Quality Dental Plan
In our office you may have been asked “have you heard about our Quality Dental Plan?” This plan, QDP, is a membership plan we offer for patients who are uninsured or unsatisfied with their dental insurance. It can be purchased for the year and begins on the day of purchase. Here is what our patients receive with …
Natural Remedies are becoming increasingly popular in the United States. Overuse of antibiotics has led to wide-spread bacterial resistance and “super bugs,” which is making alternative therapies a trendy topic in medicine and dentistry.
Aloe vera has anti-inflammatory, antioxidant, and antimicrobial properties, which make it well-suited to be an adjunctive therapy in dental treatment. Aloe vera juice has been found …
In one of our more recent posts, we talked about picking out a toothpaste. What is even more important is, what kind of floss to use. So, how do you know which one to get?
There are many options available at the store and it can be overwhelming. Glide, which is a very slippery kind of floss that is made …
There are all kinds of advertisements and tutorial videos on social media promoting the supposed benefits of whitening one’s teeth with activated charcoal. So, does it live up to the hype?
Activated charcoal is a carbon-dense material that is highly absorbent due to treating (“activating”) it with high temperatures or chemicals. It is most commonly used to treat certain types …
What kind of toothpaste should I use?” As a dental hygienist, I get this question often. It can be overwhelming trying to decide what kind to buy because there are so many brands and variations of products on the shelves. The answer is not completely black and white.
For most people, I tell them to use whatever kind of toothpaste …
Enamel is one of the densest substances in the body, even more than bone. It is highly resistant to the wear and tear we put on it each and every day. In addition to the mechanical action of chewing, grinding and clenching our teeth, acidic erosion is another way our teeth can be harmed by our daily habits. Acids are …
Third molars, most commonly known as wisdom teeth, usually erupt at about age 17, however this can vary from person to person and sometimes they don’t erupt at all. Some people are even born without wisdom teeth, or sometimes have some of them but not all four.
Oftentimes the wisdom teeth become impacted which can lead to several different problems. …
When we are young, losing a tooth is an exciting thing as we put the tooth under our pillow and the tooth fairy comes in the night to trade it for some money. Unfortunately, when we lose a tooth when we are older, it's not such an exciting experience.
Teeth have to be extracted for a variety of reasons. The …
Stress and Your Oral Health
Here are some ways that our bodies may respond to stress from an oral health point of view, and also ways to calm our bodies and minds.
• The habit of grinding or clenching your teeth, usually while you’re sleeping, is called bruxism. It may be caused by stress. Symptoms include headaches, a sore jaw, …
What is a mouthguard and why would my child need one?
Mouthguards are important for active kids and teenagers to protect their growing teeth and surrounding oral structures. Mouthguards cushion the impact from sports-related trauma that could otherwise cause broken teeth, jaw injuries, or cuts on the lip, tongue or face.
Can’t I just buy one at the drug store?
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What is Oral Irrigation?
You may have heard us talking about the Waterpik in our office. This is our favorite oral hygiene tool for oral irrigation and we routinely recommend the Waterpik for many of our patients. Oral irrigators were first developed in 1962 as an alternative to dental flossing. An oral irrigator uses a stream of pressurized, pulsating water …
Bad breath is also called halitosis. It can be an embarrassing problem, so some people don’t want to talk about it. Bad breath can be caused by many different things including:
What are sealants? Many of us have heard of them, but are unsure as to what they are. Sealants are an easy and affordable way to prevent tooth decay (cavities). They are also sometimes called pit and fissure sealants. This is because a small amount of material is applied to the chewing surfaces of back teeth (where the pits and …
Putting off dental treament is never a good idea. Problems may start out small, but could get much bigger. Possible effects of waiting too long for treatment may include:
More pain
More complex and lengthier treatment
Increased treatment costs due to more harm to mouth and teeth
Higher risks of infection or complications
Longer recovery time
Having to take more …
Do you wake up with dull headaches, vise-like pain, or stiff, sore jaw muscles? If so, you may have a habit of grinding or clenching the teeth called bruxism. Many people are unaware they even do this because it often happens while they are sleeping. However, dental professionals can usually detect signs of wear on your teeth.
Stress, sleep disorders, …
Tooth Sensitivity
Many of you may have experienced tooth sensitivity associated with cold beverages or foods or even cold air. You might even be sensitive to the touch on some areas of your teeth. This may be due to gingival recession, a situation where the gum has receded away from the crown of the tooth exposing the root surface of …
Oil Pulling for Dental Health
Have you heard the buzz about Oil-Pulling with coconut oil to transform your dental health? Several patients have brought this to my attention recently so I decided to do some research. I learned that Oil Pulling has been used for thousands of years as an Indian folk remedy. It involves putting about a tablespoon of …
Gum disease, also called periodontitis, is an infection in your gum tissue. People often don’t realize that they may have gum disease, or that they need to do something about it because it often does not hurt. However, more people loose teeth to gum disease than to decay. Also studies have shown a link with gum disease and other systemic …
The role of nutrition on your oral health is twofold. First of all nutrients from food contribute to the health of your mouth and development of teeth. Second, eating habits have a direct effect on the formation of cavities.
Baby teeth begin to form at 2 months of gestation, and permanent teeth begin to form …
Many people have crowns on their teeth, but there are still many questions surrounding them and why you may need one. Crowns, sometimes called caps, totally cover a damaged tooth to repair it or help strengthen it. When you get a crown, it requires an initial appointment to prepare the tooth and make an impression. The …
Diabetes and Dental Health
Research shows that there is an increase in the prevalence of gum disease among those with diabetes. People with diabetes are two times more likely to develop gum disease. Emerging research also suggests that the relationship between serious gum disease and diabetes goes both ways. Not only are people with diabetes more susceptible to gum disease, …
We all know that smoking is not great for our health. Tobacco use remains one of the leading preventable causes of death in the United States. Although there is no empirical evidence linking marijuana use to increased mortality, it still causes health problems. Most of these health issues come from smoking marijuana, not secondhand exposure or consuming it. The main …
There has recently been a lot of talk about fluoride in Sonoma County, and we have noticed that many people have some unanswered questions.
What is fluoride? Fluoride is a naturally occurring compound that comes from the element fluorine. In fact, fluoride compounds are found in rocks and soil and as water passes over rock formations, fluoride ions are released …
Sports and Energy Drinks Can Damage Your Teeth
You may not know that many popular energy and sports drinks are exposing people to potential dental problems. Numerous studies have shown that these drinks are capable of hurting your teeth by eroding your enamel. When this strong outer layer of your teeth becomes eroded you can be more susceptible to decay …
Did you know that chewing gum can help reduce the risk of developing a cavity? One major benefit of chewing gum is that it increases the amount of saliva in your mouth. The increased saliva helps to flush away the plaque from your teeth. Also, every time we eat the pH of our mouth becomes more acidic. The increased saliva …