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With the way dentists and hygienists are always sucking saliva away or blowing your teeth dry, you’d think we had something against it. But the truth is that saliva is very beneficial to your overall and oral health. Here are a few facts about how saliva protects your smile that you may not already know.
Saliva does more than keep your mouth moist and lubricate your food for easy swallowing, it actually starts the digestion process. Saliva contains a type of enzyme called amylase that breaks down the starch in foods into sugars so they can be more easily digested. This is why foods that contain a lot of starch, such as potatoes, may get a slightly sweet flavor as they’re chewed.
Saliva holds on to minerals that you get from what you eat and drink and helps distribute these minerals to your teeth. In particular, saliva can hold on the fluoride from your diet and from your toothpaste or mouthwash. This is one reason you shouldn’t rinse with water for at least 30 minutes after brushing! You would be washing away or diluting that fluoride-filled saliva. The minerals in your saliva can help rebuild damage to your teeth, such as the very earliest stages of a cavity.
We produce saliva continuously when we’re awake and swallow it regularly. This may seem like just a gross unnecessary quirk of being human, but it actually does serve a purpose. Your saliva constantly washes your mouth, helping to remove food debris that may be stuck to your teeth and gums. Chewing gum after eating is beneficial to your teeth not because of any particular quality of the gum, but because the chewing action and the flavors stimulate your salivary glands, helping to cleanse your mouth.
Saliva is an essential part of the mechanism by which you taste the flavors in your food. Your taste buds need a liquid between them and your food in order for the flavor molecules to bind to the taste buds’ chemical receptors. Without this liquid medium between them, the flavor “message” can’t get through. For a great demonstration of this process, try this experiment. Pat your tongue dry with a towel then try eat a dry food such as crackers or cookies. Then, take another taste after re-moistening your mouth with water. Big difference, right?
A dentist or a dental hygienist can take a quick look inside your mouth and tell you whether you clench and grind your teeth in your sleep. We often find that patients are skeptical that we can glean this information from just a brief examination, but our diagnoses is much less like palm reading or interpreting tea leaves than it may seem. Here’s what we’re seeing when we look in your mouth:
Bruxism is the medical term for clenching and grinding your teeth, and it can leave visible signs on your teeth. The repetitive stress of the grinding motion can cause teeth to get worn down, starting with the hard outer enamel layer and getting down to the softer dentin layer as the damage progresses. People who have been grinding for a long time usually have teeth that are shorter with a flattened appearance along the edges, as if the teeth have all been trimmed to be the same length. Severe cases of bruxism can even lead to cracked or broken teeth, especially in people who have already had teeth repaired with a crown.
Tension headaches can be caused by bruxism. All the pressure from the constantly tight jaw can build up and cause pain. Patients who report waking up with headaches on a regular basis may clench and grind in their sleep. Using a nightguard each night might reduce or eliminate these headaches completely.
Recent studies have shown a correlation between bruxism and TMD, which is a disorder of the jaw that causes pain and other problems. The temporomandibular joint is your main jaw joint, and there is some evidence that the strain caused by clenching and grinding can contribute to joint problems. Those with bruxism can cause enlargement of the masseter muscle, which helps operate the movement of the lower jaw. Constant clenching and grinding “works out” this muscle, causing it to bulk up, contributing to a square-jawed appearance.
Believe it or not, clenching and grinding can actually change the shape of your bone. Though not particularly common, some people with bruxism develop bony growths on the inside of their lower jaw, under the tongue. These growths are called mandibular tori, and they are harmless and benign. However, their presence can indicate to the dentist that you clench and grind, even if you don’t have any of the other signs and symptoms mentioned above.
Dental hygienists see thousands and thousands of patients’ mouths each year. They know that no two people’s mouths or oral health are quite the same. Nonetheless, there are some things that patients don’t know about caring for their smiles that seem to come up again and again. Here are four things your hygienist wishes you knew that would keep your teeth whiter, stronger and healthier.
The common knowledge used to be that brushing too hard with your toothbrush can cause gum recession. However, recent evidence indicates that clenching and grinding your teeth may contribute more to gum recession than aggressive brushing. Gum recession is when your gums pull away from your teeth, giving your teeth a longer appearance and exposing more of your tooth structure to the risk of tooth decay.
Some dental hygienists will say that certain types of floss are better than others. Ultra-smooth, ultra-thin flosses may be easier to get between your teeth and glide easily once there, however, the lack of friction created by this type of floss may not be as good at removing plaque. Thicker, wax-coated flosses may be a little harder to ease into tight spaces but they are also better at removing debris from between your teeth efficiently. That being said, any dental hygienist will tell you that thin and smooth floss is better than no floss at all!
You may not know it, but that white film you see on your tongue sometimes is actually plaque! The same sticky bacteria-filled buildup that accumulates on your teeth can also accumulate on your tongue. The rough surface created by your taste buds is great for hiding bacteria and debris. Brushing or scraping your tongue when you brush your teeth can get rid of this buildup. If you want recommendations for tools or techniques for cleaning your tongue, just ask your hygienist at your next cleaning.
Even though it looks more watery and tastes less bold than coffee, tea actually causes worse teeth staining and yellowing. This may come as a surprise to tea drinkers who think they’ve opted for the milder of the two beverages, and there is a catch. Black coffee on its own stains worse than tea, but coffee with milk is not as bad on its own. In summary, the order of your morning drink choices from most staining to less staining is: black coffee, tea, and coffee with milk or cream. If you’re a tea drinker and want whiter teeth, consider switching to a white tea instead of black or green.
In addition to good dental hygiene and regular checkups, knowing how to spot a dental problem early can be extremely helpful when in preventing toothaches or the need for a root canal. Trouble is, catching the signs of a cavity can be a little tricky, especially since they usually don’t cause any symptoms that you can feel and there are a variety of types and appearances. There are three major kinds of cavities:
These cavities appear on the chewing surfaces of teeth and are more common on back teeth (i.e. molars). Bits of food and the resulting plaque can easily get stuck in the peaks and valleys on your teeth. If you don’t have good oral hygiene habits this debris stays there and acts as fuel for bacteria, which eventually eat through your tooth’s enamel. These cavities can be any color but often look like holes accompanied by a chalky with material or a black spot.
These cavities appear on the smooth outside surfaces of teeth, usually on the sides of the mouth (rather than the back or the front). Cavities on the smooth surfaces of your teeth are rarer than pit and fissure cavities because, unlike the chewing surfaces of teeth, the sides are easier to clean and harder for the bacteria that causes tooth decay to hide in. These cavities often appear as small holes or tiny brown spots.
The root of a tooth is the part that is below your gum line. In people with receding gums, this part of the tooth becomes exposed, which is problematic because the root doesn’t have the outer hard enamel surface that offers more resistance to tooth decay. These cavities usually appear as dark brown or yellow areas just above the gum line.
Of course, if you ever notice something new or unusual happening to any of your teeth, whether it’s a visual sign or a physical symptom, please call us! It doesn’t have to match the descriptions above to be a big problem. While we know how to relieve a toothache quickly and will make ourselves available in a hurry, we’d much rather hear from you sooner than later! Most dental problems do not get better if you just “wait and see”!
Part of offering family dentistry is ensuring that our youngest patients feel especially comfortable. We do everything we can to make the dentist a friendly, safe and informative environment for your child. Here are a few tips for what you can do as a parent to make your child’s first visit easy on you and your little one.
If you have an older child, bring the little one along to their appointment. Chances are your child will want to emulate their older sibling’s good behavior. If there are no older children in your family, set a good example yourself by having your child along with you at your next appointment. All little kids want to be like their moms and dads!
If you’re fearful or anxious at the dentist, try not to let it show. Don’t say anything that may worry your child, even if you’re a little worried yourself. Don’t try to set any expectations of sensations or how long the appointment will be. If you don’t think your dental anxiety is something you can easily control, you may consider having your spouse be in charge of dental visits at first.
Don’t try to explain the concept of why we go to the dentist to your little one. Sometimes the idea of germs or scary “sugar bugs” cause more trouble than they help. Telling your child that the dentist will be looking in her mouth to count her teeth is usually familiar enough of a concept for a child to accept.
Bring along a favorite toy or promise a new one following the appointment as a reward. Some children are overwhelmed by the bright light shining in their eyes in the dental chair, so another fun reward or preparation can be choosing a cool and colorful pair of sunglasses to wear during the checkup, and of course keep afterwards!
Ask the dental staff if you can bring your child in for a tour before the appointment. Make it a fun experience full of discovery and new things, as if you were visiting a children’s science museum. Familiarity can help children adjust when it’s their turn in the dental chair.
As dentists, we’ll warn you away from sweet treats most of the time, but chewing gum is a surprising exception. That is, as long as it’s sugar-free. Yes, it’s true that sugar-free chewing gum is actually good for your teeth and can help prevent tooth decay. Not only that, some varieties may even strengthen your teeth.
Sugar-free gum has been shown to increase the production of saliva in the mouth. In addition to the action of chewing, this increase in saliva helps was away food particles that bacteria could feed on to cause tooth decay. Saliva naturally contains minerals that help strengthen teeth, so when there’s more of it, it follows that there are more enamel-hardening minerals too.
These days, it seems like most of the popular chewing gum brands have switched to being sugar-free. We assume that gum manufacturers are smart enough not to raise the ire of dentists. Most sugar-free gums contain one of three non-sugar sweeteners: aspartame, sorbitol, or xylitol. The first two don’t have any evidence of causing harm to teeth, but they don’t have any benefits either. On the other hand, recent studies suggest that xylitol may reduce the amount of bacteria in your mouth and strengthen teeth.
Most sugar-free gums will proudly proclaim they’re sugar free right on the packaging. Several brands also carry the American Dental Association (ADA) seal of approval. Any gum packaging that doesn’t proclaim it’s sugar-free probably isn’t. Be sure to take a look at the nutrition label when choosing gum. Bubble gum and retro 20th century gum brands that have been revived by candy makers are particularly notorious for being sugar-sweetened.
A note of caution: if you have TMD, a chronic painful condition in the jaw joint (called the temporomandibular joint or TMJ), chewing gum can aggravate symptoms. There is a rumor that chewing gum causes TMD, but there is no evidence showing a direct cause and effect as of yet.
There are other reasons to avoid chewing gum other than the possibility of tooth decay with sugar-sweetened brands. If you have braces or oral appliances such as removable bridges, partial dentures, or full dentures, gums can get stuck to them, causing a huge mess & possibly pulling them out of place. If you’re wondering whether chewing gum is a good idea given your particular dental condition, please feel free to ask the dentist.
If you haven’t noticed already, dentists tend to be technology nuts. We’re always looking for the next and best way to provide patients with better versions of dental solutions such as crowns, dentures and dental implants. The advancements in dental tech over the last few decades have been truly incredible, and we are starting to see signs of the next wave of advancements: the integration of 3-D printing into dental care.
Many dentists are already using a form of computerized manufacturing in the form of computer-controlled milling machines. These machines can carve custom crowns or bridges out of a block of ceramic or porcelain, based on the information provided by a digital 3-D model that comes from a scan of your mouth.
3-D printing for dentistry will also work off a digital 3-D model, but instead of telling the machine to carve away material, the printer will be told to add material. Most 3-D printers work by extruding very thin layers of material, one on top of the other, to form a three-dimensional shape. As of now, these printers primarily use plastic materials to print. Many companies are working on developing and improving dental-grade plastics and resins that will work in a 3-D printer and look natural.
Dentists and dental laboratories are already using 3-D printers to create models of patients’ teeth for treatment planning purposes, surgical guides for the accurate placement of dental implants, clear orthodontic aligners (like Invisalign®) and dentures. Using 3-D printers to do this is much more cost-efficient and less wasteful than traditional methods.
The possibility of 3-D printing of affordable dentures is particularly exciting. For those who have lost their natural teeth and cannot afford or are not eligible for dental implants, dentures are a common solution. However, creating dentures is labor intensive, which ads to the cost. With 3-D printing reducing the time, labor and materials cost of manufacturing dentures, we may be nearing a future in which the cost of a high-quality set of dentures falls significantly.
Just like dentistry, 3-D printing is a rapidly advancing industry, and we’re sure there are new discoveries and techniques being tested everyday. As part of our pledge to bring you the best possible dental care, we’ll stay on top of all the latest technology in dentistry and invest to bring you the best right here in our practice, as soon as it lives up to our high standards of care.
As dental professionals, it should be no surprise that we find teeth fascinating. Human teeth come in so many different shapes, sizes and colors that it makes our job of keeping them healthy and beautiful an art as much as a science. But human teeth aren’t the only ones that are interesting. The animal kingdom is full of fascinating teeth and here are a few amazing examples.
Other than big ears, prominent front teeth may be the most iconic feature of rabbits. These big teeth aren’t just adorable and endearing, they’re important tools. Rabbits are herbivores, meaning their diet consists only of plants. Many plants are very fibrous and require sharp, strong teeth for cutting and chewing. If you ate like a rabbit, your teeth would get worn down in no time, and the same is true of rabbit teeth. The difference is, unlike human teeth, rabbit teeth grow continuously to compensate for their tough diet.
These constantly regenerating teeth can be a problem for domesticated rabbits, though. Pet rabbits who eat too many processed pellets and not enough fibrous food like hay and vegetables can end up with overgrown teeth. When the teeth get to big and long, they don’t fit together right and can cause lots of problems for the rabbits health.
In most mammals, tusks are elongated canine teeth. An elephant’s tusks are actually its incisors, or two front teeth. Tusks and molars are the only two types of teeth that adult elephants have (humans have five types). Instead of one set of baby teeth and one set of adult teeth, an elephants molars are replaced throughout their lifetime, up to six times total.
Just like people are left or right-handed, elephants show a preference for one of their tusks and use it more often. You can tell whether an elephant is left or right-tusked by the shape: the dominant tusk tends to be shorter and more rounded.
Elephants use their tusks for defense, in mating displays (when males battle), and as tools for digging, marking trees, and moving things in their environment. Just like rabbit teeth, an elephants tusks never stop growing and gain about 17 cm in length every year.
Narwhals are a unique species of toothed whale that lives in the arctic and are often called “unicorns of the sea” because of their long spiral-textured tusk that resembles a mythical unicorn horn. Like tusks in other animals, the narwhal tusk is actually an elongated front tooth and it protrudes through the top lip as opposed to under it.
Several things make the narwhal tusk unique. Unlike human teeth that have hard enamel on the outside and soft dentin on the inside, narwhal tusks are softer outside and harder at the core. In contrast to other tusked animals like walruses and elephants, narwhals usually only have one tusk. Two-tusked narwhals do exist but are very rare. They also are the only straight tusk in the animal kingdom. And lastly, we don’t know what narwhal tusks are for. Scientists think it might have to do with attracting a mate or detecting water temperature and pressure, but more studies need to be done to find out.
A clean, white, and healthy smile can be considered a status symbol: a sign of someone who has excellent habits, an excellent dentist, or both. But what about the tool that gets you there? Would you invest in a luxury toothbrush?
In case you’re tempted, we’ve scoured the web for the most exceptional non-electric toothbrushes that you can buy for $12 or a lot more!
If you replace your toothbrush as often as your dentist recommends, you should be going through at least four toothbrushes a year. Some people saw the environmental impact of this and decided to make a change. The Boie toothbrush uses a BPA-free reusable handle with replaceable rubber bristle heads. They claim the brush lasts twice as long as a standard toothbrush and it’s recyclable, which cuts down on waste and environmental impact.
Chrome isn’t just for your car anymore! If you’re looking for a more glamorous oral hygiene experience, the German home accessories company Decor Walther makes a chrome-plated toothbrush. This brush is actually a regular plastic brush with a metallic finish and doesn’t seem to have any health-related claims to fame. But if a blingy brush with make you brush more often, we’re all for it!
The earliest toothbrushes were made from bone and animal bristles as far back as the 1700s, and some manufacturers are trying to bring naturally-sourced materials back to dental hygiene. French company Buly makes toothbrushes with silk or badger bristles embedding in tortoiseshell-look acetate handles. Italian company Koh-i-Noor also makes badger bristle toothbrushes, but we’re not sure we can approve of their “very hard” boar bristle toothbrushes. Always opt for soft bristles to protect your enamel, whether natural or nylon!
If you’re looking to make a fashion statement while banishing tooth decay it won’t come cheap. Lifestyle designer Charles Darius offers toothbrushes in silver, black rhodium, gold plate, and 18kt solid gold. These brushes start at $390, but thankfully that’s just for the handle. To trim down waste (and cost!), the toothbrushes use disposable heads crafted from sustainable bamboo.
Note: We’re not endorsing any of the toothbrushes mentioned in this post, as not all of them have been tested by the ADA. We just wanted to share some interesting and surprising products with our patients.
No matter how much you spend on your toothbrush, the best toothbrush according to any dentist, is the one you use properly and frequently. A $4 toothbrush can be just as good as a $4,000 one, as long as you brush for a full 2 minutes twice a day. Brushing with good technique and attention to detail is the key to preventing tooth decay and gum disease and keeping your teeth white. Used correctly, any toothbrush is worth its weight in gold!
One of the challenges that we face as dentists and dental hygienists is the fact that many dental conditions are asymptomatic in the early stages. The word “asymptomatic” means that they don’t cause any symptoms that are noticeable, particularly to the patient. One of the most pernicious dental diseases that fits this description is gum disease, which can turn into periodontitis and eventually lead to crooked, loose, or failed teeth.
Dental professionals have expert training in identifying signs of trouble before something goes wrong, which is why it’s so important to see us for your regular checkups and cleanings. In the meantime, you can make a huge difference in your own dental health by being on the look-out for gum disease warning signs before they become symptoms.
A lot of people see a little blood when they floss or brush. This is very common, but that doesn’t mean it’s normal! Any blood when you brush or floss can be a sign of trouble, even if you don’t have any other symptoms such as swelling or discomfort.
If you notice that your teeth seem to look longer than they used to, you may have gum recession. Receding gums is one of the early signs of gum disease, which is caused by an infection of the tissues around your teeth, your gums and bone. As the infection progresses it forms a pocket that pulls your gums away from your teeth. Eventually the roots of your teeth, which aren’t protected by enamel, can become exposed, causing sensitivity and leaving them vulnerable further damage from cavities.
Gums can get puffy and inflamed during the early stages of gum disease without necessarily causing discomfort. The good news is this sign can appear when you still just have gingivitis that hasn’t turned into periodontitis yet.
If you notice any of these signs, please let us know as soon as possible. Gum disease is reversible in its early stages, but once it progresses into periodontitis it becomes a chronic disease that can only be managed, not cured.
