Fun Easter Facts

5 Tips to Keep in Mind during this Festive Season

With the festive season almost upon us, here are five easy tips to maintain good oral health and general well-being:

 

Tooth Decay in Baby Teeth


Tooth decay in the primary (baby) teeth of young children is also called early childhood caries. It happens when the child's teeth come into contact with sugary foods and drinks often and for long periods of time. These drinks include fruit juices, soda and other drinks with sugar.

                                     

                                 Parents are often surprised to learn that tooth decay can begin as soon as a baby's teeth come in, usually by the age six months.

                                      Children who have decay in their baby teeth are more likely to have decay in their adult teeth.

How to keep your child's teeth healthy:

- Clean your child's teeth every day.
- Feed your child a healthy diet.
- Take your child to the dentist regularly.




Remember  Children learn healthy habits from their parents and caregivers!

Dental Floss

How to properly floss your teeth

Chewing Gum

Ever heard that chewing sugarless gum can prevent one of the biggest dental problems, cavities?

Well, most dental experts agree that it does. The American Dental Association cites clinical studies that say chewing sugarless gum for 20 minutes after you eat can contribute to the prevention of tooth decay.

When you chew gum, it actually stimulates the production of saliva. Saliva is an important means of preventing cavities because it rinses away food and beverage debris on your teeth and gums. Cavities are created when the bacteria in your mouth feast on food and beverage debris, producing acid that eats away at tooth enamel. Saliva also works to prevent tooth decay by neutralizing the acidity of this bacterial byproduct.

To get the most effective chewing gum possible, choose a gum with the ADA seal of approval. These chewing gums are sugarless, which is essential if you want your gum to prevent cavities. ADA-approved gums are sweetened with ingredients such as xylitol, aspartame or sorbitol. Bacteria causes tooth decay when the sugar in sugared gum is on your teeth and gums, so sugared gum is not generally a good option. And of course, chewing gum is not a replacement for brushing, which you should do twice a day, every day.

Composite Fillings or Amalgam Fillings?

The recommendation most doctors will make is for the placement of a composite filling.

Composite fillings have a 40 year history and are comprised of a plastic resin that is initially soft but cures to full strength after a a short exposure to the blue range of the light spectrum. The pros to using composite fillings are that they can be very small in size and adapt to any shape of cavity, come in a wide variety of colors to match your smile and have no chance of darkening a tooth ove time.

                                                  Amalgam                      Composite

Amalgam alloy fillings are comprised of a mixture of copper, silver, tin and elemental mercury. They have a 100 year history of use. Amalgam fillings are held in place by the shape of the cavity.

One major drawback of an amalgam fillings is that if the cavity is too small, the filling still has to be of sufficient size for proper hold and overall strength. Besides only coming in one color, the silver in amalgam fillings has the tendency to tarnish and percolate into the tooth over long periods of time, resulting in a gradual darkening of the tooth.

AZUCARES vs ALMIDONES

Sabia Usted que no solo los azucares son responsables de producir caries?

Los almidones que encontramos en el pan, la pasta y las papas fritas son tambien responsables de la aparición de caries ya que estos alimentos al permanecer en la boca se convierten en azúcar simple y las bacterias se alimentan de esta produciendo ácidos que provocan las caries.

Do you know that not only sugars are responsible for tooth decay? 

Foods such as chips, bread pasta or crackers can be as harmful to the teeth as candy.

Starches made from white flour are simple carbohydrates and can linger in your mouth and then break down into simple sugars. Bacteria feed on these sugars and produce aced, which causes tooth decay.

http://www.pegasusdentalcenter.com

Sabias que los primeros dentistas eran barberos?

Todo comenzó en la edad media, más exactamente en el siglo IX, época en la que los barberos solían visitar constantemente los monasterios para cuidar de las barbas, cabellos y uñas de sus habitantes al igual que de las personas de clase media que encontraban un gusto peculiar en el cuidado de su presentación personal.

Fue allí cuando se comenzó a implementar la moda del barbero-dentista, por solicitud de los monjes mismos quienes necesitaban de extracciones y con el tiempo, de blanqueamiento dentales rudimentarios.

Hoy dia podemos encontrar algunos manuscritos de algunos barberos-dentistas famosos, como es el caso de Roger de Salemo quien explica la importancia de emplear la extracción de dientes como ultimo recurso, debido al peligro que presentaba para el paciente; En lugar de esto, fumigaban la zona con semillas de puerros y cauterizaban la pieza dental.

http://www.pegasusdentalcenter.com