Teach Kids How To Brush And Floss!

This is a fun but messy activity to teach your young children how to brush and floss correctly!

All you will need is:

• Rubber glove
• Peanut butter
• Dental Floss
• Toothbrush
• Toothpaste

1. Have an adult put on the glove, and have someone or yourself put some peanut butter between your fingers (make sure you get it all the way down). 
2. Tighten your fingers together (your fingers represent the teeth and the peanut butter is the food that gets trapped). 
3. With your fingers still tightly together and extended, have your child use the toothbrush and toothpaste to try and remove the peanut butter. 
4. Once they are finished brushing have them try and remove the peanut butter using the floss.

This will help your child understand that brushing simply can't reach all the places between your teeth. Dental Floss does a much better job of removing food.

Is There An Appropriate Retirement Age For Dentists?

"I just realized my dentist is older than dirt! Shouldn't he retire?"  "Is it safe to see a dentist that is well past retirement age?'  

These are some of the questions I have been asked recently.  The answers are complicated.      

The average age in the U.S for a dentist to retire is 68 years, according to a study done in 2017.  That said, I have known dentists who have continued to work into their seventies.  

Following the recession in 2008, many dentists were actually forced out of retirement.  With the continued volatility of todays market in 2022, many have no choice but to work. However, many dentists simply love the work....and the income!  

There is no guideline for when a dentist should retire.  If he is able to practice at age 74, then bravo!  Many will continue to practice but at a diminished capacity, sticking to the simpler procedures.  

If you have doubts or are skeptical about getting treatment by an elderly dentist, you can always contact your local Board of Dental Examiners to see if there are any recent complaints or if his/her license is restricted.  Most often, though, they are able to perform just as well as they ever did.  Chalk that up to experience! 

Keep Smiling!

Clean Your Dentures With These Easy Remedies

 Many products made for cleaning dentures can be expensive and harsh.  If your dentures have metal parts, some commercial denture cleaners can cause them to corrode over time.  Here is a short list of inexpensive, reliable (old time, tried and true) products that you can use to clean, disinfect and even help remove tartar from your false teeth! (Yes, even false teeth can get a buildup of tartar over time, cultivating an unhealthy array of germs and bacteria.)

Here goes!:

1. BAKING SODA.  Make a paste with a little bit of the soda and water and use your denture brush to clean your dentures.  It will freshen, too.

2. VINEGAR.  Use equal parts of vinegar and water and soak your dentures for 20-30 minutes. This will also help to remove tartar buildup.

3. HYDROGEN PEROXIDE.  This is especially useful for disinfecting.  Soak in a 3% or 6% solution (the usual strength sold in stores) for approximately 30 minutes. Rinse thoroughly with water.

Now, there were a couple of other suggestions that I found online that I didn't think were particularly useful; that is, they were not things that I would personally try for cleaning something that you would put in your mouth! Someone on another website suggested a bleach/water solution for disinfecting and a teaspoon of Calgon water softener added for removing tartar. Of course you would need to rinse your dentures especially well so as not to get the bleach solution in your mouth. Hmmm...I don't know...  To me, that falls into the same catagory as fixing your dentures with super glue.  What do you think?

Avoid Tooth Decay After Halloween!

Halloween is over... but that doesn't mean you shouldn't keep an eye on how much of those yummy sugary treats your child consumes!  Eating too much candy may lead to tooth decay.

If you follow these simple steps it will help ease your mind, instead of worrying about your child's teeth.

• Do moderate portions, don't let them have free access to the candy bucket.
• Make sure your child brushes their teeth properly 2-3 times a day.
• Have your child use a fluoride mouthwash.
• Help your child floss their teeth.
• Try to avoid sticky candy (caramel, taffy)
• Give your kids sugar-free gum to chew

Hope you all had a great Halloween!

Calcium And Vitamin D Deficiency Linked To TMD?

Do you suffer from lower levels of calcium or vitamin D? If so, you may want to talk with your dentist about temporomandibular disorders (TMD).

I came across the article "Common TMD may be linked to calcium, vitamin D" written by Melissa Busch, associate editor for Dr. Bicuspid. 

"October 27, 2022 -- Patients with a common type of temporomandibular disorder (TMD) had lower calcium and vitamin D levels, indicating that calcium metabolism may be linked to these jaw conditions. The results were published on October 21 in the Journal of Stomatology, Oral and Maxillofacial Surgery.

Those with temporomandibular joint disk displacement with reduction (DDWR) had deficiencies in calcium and vitamin D compared to patients who didn't have TMDs, the authors wrote. Severe vitamin D deficiency may negatively affect calcium metabolism by causing a drop in calcium and magnesium levels and may pose a risk for TMDs, the authors wrote.

"These results revealed that vitamin D and calcium deficiency should be investigated and corrected in patients with TMD," wrote the authors, led by Dr. Ömer Ekici of Afyonkarahisar Health Sciences University in Turkey.

Worldwide, vitamin D deficiency and insufficiency affect more than 1 billion people. The vitamin affects cell proliferation and differentiation in skeletal muscle cells, and it moves calcium and phosphorus across the skeletal cell membranes. Additionally, vitamin D prevents muscle degeneration and reverses myalgia.

TMDs also are common, affecting between 5% and 12% of the population. However, the etiology and pathogenesis of TMDs are not completely understood, so treatments are not always successful. Therefore, a better understanding of the origin of TMDs would help identify and eliminate possible pathogenic factors.

To explore the relationship between the factors that affect calcium metabolism and TMDs, vitamin D levels, and related biochemical parameters in patients with these jaw joint disorders, a prospective observational study of 100 patients was conducted. Half of the patients had TMDs, and the other 50 did not.

TMD diagnostic criteria were used to diagnose DDWR. Then, patients' levels of alkaline phosphatase, vitamin D, parathyroid hormone, calcium, magnesium, and phosphorus were compared. A p value of < 0.005 was considered a significant difference, they wrote.

Patients with DDWR had lower calcium levels (p < 0.005) than healthy controls. Additionally, severe vitamin D deficiency (< 10 ng) was significantly more common in the TMD group (n = 19) than in the control group (n = 8), the authors wrote.

The study's limitations included that there was no bone mineral density assessment information for patients. However, the authors noted that they wanted more accurate and reliable results by including only those with DDWR instead of a heterogeneous TMD group, which has been used in previous research.

Clinicians should consider evaluating patients with TMDs for deficiencies and suggest supplementation if appropriate. In the future, more randomized clinical trials should be conducted to better understand the possible connection TMDs and deficiencies, the authors wrote.

"Nevertheless, investigation of possible effects on TMD symptoms in response to vitamin D supplementation in individuals with low vitamin D levels is important to determine the precise role of vitamin D in TMD," Ekici et al wrote."

8 Dental Problems You Can Temporarily Fix Yourself!

Here are a few ways to treat some dental problems from home, until you can visit your dentist.

Sensitive Teeth:
Cause: Exposed nerve root.
Treatment: Lay off whiting treatments, and brush teeth a little softer than normal.

Lost Tooth:
Cause: Sports.
Treatment: Rinse the tooth with milk and push it back in right away, then bite down gently on a soft cloth or moistened tea bag to hold it in place. Then visit your dentist immediately. 

Burned Palate:

Cause: Hot food.
Treatment: Try using Kenalog in Orabase, an over-the-counter corticosteroid paste that creates a protective coating on the burn and speeds healing.

Burned Tongue:
Cause: Hot drink or food.
Treatment: Rinse your mouth with a solution of 1 teaspoon of salt and a cup of warm water.

Jaw Soreness:
Cause: Temporomandibular Joint Disorder (TMJ).
Treatment: Try sleeping on your side or back with a supportive pillow.

Canker Sore:
Cause: Sugary foods/Citrus.
Treatment: Apply vegetable oil to a cotton ball and hold it against the sore three or four times a day.

Lost Filling:
Cause: Popcorn, Peanuts, Carmel.
Treatment: You can use sugarless chewing gum (chew it first) or soft wax to caulk the hole and reduce the sensitivity until you can visit your dentist.

Gum Pain:
Cause: Gingivitis (gum disease), tobacco use.
Treatment: Ease the pain by swishing peppermint tea around your mouth.

Remember, when dental problems appear, it's extremely important to contact your dentist.

*This is not intended as medical advice. *

Key Differences Between Gingivitis and Periodontitis

 Nearly 47% of people in the U.S. have gum disease in the form of gingivitis. Gingivitis is treatable and reversible. It can contribute to tooth decay. It does not cause bone loss, but left untreated over time it can progress to Periodontitis. 

Periodontitis by definition is the inflammation of the tissue around the teeth, often causing shrinkage of the gums and loosening of the teeth.  It can be reduced with treatment but cannot be reversed.  It can lead to bone loss and loss of teeth.  It can also be a contributor of poor health.

The main message in this is to get regular cleanings and practice good dental hygiene at home! 

Prevention is the best defense.

Keep Smiling!