Dentists have been known to diagnose plethora of diseases through oral cavity which is supposed to be a mirror to overall health. One of the latest symptoms that is being noticed in association with coronavirus infection is COVID tongue where dentists may play a major role.
It is highly important to look after your child’s teeth right from the moment they start teething. Keeping your child’s teeth and gums clean will protect against cavities, infection, and pain. As a parent, you’re always searching for ways to give your little ones the best dental care. There are a lot of tips that can help you maintain good oral hygiene for your child.
Fear of the dentist is all too common and we see many patients who are too scared to have the necessary dental treatment done. However, many aren’t aware that IV sedation (sedation through a vein) provides an extremely safe option to offset that fear. Additionally, those who have a severe gag reflex or don’t react well to numbing agents can benefit and turn what used to be torturous appointments into improved dental experiences.
Chewing gum is tasty and fun to chew, but did you know that chewing sugarless gum has dental benefits too?
Dental X-rays are an essential part of ensuring good oral health. Many think that X-rays are harmful because they use radiation to capture the image, and misinformation shared on the internet adds to the concerns. However, what patients may not know is that the level of radiation they are exposed to in an X-ray is actually quite low. In fact, just being out in the sun or flying in an airplane exposes you to higher levels of radiation than an X-ray.
According to the American Dental Association, the amount of radiation patients are exposed to during an X-ray is minuscule in comparison to the amount of radiation patients are exposed to on a daily basis. In fact, in one year, you will naturally be exposed to 640 times the level of radiation that routine X-rays produce.
Dental caries, or tooth decay, is one of the most common diseases in the U.S. In fact, tooth decay is the most common chronic disease in children and adolescents, and 90% of adults also have some degree of tooth decay. Tooth decay is both preventable and treatable, and there are new products, including Xylitol, that can help to reduce the risk of tooth decay.
Brushing your teeth twice per day is important to keeping your teeth clean and healthy. But did you know that it’s possible to brush your teeth too hard? Too much pressure when you’re brushing can lead to damage of your gums, which cannot be reversed without surgery. Read on to learn the signs you’re brushing too hard, how to prevent it, and what to do if you notice you’ve been brushing your teeth too hard.
If you’ve been following the news lately, then you’ve probably seen the recent stories alleging flossing is found to not provide medical benefits.
These articles say that daily flossing showed little to no impact on reducing disease-causing plaque on teeth. In this article, The Associated Press stated:
“The AP looked at the most rigorous research conducted over the past decade, focusing on 25 studies that generally compared the use of a toothbrush with the combination of toothbrushes and floss. The findings? The evidence for flossing is ‘weak, very unreliable,’ of ‘very low’ quality, and carries ‘a moderate to large potential for bias.'”
The article goes on to discuss how flossing does not provide a benefit to oral health, and that Americans have been misinformed that the time spent flossing helps them in the long run.
For years, there’s been an ongoing debate on whether or not fluoride is safe and beneficial for humans, especially children. In reality, fluoride is an inexpensive way to reduce cavities and tooth decay (“dental caries”), a disease that affects people of all ages.
Everyone is susceptible to tooth decay, regardless of age, and according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), fluoride is considered one of the 10 greatest public health achievements in the 20th century, and provides an important benefit to keeping teeth healthy.
As a dentist seeing pediatric patients, I talk to many parents about their Kids’ Teeth and how best to keep them healthy. Parents frequently ask me questions about things they’ve heard in the media and are unsure about. I want to share some of these common misconceptions with you so that you too can discover the truth about your child’s dental health!