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Wellington/West Palm Beach
1037 S. State Road 7 Suite 215
Wellington, FL 33414
561-333-4568
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Posts for: October, 2017
Good oral hygiene results in a mouth that looks and smells healthy. This means:
- Your teeth are clean and free of debris
- Gums are pink and do not hurt or bleed when you brush or floss
- Bad breath is not a constant problem
If your gums do hurt or bleed while brushing or flossing, or you are experiencing persistent bad breath, see your dentist. Any of these conditions may indicate a problem.
Your dentist or hygienist can help you learn good oral hygiene techniques and can help point out areas of your mouth that may require extra attention during brushing and flossing.
How is Good Oral Hygiene Practiced?
Maintaining good oral hygiene is one of the most important things you can do for your teeth and gums. Healthy teeth not only enable you to look and feel good, they make it possible to eat and speak properly. Good oral health is important to your overall well-being.
Daily preventive care, including proper brushing and flossing, will help stop problems before they develop and is much less painful, expensive, and worrisome than treating conditions that have been allowed to progress.
In between regular visits to the dentist, there are simple steps that each of us can take to greatly decrease the risk of developing tooth decay, gum disease and other dental problems. These include:
- Brushing thoroughly twice a day and flossing daily
- Eating a balanced diet and limiting snacks between meals
- Using dental products that contain fluoride, including toothpaste
- Rinsing with a fluoride mouth rinse if your dentist tells you to
- Making sure that your children under 12 drink fluoridated water or take a fluoride supplement if they live in a non-fluoridated area.
In need of good oral health from a pediatric dentist in the area please give us a call at (561) 333-4568.
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First, it is important to find a pediatric dentist near you with whom you feel comfortable. Once you've found a dentist you like, your next step is to schedule a check-up — before any problems arise.
On your first visit to a dentist, they will take a full health history. On subsequent visits, if your health status has changed, make sure to tell them.
Most dental visits are checkups. Regular checkups (ideally every six months) will help your teeth stay cleaner, last longer and can prevent painful problems from developing.
- A thorough cleaning
Checkups almost always include a complete cleaning, either from your dentist or a dental hygienist. Using special instruments, a dental hygienist will scrape below the gum line, removing built-up plaque and tartar that can cause gum disease, cavities, bad breath and other problems. Your dentist or hygienist may also polish and floss your teeth. - A full examination
your dentist will perform a thorough examination of your teeth, gums and mouth, looking for signs of disease or other problems. His or her goal is to help maintain your good oral health and to prevent problems from becoming serious, by identifying and treating them as soon as possible. - X-rays
Depending on your age, risks of disease and symptoms, your dentist may recommend X-rays. X-rays can diagnose problems otherwise unnoticed, such as damage to jawbones, impacted teeth, abscesses, cysts or tumors, and decay between the teeth. A modern dental office uses machines that emit virtually no radiation — no more than you would receive from a day in the sun or a weekend watching TV. As a precaution, you should always wear a lead apron when having an X-ray. And, if you are pregnant, inform your dentist, as X-rays should only be taken in emergency situations.
Your dentist may ask for a Panoramic X-ray, or Panorex. This type of film provides a complete view of your upper and lower jaw in a single picture, and helps the dentist understand your bite and the relationship between the different teeth and your arch.
Your child's diet is important in preventing a cavity. Remember every time we eat or drink something that contains sugar or starches, bacteria in our mouth use the sugar and starch to produce acids. These acids begin to eat away at the tooth's enamel.
Our saliva can help fight off this acid attack. But if we eat frequently throughout the day -- especially foods and drinks containing sugar and starches -- the repeated acid attacks will win the tug of war, causing the tooth to lose minerals and eventually develop a cavity.
Tooth-friendly tips:
- Limit between-meal snacks. This reduces the number of acid attacks on teeth and gives teeth a chance to repair themselves.
- Save candy, cookies, soda, and other sugary drinks for special occasions
- Limit fruit juice. Make sure your child doesn't eat or drink anything with sugar in it after bedtime tooth brushing. Saliva flow decreases during sleep. Without enough saliva, teeth are less able to repair themselves after an acid attack.
- Looking for a pediatric dentist with a kid friendly office come visit us at ToothTown Pediatric Dentistry located at 1037 State Road 7 Wellington FL, 33414 or contact us at 561-333-4568.
Healthy gums play a large part in the health of the entire mouth, and it is necessary to make sure your gums are healthy and clean as well as your teeth. One common sign of unhealthy gums is bleeding gums; if this occurs, it may be necessary to increase your oral hygiene practices, as well as to visit your dentist. In general, the best way to get healthy gums is to maintain the health of the entire mouth.
Healthy gums begin with the foods you eat. Foods that contain sugar can stay in the mouth and create bacteria and plaque, which can lead to gum disease. Begin by cutting back on sugary foods and, if sugary foods are eaten, by brushing the teeth immediately after, or at least swishing with water. Keep in mind that sugary drinks such as soda are especially harmful to the teeth and gums. Next, brushing the teeth is an important part of healthy gums. Choose a soft-bristled toothbrush to avoid injuring the gums, and replace the toothbrush every three months. Brush gently around the teeth and up into the gum line. Though this may cause slight bleeding initially, it should soon stop with regular gentle brushing. It is generally recommended that you brush your teeth at least twice a day, and three times a day if possible. If there is no time to brush after lunch, at least rinse the mouth with water after meals. To get more brushing techniques you could find a pediatric dentist that has a kids friendly office to visit and find more information about good oral care.
Why it happens
Kids suck their thumbs because it's comforting and calming. Your preschooler probably practiced this habit while she was still in the womb and perfected it as an infant.
Now she turns to her thumb when she's tired, scared, bored, sick, or trying to adjust to challenges such as starting daycare or preschool. She may also use her thumb to help her fall asleep at bedtime and to lull herself back to sleep when she wakes up in the middle of the night.
What to do about thumb-sucking
Don't worry too much. The American Dental Association says most children can safely suck their thumb – without damaging the alignment of their teeth or jaws – until their permanent teeth begin to appear. (Permanent teeth don't usually start to erupt until around age 6.)
Keep in mind, too, that not all thumb-sucking is equally damaging; experts say it's the intensity of the sucking and the tongue's thrust that deforms teeth and makes braces necessary later. Kids who rest their thumbs passively in their mouths are less likely to have dental problems than children who suck aggressively.
Observe your child's technique. If she sucks vigorously, you may want to begin curbing her habit earlier, say around age 4. If you notice any changes in her mouth or teeth, or if you're unsure whether your child's thumb-sucking is causing problems, consult your pediatric dentist in the area.
If you are looking for a kid friendly Pediatric Dentist in the West Palm Beach are please give us a call at (561) 333-4568 or visit our website at mytoothtown.com.
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1037 S. State Road 7 Suite 215
Wellington, FL 33414