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Archive for August 2016

Comments Off on Maintaining Good Oral Health for Adults
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Maintaining Good Oral Health for Adults

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There are plenty of adults in this country that look to maintain a good level of health. However, very few adults give as much attention to their oral health. They don’t see it as an important issue and don’t understand the importance of a healthy mouth.

However, your mouth is a gateway to the rest of your body. Fail to take care of it, and you’ll see a variety of problems. So, here are some simple tips to help adults maintain good oral health:

Regular Dentist Appointments

The first thing you can do is attend regular appointments with a dentist. Adults should look to have a checkup at least twice a year. This ensures that an oral health professional is keeping tabs on your mouth.

Dentists can spot things that you won’t be able to see. They can advise you on the best course of action, and help prevent problems from occurring. Similarly, they can also contribute to reducing pain and discomfort you might be feeling from oral health issues.

Of course, you must ensure that you find a dentist you can trust and afford.

Do More Than Just Brushing Your Teeth

Many adults think that brushing their teeth is the best way to achieve good oral health. However, it’s impossible to have a healthy mouth if brushing is the only thing you do. Brushing your teeth can help you clean each tooth, and get rid of some dirt and plaque. But, there’s still lots of things that don’t get removed. Bits of food can be stuck between your teeth, and will rot if left unmoved. Similarly, brushing doesn’t do much to help you maintain healthy gums either.

So, you have to look for other solutions to ensure your mouth is cleaned fully. Every adult should floss at least once per day, typically in the evening. This helps you get rid of any food particles that are lodged in your teeth. It also helps keep your gum line clean and free from tartar.

You should also start using mouthwash twice per day to remove bacteria and keep your mouth healthy.

Brace Yourself For Change

No matter how hard you try, your oral health will change as you get older. For example, plenty of senior adults need to take medications for other bodily problems. And, these medications can cause things like dry mouth. When your mouth is dry, there’s more risk of tooth decay occurring. Similarly, your teeth get weaker as you get older, so you may need fillings or dentures.

To maintain good oral health, you have to brace yourself for change. Get ready for things to be different, and make alterations to counter it. Drink more water if you take medication that dries your mouth out. Take vitamin supplements that strengthen your teeth.

If you expect change, then you’ll be ready to deal with it and keep your mouth in a healthy state.

Follow this advice if you’re an adult that wants to maintain good oral health. Remember, it’s important that you have a healthy mouth, as it leads to a healthier body.

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Comments Off on Improving Periodontal Health with Anti-Inflammatory Diet
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Improving Periodontal Health with Anti-Inflammatory Diet

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Recent research has found out a relation between a change in diet and periodontal health. This discovery has led dentists to believe there’s a new way to fight periodontitis.

Periodontitis refers to inflammation around the tooth. It’s one of the more severe gum diseases out there. Anyone with poor periodontal health is putting their teeth and gums in danger. These diseases are infections that cause damage to the bone supporting the tooth. It’s also harmful to the soft tissue around the area too.

If you don’t treat this disease, you can end up losing the affected teeth. Furthermore, it has the potential to cause other health issues too. Some studies link poor periodontal health to heart attacks and strokes.

So, according to health experts, changing your diet can help you achieve better periodontal health. The primary focus is to eat foods that target inflammation in your body. As periodontitis is an inflammatory disease, it’s easy to see how the two things relate. There are certain foods out there that cause an increased risk of inflammation. For example, if your diet consists of a lot of carbohydrates, then this can be bad for you. Obviously, carbs are a good source of energy. But, they’re bad for inflammatory diseases. Instead, you should reduce your intake, and look to add other things into your diet.

It’s found that there are five main things you should increase to create an anti-inflammatory diet. The first of which is vitamin C, which can be found in many fruits like oranges and bananas. Secondly, you should also look to increase your vitamin D intake. A good source of vitamin D includes fatty fish like tuna and salmon. And, that leads us nicely into the third thing; omega-3 fatty acids. These are also mainly found in fish, and help reduce inflammation of the periodontal tissues. The final two things are antioxidants and fiber. Again, you’ll find many fruit and veg with antioxidant qualities that are also rich in fiber.

The research into this relation between periodontal health and diet was carried out over six weeks. Scientists looked at two groups of people with gum disease. One group carried on with their high-carb diet, while the other reduced carbs and increased all the things mentioned above. All of the participants were told they couldn’t make changes to their oral health during the study. So, if they didn’t floss before, they couldn’t start flossing during it. This was to try and keep the results fixed firmly on their different diets.

When the study concluded, they saw that the group that changed their diet showed reduced inflammation. To go along with this, increasing fatty acids and fibers helped to improve their plaque index.

Some critics argue that the sample size isn’t big enough to draw proper conclusions. So, they want more research into this theory. However, you can’t argue with the results. Switching to an anti-inflammatory diet helps to improve periodontal health in some cases. It’s interesting to see how something as simple as a change in diet can contribute to fighting such a serious oral disease.

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Comments Off on Broken, Cracked, or Decayed Tooth? Restored with Crowns
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Broken, Cracked, or Decayed Tooth? Restored with Crowns

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Having a damaged tooth can be worrying. It can sometimes cause you pain, and you might be concerned about how it looks too. Several things could have caused your tooth to be damaged. You might have experienced some trauma, in a fall or car accident, for example, and broken or cracked it. Sometimes biting down on something hard will break your tooth. It could also be damaged due to decay. All of these issues can cause you concern, but they can all be repaired with a crown. A crown will help to prevent further damage and restore the look and feel of the tooth.

What Is a Crown?

A crown is used to repair and preserve a damaged tooth. The crown fits over the tooth to strengthen it and make it look natural. It is usually made of porcelain, ceramic, glass or even gold-alloy. Crowns are designed to fit your tooth as closely as they can. If you have a crown fitted, it should blend in with your natural tooth. They are an excellent solution to repair the cosmetic look of your tooth. Crowns can last for years, as they are durable and should stand up to much daily wear and tear. However, they do need to be cared for like any other tooth.

Fitting a Crown

When your dentist fits a crown to one of your teeth, they first need to prepare the tooth. They remove the surface of your tooth so that the core is revealed. How much is removed depends on the thickness of the crown. You will then have an impression taken of your tooth so that the dental technician can make your crown. Molds of your opposite jaw can also be useful to ensure that the crown will match up to your teeth. The dental technician also needs to know the color of your natural tooth so that they can match the crown to it. In some cases, it might be necessary to put a post in the tooth before a crown can be fitted.

Protection and Preservation

One of the primary purposes of a crown is to protect a damaged tooth. When a tooth is cracked, broken or decayed, it is at risk of being damaged further. A crown helps to protect what is left of the natural tooth, along with restoring its appearance. The crown can hold together a tooth that has cracked to prevent it from breaking. It can also act as a protective layer over a weak tooth that could easily sustain damage. The tooth may not already be broken, but it could be weak from decay and require protection.

Restoration

Crowns help to restore teeth that have already broken. As well as being used on their own, they can also serve to hold a dental bridge in place. A bridge is used to fill the gap when you have one or missing teeth. Crowns can also cover dental implants and misshapen teeth, and be used for cosmetic purposes.

There’s no need to worry if one of your teeth is damaged. A crown could be the perfect solution to repair it.

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Comments Off on When Is It Time to Have Your Tooth Extracted
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When Is It Time to Have Your Tooth Extracted

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Having a tooth extracted isn’t a pleasant notion for anyone. However, sometimes it is a necessary procedure. Some people will put off seeing their dentist when they have a toothache or feel they might need to have a tooth extracted. The procedure isn’t as frightening as many believe it to be and can be the best solution to several problems. A visit to see your dentist is best if you think you might need to have a tooth extracted. They can tell you if it’s necessary or if other treatments would be better. However, you can also be more aware of when it might be best to have a tooth removed.

Damaged Tooth

A tooth extraction might be needed if your tooth is severely damaged. You might have broken it by biting down on something or perhaps during an accident. It could also have broken as a result of decay. In some cases, the tooth can be repaired using one of several methods. For example, a filling might be able to fix the damage, or a crown might be appropriate. However, sometimes the tooth is too damaged to restore or preserve it, and it needs to be extracted.

Crowded Mouth

Another reason for requiring a tooth extraction could be that your mouth is crowded. This is a common practice for teenagers and adults who are getting braces. An overcrowded mouth can make it more likely for teeth to be misaligned. Removing a tooth gives the other teeth more room to spread out and straighten. It can also be a good idea to remove a tooth if a new tooth isn’t able to break through the gums. A crowded mouth can prevent this from happening, so extracting the tooth might be the best option.

Infection or Risk of Infection

An infection in the tooth or even just a risk of infection is another reason to extract a tooth. An infection might occur when the pulp of the tooth is damaged by tooth decay. When this happens, a root canal is sometimes performed to correct the problem. The patient might also be given antibiotics to treat the infection. However, sometimes neither of these treatments works. In these cases, extracting the tooth is often the solution that will take care of the problem. However, it is a last resort after other treatments have been attempted.

Dupont Dental for Tooth Extraction

Dupont Dental is the place to come if you need a tooth extraction. Our dentists excel at the procedure, ensuring that you are cared for throughout. Our comfortable office helps you feel calmer as soon as you walk through the door. The waiting room is always stocked with an excellent magazine collection and music helps you to relax. Our bright and cheery office is modern and avoids the feel of a sterile medical establishment. We do our best to ensure that your tooth extraction is as comfortable as possible.

If you need to see your dentist, don’t put it off. Performing a tooth extraction sooner rather than later will prevent further problems.

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In-Office or At-Home Teeth Whitening?

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Teeth whitening is a popular cosmetic dental treatment, loved by many people. Removing stains and coloring from your teeth gives you a brilliantly white smile. If you are considering whitening your teeth, you may have noticed that there are two primary options. You can have your teeth whitened in your dentist’s office, or you can do it at home. Dupont Dental offers both options, with Zoom in-office whitening or the Opalescence at-home system. Both treatments are equally effective, and they each have their benefits. Read on to find out the difference between the two systems and which one is best for you.

Benefits of In-office Whitening

Our in-office whitening system is called Zoom. As the name suggests, it’s a quick and efficient way to get the white teeth you want. This professional treatment from Philips is a safe way to whiten your teeth in less time. When you come to our office, your dentist will apply a hydrogen peroxide (bleach) gel to your teeth. They then use a lamp with UV light to break down the gel and activate it. Your teeth are bleached to a whiter shade while remaining healthy.

There are some excellent benefits to coming to our office for your whitening treatment. To start with, the treatment is quick. It takes around an hour to complete so that you can fit it around your other commitments quickly. There’s no need to spend time recovering or undergo a lengthy procedure. Another excellent benefit is that you can see improvement in the color of your teeth immediately after the treatment. The Zoom whitening system can make your teeth six to eight shades brighter compared to when you walk into the office. The treatment is comfortable, and our office is too.

Benefits of At-home Whitening

There are a couple of ways you can choose to whiten your teeth at home. You can buy at-home whitening kits from pharmacies and other outlets. However, we recommend always going to your dentist for an at-home whitening kit. Your dentist can ensure that the kit is customized for you. This makes the whitening trays safer. We ensure that they fit your teeth and keep the bleach solution away from your gums.

The at-home whitening system we use is Opalescence. It provides you with incredible results, just like our in-office whitening. However, it also gives you the convenience of doing your treatment at home. Many people don’t have time to do the in-office treatment or might feel comfortable about sitting in the chair for an hour. When you use our Opalescence whitening trays, you put them on your teeth before you go to bed. They work while you sleep, so you don’t have to use anytime or effort. Just let them do their thing and the gel will whiten your teeth.

In-office and at-home whitening treatments each have their positives. Deciding which one is best for you is a matter of time, convenience and comfort. Everyone has different feelings about which is the best method.

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