early that each of us is our own best healthcare provider.  If we stop to think, it is ironic that we make many decisions about our health without consulting anyone:  whether to smoke, floss our teeth, or  overeat.  Because the physicians, nurses, and doctors we see are caring individuals, we can sometimes fall into the habit of expecting them to "fix" whatever problems we may have caused through our decisions or lack of discipline.  Our healthcare providers will even try to meet whatever reasonable expectations we have, however, make no mistake:  we are responsible for our own health.
     So next time you see your doctor or nurse to discuss any treatment, make sure you understand what is going on, that you have all of your questions answered, and especially that you make the decision for yourself.

Is Halloween Better Than Thanksgiving?

Everyone knows or is learning that soda and candy can lead to a greater number of trips to the dentist, but did you know that all of those foods we enjoy on Thanksgiving may do the same thing?  That's right, many people don't realize that the bacteria in our mouths that eat candy enjoy not just a little pumpkin pie, but dinner rolls, cranberry sauce, and even stuffing!  Bacteria are not prejudice:  they love almost any refined carbohydrate.  Also, when we sleep, our natural protector, saliva, is reduced.  Which means that napping after Thanksgiving dinner can contribute to cavities!