Dental Habits to Avoid For the Sake of your Chompers!

 

 

You know the routine: brush your teeth daily, floss regularly, and have your regular checkups with Dr. Goodin twice a year. For the most part, getting in the habit of completing these simple tasks will keep your teeth healthy and strong. However, there are a few less-than-desirable oral habits that can override your good habits and compromise your dental health! Here are some tips that can help you avoid those dental habits that can damage your teeth!

1. Crunching, Sucking, and Sipping:
After slurping down that ice cold and refreshing beverage, try not to crunch the leftover ice between your teeth. The cold temperature of the ice cubes can cause your teeth to fracture. Be careful when eating popcorn too! Sipping sugary soda is also bad for your teeth. The constant exposure to the acids and sugar can lead to tooth decay.
Solution: Switch to crushed ice & drink your soda through a straw!!

2. Using Your Teeth As “Tools”:
Some people rely on their teeth for odd jobs like opening a tightly screwed bottle of nail polish, tearing open a bag of chips, straightening a bent fork, or ripping a price tag off a new article of clothing. These actions are actually quite hard on your teeth and can even cause a weakened tooth to fracture or chip.
Solution: Keep some simple tools like scissors and pliers handy and leave the dirty work to them!

3. Grinding Your Teeth:
Grinding your teeth wears them down and weakens them.
Solution: During the day, be more aware of what you’re doing with your teeth when you feel stressed or anxious. Notice if your jaw muscles are often sore. For those of you who grind at night, ask your dentist about custom mouth guards

4. Using A Hard-Bristled Toothbrush:
It may be surprising, but a firm toothbrush is actually worse for your teeth than a soft-bristled one. A brush with bristles that are too firm can wear down tooth enamel more quickly and may irritate your gums and make your teeth sensitive.
Solution: Stick with soft-bristles and ask one of our team members about the best type of toothbrush for your particular mouth.

5. Not Brushing Or Flossing Properly:
Though you may brush and floss everyday, if you aren’t doing it correctly it could cause harm as well as good.
Solution: Make sure that you brush your teeth for at least 2 minutes TWICE a day. Be gentle. Replace your toothbrush every 3-4 months, and consider purchasing an electric one. Ask one of our team members the most effective way to floss. Use an antibacterial mouthwash.

6.  Not seeing the dentist regularly: OK, so going to the dentist isn't as fun as going out for ice cream, but if you don't get your teeth cleaned and checked professionally twice a year, you're bound to end up with some serious and painful dental problems.
Solution: Schedule dental appointments in advance or have your dental office put you on a 6-month recall to set up an appointment!

If any of these bad habits apply to you, overcome them and develop a healthier oral routine! We promise you’ll see results and have more reasons to smile!

 

Is A "Dental Visit" On Your Kid's Back-To-School Checklist?

You've tucked away your kids' bathing suits and bought new backpacks. You've sharpened their pencils and visited their doctor. But have they seen their dentist yet? A dental exam should be part of the back-to-school checklist.

Tooth decay is the most common chronic disease in U.S. children, says the American Academy of Pediatrics. By the time they start kindergarten, more than 40 percent of kids have some tooth decay. Kids with toothaches have trouble focusing. They may also not want to join in class discussions. Just because your child's teeth look OK doesn't mean that they are OK. Your kids should have checkups even when they don't have symptoms. This can prevent certain problems. It can catch other problems when they're easy to treat. During a routine exam, the dentist will:

                                             *Review your child's dental and medical history

                                             *Examine your kid's teeth, jaws, and oral tissue

                                             *Clean and polish your child's teeth

                                             *Apply a fluoride solution.

A big part of the dentist's role is to monitor children as they grow. They see where things need to improve and can give you the tools to maintain and improve your child's oral health. Seeing the dentist isn't the only step to keeping your children's teeth healthy. These tips can help them steer clear of cavities:

                                            *Have kids brush their teeth at least twice a day with a pea-sized amount 

                                              of fluoride toothpaste. They should brush gently and pay special

                                              attention to the gum line.

                                            *Kids should floss at least once a day.

                                            *Give your kids healthy snack foods such as fresh fruit, veggies, and

                                              cheeses.

                                            *Limit sugary snacks and high-carbohydrate foods. The bacteria that

                                              cause tooth decay thrive on simple sugars, especially those in sticky

                                              foods and treats.

                                            *Don't let them snack too often.

                                            *If you kids like to chew gum, offer a sugar-free option.

                                            *Talk with your child's dentist about whether your child should have 

                                              dental sealants.

One of the main reasons for kids missing school is a sore tooth or tooth ache. I cannot stress enough the importance of parents scheduling their child's dental appointment before the start of school . This will not only keep your  kids from missing school but will avoid the stress of trying to get a dental appointment at the last minute.

Fascinating Facts About Saliva!



For most people the term “dentistry” brings to mind the mouth, teeth and gums. The term “saliva” or “spit” is not typically our first thought. I suppose the general population is kind of squeamish about that sort of thing, but as a family dentist, I had to get over that reaction long ago!

The salivary system is actually a complex environment and crucial to our oral and digestive health. It maintains the health of the soft and hard tissues in our mouths and assists our speech. It contains antioxidants and many disease fighting substances that repair cell damage, control microbe levels, and help inhibit the development of dental cavities. It’s an integral part of our digestive system, lubricating the mouth and throat so we can chew and swallow foods.

Most people probably think of saliva as the spit-like substance in the mouth that helps them to break down foods and maintain their mouths moisture levels. While these are certainly true and interesting aspects of the fluid there is more to saliva including important dental aspects as well as research that is using saliva to detect diseases in a more timely, efficient and safer manner. In fact, saliva may one day replace blood samples which is big news for scientists and doctors who see the potential of saliva screenings to save lives.

Saliva is secreted into the mouth by three major glands that are near the jaws and inside the lips, cheeks, mouth and throat. The saliva glands secrete a watery fluid that contains proteins, enzymes, minerals, and antibodies that help to perform some very helpful functions within our mouths:

Cleansing: Saliva helps to wash food particles from the mouth and helps to reduce the amount of sugars that cause cavities.

Protecting & Disinfecting: Saliva protects the mouth by fighting bacteria and other germ-causing organisms in the mouth.

Maintenance: Saliva helps to keep the balance in the mouth between acidity and alkalinity that can cause decay.

Re-mineralization: Saliva contain calcium and phosphate minerals which aid in the enamel building process.

Digesting: Saliva makes food easier to chew and breaks down starches.

Most recently saliva has been researched and tested to diagnose disease. It can be evaluated by health professionals and scientists for molecules that are indicators for disease. By looking into the composition of the fluid scientists are able to see if the molecules contained have indicators of harmful health conditions. The benefit of saliva is that it is easier and cheaper to collect, is easier to handle, and doesn’t expose healthcare workers to blood-borne diseases.