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Getting a whiter smile

Are you looking for a whiter smile?  Schedule in for a complimentary appointment with us.  We will take the time to assess your smile and review all of the whitening options with you.  We will examine your mouth and give you a personalized whitening solution. Let's face it: everyone of us sees a lot of marketing steered towards us in the whitening department.  Many toothpastes, rinses and strips come with a claim to whiten our teeth.  Yet not all of the products with the marketing hype yield the results claimed. For instance, did you know whitening toothpastes work to remove stains on the surface of the teeth, and that is their claim to whitening?  They do not actually bleach the tooth or change its actual color.  They are merely removing stains and build-up. Other over the counter products that claim to whiten teeth by many shades may not be as effective for your mouth.  For instance, if you were to whiten a tooth with a silver filling, the tooth may actually darken.  This is b
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Wear a Mouthguard

It's football time again!  And if you're a player, you know what that means....time to get a mouthguard.  In fact, you can be disqualified from playing without one. But did you know that a well fitting mouthguard can help prevent a concussion?   You heard right!  A well-fitting mouthguard can help to disperse forces received from a blow to the jaw and aid in preventing trauma to the brain.  Don't even think about not wearing one! Now if you're in braces or you still have baby teeth present that are working their way out, a stock mouthguard purchased at the athletic store is going to be the best bet for you.  For the rest of you, a custom made mouthguard is ideal.  A custom made mouthguard at our office is made from a 3mm thick material and fits the shape of all the teeth.  We just made custom fit mouthguards for the varsity and junior varsity teams.  We made them 5mm thick and put their school color, jersey number and name into the guards.  We also incorporated a helme
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Trouble getting your kids to brush? No More!

How many of us struggle getting our kids to brush for a full two minutes? As a parent of a large family, it was constantly a wrestle.  That is, until I I began my kids on the Disney Magic Timer Toothbrush App.  The Disney Magic Toothbrush Timer App is a free download for Apple and Android Devices.  It makes tooth-brushing fun for the kids while directing their brushing efforts in the correct quadrant of their mouths.  They can even scan in their Oral B toothbrush to see a light-saber fight or a scene from a favorite Disney movie, depending on the toothbrush they have.   It keeps track of their brushing frequency and gives them awards and stickers along the way.   My kids love this app!  I have no trouble getting them to brush 2 minutes.  Instead, they want to brush 3 or 4 times to see their siblings character and movie scene and be a part of their tooth-brush experience.  It's hard to get them to stop brushing!  Our final solution was to create one character with the name "Go
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Don't wait until hurts!

"Don't wait until it hurts before you do treatment." It seems like a rather obvious truth, yet some of us don't live by it.  The temptation to procrastinate treatment seems to be universal.  After all, how many stories have we heard about unnecessary surgeries, or, worse yet, surgeries in which the patient's symptoms and primary complaint were not resolved or even made worse?  We have also all heard stories about dubious treatment done only for the reason of enriching the care giver.  All of these stories have made us a little cynical of treatment, I think. Quite frankly, I am not the favorite for people to come see either.  Don't worry, I don't take offense! Most people view dental work as unpleasant and I think that some would rather pretend their mouths were healthy in order to avoid the experience of having things taken care of. And of course there's the expense of getting treatment done. As a dentist, I feel so grateful for all of you patients o
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Sports and Energy Drinks: Are they bad for my teeth?

Anyone who has watched a major sporting event on TV has seen a stream of commercials advocating the use of a sports drink to enhance or "fuel" their workout.  The perception is often even conveyed that the energy drink is a necessary part of the workout and that the body would be depleted without it.  Really? Over the years I have noticed how the regular consumption of sports and energy drinks have had a negative impact on the teeth.  In patients with the habit, I generally notice that the teeth turn glossy smooth and have dips in the front aspect of the tooth and tooth structure loss on the backs of the teeth on the upper jaw. The enamel actually looks worse, cosmetically, as well as it loses some of it's translucency. Notice, I did not specify that cavities were present.  They aren't always there.  The teeth are given one acid wash at a time and lose their sharpness and cutting ability, sometimes with cavities and sometimes without. Did you know that the pH of R
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I love baby teeth

It is always exciting for me to see a baby's first tooth.  There is just something so cute and special about their little smile when those first teeth come in.  And before too long they are all grown up and those little teeth are gone! Awww :( The best time to have baby's first professional dental check-up is typically 6 months after the first tooth comes in.  Since the first tooth comes in around 6-10 months in age, this puts the kids at a little over a year old when they have their first visit.  Their visit is a happy time when we look and see how things are progressing. We evaluate the developing jaw, gums and teeth and look for any potential problems.  These visits are invaluable when there is something discovered that could be benefited by early intervention. Cleanings are typically done beginning at the age of 3. We have seen many conditions in children where early discovery was paramount, i.e. tongue-ties, baby-bottle tooth decay, early childhood cavities, mouths bein
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Taking care of your toothbrush

Ever wondered how to store or care for your toothbrush?  I know some people place their toothbrush in a drawer or cabinet.  I've even seen some people have their toothbrush in their pant pocket. The very best way to care for your toothbrush is to store it upright and allow it to air dry before using it again. Don't ever cover your toothbrush or store it in a closed container.  This will trap moisture and allow bacteria to grow more freely.  Pockets are not a good place for obvious reasons.   If you get a cold, throw away your toothbrush at the beginning of the cold and also at the end.  You should not store your toothbrush in the same container as someone else's brush. The bacteria can travel one toothbrush to another.  You should also keep your toothbrush as far away from the toilet as possible to avoid contamination from airborne bacteria that are released when the toilet is flushed.
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