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As dental professionals, we can't emphasize the importance of prevention in oral care. One significant preventive measure is using mouthguards, crucial for night bruxism and athletic activities. Though the temptation to opt for over-the-counter mouthguards is understandable, here's why a custom mouthguard crafted by your dentist is a superior choice.
Let's start with the basics. Nightguards are essential for those who clench and grind their teeth during sleep, a condition known as bruxism. This habit can lead to severe tooth damage over time. Wearing a nightguard mitigates this risk. Similarly, sports guards are indispensable for athletes, offering protection during physical activities. Contrary to popular belief, these aren't exclusive to high-contact sports; even activities like gymnastics or cycling can pose risks to your oral health.
While over-the-counter mouthguards offer immediacy and affordability, they have notable limitations. Pre-formed stock mouthguards, despite being ready to use, seldom provide a perfect fit due to their limited size options. Boil-and-bite alternatives offer a better fit but compromise on durability and thickness, necessitating frequent replacements.
In contrast, custom mouthguards from your dentist are tailored to your specific dental structure. The process begins with an impression of your teeth, from which a detailed mold is created. This mold is a blueprint for a high-quality plastic mouthguard precisely shaped for maximum comfort and protection. For sports guards, there's the bonus of personalization with custom colors aligning with your personal style or team colors.
The essential advantage of a dentist-made mouthguard is its superior fit and comfort. A well-fitting mouthguard provides optimal protection and encourages regular use – a crucial factor in preventing dental emergencies. While the initial cost might be higher than store-bought options, the long-term benefits – comfort, durability, and effective protection – make custom mouthguards a wise investment in dental health.
Undergoing a dental crown procedure is a common experience for many and is crucial in restoring and strengthening your teeth. While we always aim for optimal dental health where such interventions aren't necessary, dental crowns are sometimes essential. If you've recently received a dental crown, here are some vital tips to ensure your comfort and the crown's longevity once you're back home.
Post-procedure, your mouth may still be numb due to the local anesthetic used during the treatment. It's wise to avoid eating or chewing until the numbness completely subsides. When you can't feel certain parts of your mouth, you risk accidentally biting your cheek or tongue, so waiting until full sensation returns is best.
You can continue brushing and flossing as usual following the crown placement. However, some sensitivity to temperature or pressure is normal. If you experience this, consider switching to a desensitizing toothpaste. Don't hesitate to ask for recommendations on suitable brands. Persistent sensitivity beyond a few days warrants a call to our office for a check-up.
It's not uncommon to experience some gum soreness following the procedure. To alleviate this, rinse your mouth with a warm saltwater solution (one teaspoon of salt in a glass of warm water) three times daily. This simple remedy can effectively reduce swelling and ease discomfort.
If you notice an increase in sensitivity, discomfort, or an uneven bite after three to four days, please contact us promptly. These could be signs that your crown needs some final adjustments. While we strive for perfection on the first attempt, dental restorations are a blend of precise science and meticulous artistry; occasionally, adjustments are necessary.
Remember, after receiving a dental crown or undergoing any dental treatment, you should never hesitate to reach out with any concerns or questions. Our goal is to ensure the success of the treatment and your comfort and satisfaction. With the proper care and attention, your new crown can be a seamless and comfortable addition to your smile.
Rinse your mouth with regular water after enjoying sparkling water; switching from sugary sodas to sparkling waters like NZ sparkling, Perrier, or Bubly is a positive step for overall health; it's not a foolproof solution for dental health. The common misconception is that tooth decay is only caused by sugar, but the real enemy is acid, which is present in sparkling waters, too.
The Dental Dilemma of Acid Bacteria in your mouth feast on sugars, transforming them into acids. These acids are harmful, eroding tooth enamel and leading to cavities, exposing the more sensitive dentin. Sparkling water introduces carbonic acid directly to your teeth, bypassing sugar. Even unflavored sparkling water, with a pH of around 5, is more acidic than regular tap water, which typically has a pH of 7. Flavored varieties can be even more acidic, nearing the acidity levels of vinegar.
You can balance Sparkling Water Consumption. Despite the potential risks, sparkling water is still a better choice than soda, particularly from an overall health perspective. However, if you're a fan of these fizzy drinks, there are ways to mitigate the dental risks:
Consider Your Dental Health If you already have dental concerns like weakened enamel, existing decay, or other oral health issues, it's advisable to stick to plain water. Everyone's oral health is unique, and what might be harmless for one person could be problematic for another.
Always Discuss with a Dentist We encourage you to speak with your dentist or hygienist about your dietary habits, especially if you're fond of acidic drinks like sparkling water. They can provide personalized advice based on your oral health needs and help you make informed decisions about your dental care. Remember, moderation is vital, and understanding how different beverages affect your teeth is crucial in maintaining a healthy, happy smile.
With the way dentists and hygienists are always sucking saliva away or blowing your teeth dry, you’d think we had something against it. But the truth is that saliva is very beneficial to your overall and oral health. Here are a few facts about how saliva protects your smile that you may not already know.
Saliva does more than keep your mouth moist and lubricate your food for easy swallowing, it actually starts the digestion process. Saliva contains a type of enzyme called amylase that breaks down the starch in foods into sugars so they can be more easily digested. This is why foods that contain a lot of starch, such as potatoes, may get a slightly sweet flavor as they’re chewed.
Saliva holds on to minerals that you get from what you eat and drink and helps distribute these minerals to your teeth. In particular, saliva can hold on the fluoride from your diet and from your toothpaste or mouthwash. This is one reason you shouldn’t rinse with water for at least 30 minutes after brushing! You would be washing away or diluting that fluoride-filled saliva. The minerals in your saliva can help rebuild damage to your teeth, such as the very earliest stages of a cavity.
We produce saliva continuously when we’re awake and swallow it regularly. This may seem like just a gross unnecessary quirk of being human, but it actually does serve a purpose. Your saliva constantly washes your mouth, helping to remove food debris that may be stuck to your teeth and gums. Chewing gum after eating is beneficial to your teeth not because of any particular quality of the gum, but because the chewing action and the flavors stimulate your salivary glands, helping to cleanse your mouth.
Saliva is an essential part of the mechanism by which you taste the flavors in your food. Your taste buds need a liquid between them and your food in order for the flavor molecules to bind to the taste buds’ chemical receptors. Without this liquid medium between them, the flavor “message” can’t get through. For a great demonstration of this process, try this experiment. Pat your tongue dry with a towel then try eat a dry food such as crackers or cookies. Then, take another taste after re-moistening your mouth with water. Big difference, right?
A dentist or a dental hygienist can take a quick look inside your mouth and tell you whether you clench and grind your teeth in your sleep. We often find that patients are skeptical that we can glean this information from just a brief examination, but our diagnoses is much less like palm reading or interpreting tea leaves than it may seem. Here’s what we’re seeing when we look in your mouth:
Bruxism is the medical term for clenching and grinding your teeth, and it can leave visible signs on your teeth. The repetitive stress of the grinding motion can cause teeth to get worn down, starting with the hard outer enamel layer and getting down to the softer dentin layer as the damage progresses. People who have been grinding for a long time usually have teeth that are shorter with a flattened appearance along the edges, as if the teeth have all been trimmed to be the same length. Severe cases of bruxism can even lead to cracked or broken teeth, especially in people who have already had teeth repaired with a crown.
Tension headaches can be caused by bruxism. All the pressure from the constantly tight jaw can build up and cause pain. Patients who report waking up with headaches on a regular basis may clench and grind in their sleep. Using a nightguard each night might reduce or eliminate these headaches completely.
Recent studies have shown a correlation between bruxism and TMD, which is a disorder of the jaw that causes pain and other problems. The temporomandibular joint is your main jaw joint, and there is some evidence that the strain caused by clenching and grinding can contribute to joint problems. Those with bruxism can cause enlargement of the masseter muscle, which helps operate the movement of the lower jaw. Constant clenching and grinding “works out” this muscle, causing it to bulk up, contributing to a square-jawed appearance.
Believe it or not, clenching and grinding can actually change the shape of your bone. Though not particularly common, some people with bruxism develop bony growths on the inside of their lower jaw, under the tongue. These growths are called mandibular tori, and they are harmless and benign. However, their presence can indicate to the dentist that you clench and grind, even if you don’t have any of the other signs and symptoms mentioned above.
Dental hygienists see thousands and thousands of patients’ mouths each year. They know that no two people’s mouths or oral health are quite the same. Nonetheless, there are some things that patients don’t know about caring for their smiles that seem to come up again and again. Here are four things your hygienist wishes you knew that would keep your teeth whiter, stronger and healthier.
The common knowledge used to be that brushing too hard with your toothbrush can cause gum recession. However, recent evidence indicates that clenching and grinding your teeth may contribute more to gum recession than aggressive brushing. Gum recession is when your gums pull away from your teeth, giving your teeth a longer appearance and exposing more of your tooth structure to the risk of tooth decay.
Some dental hygienists will say that certain types of floss are better than others. Ultra-smooth, ultra-thin flosses may be easier to get between your teeth and glide easily once there, however, the lack of friction created by this type of floss may not be as good at removing plaque. Thicker, wax-coated flosses may be a little harder to ease into tight spaces but they are also better at removing debris from between your teeth efficiently. That being said, any dental hygienist will tell you that thin and smooth floss is better than no floss at all!
You may not know it, but that white film you see on your tongue sometimes is actually plaque! The same sticky bacteria-filled buildup that accumulates on your teeth can also accumulate on your tongue. The rough surface created by your taste buds is great for hiding bacteria and debris. Brushing or scraping your tongue when you brush your teeth can get rid of this buildup. If you want recommendations for tools or techniques for cleaning your tongue, just ask your hygienist at your next cleaning.
Even though it looks more watery and tastes less bold than coffee, tea actually causes worse teeth staining and yellowing. This may come as a surprise to tea drinkers who think they’ve opted for the milder of the two beverages, and there is a catch. Black coffee on its own stains worse than tea, but coffee with milk is not as bad on its own. In summary, the order of your morning drink choices from most staining to less staining is: black coffee, tea, and coffee with milk or cream. If you’re a tea drinker and want whiter teeth, consider switching to a white tea instead of black or green.
In addition to good dental hygiene and regular checkups, knowing how to spot a dental problem early can be extremely helpful when in preventing toothaches or the need for a root canal. Trouble is, catching the signs of a cavity can be a little tricky, especially since they usually don’t cause any symptoms that you can feel and there are a variety of types and appearances. There are three major kinds of cavities:
These cavities appear on the chewing surfaces of teeth and are more common on back teeth (i.e. molars). Bits of food and the resulting plaque can easily get stuck in the peaks and valleys on your teeth. If you don’t have good oral hygiene habits this debris stays there and acts as fuel for bacteria, which eventually eat through your tooth’s enamel. These cavities can be any color but often look like holes accompanied by a chalky with material or a black spot.
These cavities appear on the smooth outside surfaces of teeth, usually on the sides of the mouth (rather than the back or the front). Cavities on the smooth surfaces of your teeth are rarer than pit and fissure cavities because, unlike the chewing surfaces of teeth, the sides are easier to clean and harder for the bacteria that causes tooth decay to hide in. These cavities often appear as small holes or tiny brown spots.
The root of a tooth is the part that is below your gum line. In people with receding gums, this part of the tooth becomes exposed, which is problematic because the root doesn’t have the outer hard enamel surface that offers more resistance to tooth decay. These cavities usually appear as dark brown or yellow areas just above the gum line.
Of course, if you ever notice something new or unusual happening to any of your teeth, whether it’s a visual sign or a physical symptom, please call us! It doesn’t have to match the descriptions above to be a big problem. While we know how to relieve a toothache quickly and will make ourselves available in a hurry, we’d much rather hear from you sooner than later! Most dental problems do not get better if you just “wait and see”!
Part of offering family dentistry is ensuring that our youngest patients feel especially comfortable. We do everything we can to make the dentist a friendly, safe and informative environment for your child. Here are a few tips for what you can do as a parent to make your child’s first visit easy on you and your little one.
If you have an older child, bring the little one along to their appointment. Chances are your child will want to emulate their older sibling’s good behavior. If there are no older children in your family, set a good example yourself by having your child along with you at your next appointment. All little kids want to be like their moms and dads!
If you’re fearful or anxious at the dentist, try not to let it show. Don’t say anything that may worry your child, even if you’re a little worried yourself. Don’t try to set any expectations of sensations or how long the appointment will be. If you don’t think your dental anxiety is something you can easily control, you may consider having your spouse be in charge of dental visits at first.
Don’t try to explain the concept of why we go to the dentist to your little one. Sometimes the idea of germs or scary “sugar bugs” cause more trouble than they help. Telling your child that the dentist will be looking in her mouth to count her teeth is usually familiar enough of a concept for a child to accept.
Bring along a favorite toy or promise a new one following the appointment as a reward. Some children are overwhelmed by the bright light shining in their eyes in the dental chair, so another fun reward or preparation can be choosing a cool and colorful pair of sunglasses to wear during the checkup, and of course keep afterwards!
Ask the dental staff if you can bring your child in for a tour before the appointment. Make it a fun experience full of discovery and new things, as if you were visiting a children’s science museum. Familiarity can help children adjust when it’s their turn in the dental chair.
As dentists, we’ll warn you away from sweet treats most of the time, but chewing gum is a surprising exception. That is, as long as it’s sugar-free. Yes, it’s true that sugar-free chewing gum is actually good for your teeth and can help prevent tooth decay. Not only that, some varieties may even strengthen your teeth.
Sugar-free gum has been shown to increase the production of saliva in the mouth. In addition to the action of chewing, this increase in saliva helps was away food particles that bacteria could feed on to cause tooth decay. Saliva naturally contains minerals that help strengthen teeth, so when there’s more of it, it follows that there are more enamel-hardening minerals too.
These days, it seems like most of the popular chewing gum brands have switched to being sugar-free. We assume that gum manufacturers are smart enough not to raise the ire of dentists. Most sugar-free gums contain one of three non-sugar sweeteners: aspartame, sorbitol, or xylitol. The first two don’t have any evidence of causing harm to teeth, but they don’t have any benefits either. On the other hand, recent studies suggest that xylitol may reduce the amount of bacteria in your mouth and strengthen teeth.
Most sugar-free gums will proudly proclaim they’re sugar free right on the packaging. Several brands also carry the American Dental Association (ADA) seal of approval. Any gum packaging that doesn’t proclaim it’s sugar-free probably isn’t. Be sure to take a look at the nutrition label when choosing gum. Bubble gum and retro 20th century gum brands that have been revived by candy makers are particularly notorious for being sugar-sweetened.
A note of caution: if you have TMD, a chronic painful condition in the jaw joint (called the temporomandibular joint or TMJ), chewing gum can aggravate symptoms. There is a rumor that chewing gum causes TMD, but there is no evidence showing a direct cause and effect as of yet.
There are other reasons to avoid chewing gum other than the possibility of tooth decay with sugar-sweetened brands. If you have braces or oral appliances such as removable bridges, partial dentures, or full dentures, gums can get stuck to them, causing a huge mess & possibly pulling them out of place. If you’re wondering whether chewing gum is a good idea given your particular dental condition, please feel free to ask the dentist.
If you haven’t noticed already, dentists tend to be technology nuts. We’re always looking for the next and best way to provide patients with better versions of dental solutions such as crowns, dentures and dental implants. The advancements in dental tech over the last few decades have been truly incredible, and we are starting to see signs of the next wave of advancements: the integration of 3-D printing into dental care.
Many dentists are already using a form of computerized manufacturing in the form of computer-controlled milling machines. These machines can carve custom crowns or bridges out of a block of ceramic or porcelain, based on the information provided by a digital 3-D model that comes from a scan of your mouth.
3-D printing for dentistry will also work off a digital 3-D model, but instead of telling the machine to carve away material, the printer will be told to add material. Most 3-D printers work by extruding very thin layers of material, one on top of the other, to form a three-dimensional shape. As of now, these printers primarily use plastic materials to print. Many companies are working on developing and improving dental-grade plastics and resins that will work in a 3-D printer and look natural.
Dentists and dental laboratories are already using 3-D printers to create models of patients’ teeth for treatment planning purposes, surgical guides for the accurate placement of dental implants, clear orthodontic aligners (like Invisalign®) and dentures. Using 3-D printers to do this is much more cost-efficient and less wasteful than traditional methods.
The possibility of 3-D printing of affordable dentures is particularly exciting. For those who have lost their natural teeth and cannot afford or are not eligible for dental implants, dentures are a common solution. However, creating dentures is labor intensive, which ads to the cost. With 3-D printing reducing the time, labor and materials cost of manufacturing dentures, we may be nearing a future in which the cost of a high-quality set of dentures falls significantly.
Just like dentistry, 3-D printing is a rapidly advancing industry, and we’re sure there are new discoveries and techniques being tested everyday. As part of our pledge to bring you the best possible dental care, we’ll stay on top of all the latest technology in dentistry and invest to bring you the best right here in our practice, as soon as it lives up to our high standards of care.
