Halloween Candy Buy Back

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Fun Dental  Pumpkins

Fall is upon us. I absolutely enjoy early fall weather with the mild temperatures, and the beautiful colors that transform our trees into living works of art. It is also the season of pumpkins!

Here are some really cool pumpkins with a dental spin to them.

I thought this was a fun way to highlight flossing!

That is one interesting dentition

Happy Jack

Oral Hygiene pumpkin

Great Brace Face!

Happy Smily Brace Face

Happy Autumn months!

Tooth Sensitivity

Sensitive teeth can affect your day to day  lifestyle. Just being able to enjoy your favorite desert to simply brushing your teeth can become extremely painful. While sensitive teeth are usually as a result of a cavity, there are many other reasons why teeth can become sensitive.

Usually a sensitive tooth is the body's signal to alert you that something is wrong with the tooth. Sometimes the reasons for a tooth being sensitive is minor and other times it might require a trip to the dentist.

Common things that could cause sensitivity include

Sore Gums.

1. Food impaction: This could be a result of food impaction, or food stuck between teeth, which could cause the gums to get irritated. Simply flossing and getting rid of food debris could improve symptoms
2. Gum inflammation: Excessive plaque could lead to red irritated gums, which bleed easily. Improving oral hygiene habits could improve symptoms
3. Periodontal disease: Continuous proliferation of plaque bacterial and tarter left on teeth could lead to further breakdown of gum tissue and surrounding bone  leading to loose teeth and progressive gum infections. Periodontal disease requires continuing care by a dentist.

Painful teeth

1. Recession or root exposure. it is common to have root sensitivy due to lack of enamel on the root surfaces. Enamel serves as a natural insulator
2. Discoloured tooth: Could be that tooth has a cavity, or has an infected pulp
3. Fractured tooth: This usually is noted by pain on chewing. 
4. High dental filling or restoration. It is important to have these restorations adjusted to alleviate symptoms
5. Worn down teeth, exposing dentin which is more porous than enamel.: This could be due to mechanical means, i.e brushing too hard and grinding of teeth or chemical means which include excessive consumption of acidic food or regurgitation.

It is important to visit the  dentist as early as possible to address issues with tooth sensitivity.

ANCHOR FAMILY DENTISTRY NEWS LETTER

www.anchorfamilydentistry.com

JUNE 2016

Tips for Choosing the Correct Toothpaste

 

When it comes to choosing toothpaste, it is easy to become overwhelmed by all of your options on the market. There are dozens of different types on shelves that claim to whiten your teeth, decrease tooth sensitivity, prevent cavities, protect against tartar, and/or all of the above. Toothpaste in its entirety doesn’t just polish teeth; it also removes the bacteria that cause dental plaque and bad breath. It’s important when shopping for toothpaste to select a brand that is approved by the American Dental Association. Since there is no generic toothpaste for all ages and mouths, it helps to acquire some tips so you select the one that will meet your individual needs. 

Types of Toothpaste

• Anti-cavity: This type of toothpaste contains fluoride. Fluoride plays an active role in preventing decay, and it actively strengthens tooth enamel.
• Anti-gingivitis: If you spit blood in the sink, this is an early sign of gingivitis, a mild form of gum disease. Anti-gingivitis toothpaste helps reduce oral bacteria and can be very effective at stopping gingivitis in its tracks.
• Desensitizing: If you’ve ever bit into an ice cream cone and felt a sharp pain in your tooth’s nerve, this type of toothpaste will provide relief by blocking the tooth’s pain signal to the nerve.
• Tartar-control: This toothpaste does exact what it says, however, the best way to remove tartar is by scheduling a professional dental cleaning with one of our doctors.
• Whitening: This toothpaste contains chemicals that are able to help maintain the natural color of your teeth.

The list doesn’t even end there. There are toothpaste types for children that are non-toxic and great for those who are new to brushing and may swallow the toothpaste while cleaning their teeth. Additionally, there are toothpaste types for smokers, maintaining gum health, fresh breath, and even organic toothpaste.

How Do I Know Which One Is Right For Me?

Today there is toothpaste to meet the oral needs of everyone, but while all of the products on the shelf might seem the same, with a little help from your dentist you can determine which is right for you. It is important to schedule dental checkups and professional cleanings twice a year to prevent tooth sensitivity, gum disease, tartar buildup, and tooth decay.

3rd Annual Halloween Candy Buyback,

The Anti-Cavity Diet

The Anti-Cavity Diet

An Article from Discovery Health

There is no perfect diet that will keep your teeth from all harm, but what you eat can have an effect on the health of your teeth and gums. Eating right has benefits on two fronts: By supplying your body with the right nutrients, a healthful diet strengthens your teeth from the inside; and by limiting the foods that promote bacterial growth, it protects your teeth from outside invaders.  Building strong teeth

Teeth are essentially a kind of bone. They are harder and more durable because they are on the outside, but the same nutrients that promote a strong skeleton promote strong teeth

.

Calcium.

The primary component of strong bone tissue is the mineral calcium. It gives the skeleton structure and hardness. It may seem that teeth, once they are fully grown, don't need any more calcium. Indeed, the most important time to ensure a proper amount of calcium in the diet is when teeth and bones are forming, but even after they are fully grown, teeth and bones still need to have an adequate supply. The body constantly takes calcium from bones and teeth and replaces it with new supplies. You should make sure that your body has plenty on hand.

Getting enough calcium in the diet can seem difficult for those who don't want to get too much fat. Good sources of calcium without too much fat are nonfat and low-fat milk, low-fat and nonfat yogurt, some dark-green leafy vegetables, and calcium-fortified orange juice.

Vitamin D.

Vitamin D works hand in hand with calcium. It doesn't add to the hardness of bones and teeth in itself, but it promotes the deposition of calcium in the skeleton. Without it, it wouldn't matter how much calcium your body had available, because the calcium would not be absorbed into bone tissue.

Vitamin D is added to almost all commercial milk, and many other foods are now fortified with it. Your body has the ability to make its own vitamin D also. The vitamin is produced in the skin when your skin is exposed to the sun's ultraviolet radiation. It takes just 15 minutes a day of direct sun exposure on the skin to get the vitamin D your body needs.

Vitamin C.

Almost every ailment has been said to be "cured" by vitamin C, but here there is a real connection -- connective tissue. Vitamin C is vital to the health of connective tissue such as your gums. In fact, one of the first symptoms of vitamin C deficiency, or scurvy, is weak, sore gums that bleed easily. Vitamin C can be found in citrus fruits and some vegetables such as broccoli and brussels sprouts.

Fluoride.

The one nutrient that affects the health of your teeth the most is also one of the most controversial. The mineral fluoride has been proved to make teeth harder and more resistant to decay. Study after study has shown that people living in areas where fluoride is added to the water have fewer cavities than those who do not. Although many of us do get our fluoride from fluoridated drinking water, some don't have that option in their communities. Ask your doctor or dentist if you are concerned. 

Problem Foods

Because plaque formation is the start of virtually all types of dental disease, and plaque bacteria feed on leftover sugars, it stands to reason that cutting down on sugar -- in all of its forms -- will help prevent cavities. Easier said than done.

Sugar is one of the most insidious ingredients in the modern diet. If you look at almost any prepared food's ingredients, somewhere in that list will be sucrose or one of its close relatives (such as glucose, maltose, lactose, fructose, galactose, dextrose, corn syrup, molasses, brown sugar, raw sugar, and so on). Even honey, no matter how unrefined, contains simple sugars that serve as a banquet meal for plaque bacteria. The same goes for fructose (naturally occurring fruit sugar).

Complex carbohydrates can also provide food for bacteria in your mouth. In fact, some researchers suggest that starchy foods may be even more detrimental to your teeth than simple sugars. Starches are more sticky than sugar; the saliva that usually dissolves and washes away small amounts of sugar on the teeth might not be able to contend with the clumps of potato chips or crackers stuck in and around molars. Starchy foods that stick to your teeth and stay there for hours provide plenty of fuel for enamel-eroding microbes.

This doesn't mean that you should avoid starchy foods. On the contrary, they are part of a healthful diet. It only means that you must be more conscious of how these foods affect your teeth and more conscientious about cleaning them after you do enjoy those snack chips. Although no other nutritional component besides sugar has been positively linked to tooth decay, the rest of your diet cannot be overlooked in your effort to maintain healthy teeth and gums. A diet that is full of sugars and overprocessed foods (or one devoid of vitamins, minerals, and crunchy fruits and vegetables) can eventually lead to decay, even in the mouths of the most avid brushers and flossers.

Don't let anxiety keep you from visiting the dentist -- professional care will help you keep your teeth clean and healthy.