How to get my children to Brush Teeth Properly

Posted on October 18, 2015 by Holistic Dentist

How to get my children to Brush Teeth Properly?

There certainly has been no lack of marketing and research money spent for the purpose of encouraging kids to take care of their teeth over the years.

A couple of years ago, some dentists tried getting kids to brush their teeth ‘Gangnam Style’; more recently, the Minions have been recruited to try and make dental hygiene more fun for kids. We wouldn’t be surprised to see a new set of hitting storeshelves later this year, after the new Star Wars movie comes out. Whatever works!

Kids need to brush 35 times on each side of the mouth, using seven strokes in five areas.

Many free or cheap Apps for smartphones designed to encourage kids to brush longer use music as way to try and keep them brushing.

In our household, we’ve had some success in getting a child more interested in brushing her teeth with a new type of chocolate-flavored toothpaste called Theodent. This line of fluoride-free toothpaste is carried at Whole Foods. Despite being chocolate-flavored, Theodent pitches itself as being more healthy than other toothpastes in that it can be swallowed; by contrast, it is not recommended to ingest most toothpastes containing fluoride.

In other kid-related dental news, there’s a website that purports to track how much money parents are leaving under their kids’ pillows whenever the “tooth fairy” comes to visit.

Apparently, the amount of money kids get per tooth has been known to fluctuate up or down in accordance with the S&P 500. In 2014, according to The Original Tooth Fairy Poll, kids received an average of $4.36 per tooth from the Tooth Fairy in 2014, that’s up from $3.50 the previous year. The site estimates that parents (or, the tooth fairy) left kids $255 million in 2014.

There are many different toothpaste options such as Colgate, Tom’s of Maine. There has been no study done comparing Kids tooth brushing compliance and the taste of tooth paste.

Safe Amalgam Filling Removal

Posted on October 4, 2015 by Holistic Dentist

Safe Amalgam Filling Removal

Many of my patients ask about the risks of Metal aka Amalgam and Mercury Fillings. Are the fillings Safe? Should I have them removed? Am I being exposed or poisoned by the Mercury in the Metal Fillings that are in my mouth? Will the Metal and Amalgam fillings make me sick? What is the best material to replace metal and Amalgam Fillings? I spend hours a day discussing all the above questions with my patients. So lets start from the top..

1) Are Metal, Mercury, Amalgam Fillings safe? No. Amalgam Fillings contain approximately 50% mercury and Mercury is one of the most poisonous materials on planet earth. Years ago, if a thermometer broke and there was a mercury spill in a public building, the building was evacuated and a hazmat team was dispatched to clean up the dangerous, toxic mess. So tell me how it is ok to have mercury in your mouth and placed in contact with living tissue permanently?

Should my Amalgam Fillings Removed?

Yes, but the Amalgam Fillings need to be removed safely using the proper equipment to insure your and my safety. I do not want to make you sick, but think about how bad removing this material is for me? I remove this poisonous stuff everyday. We also need to have a plan to replace the Mercury Fillings with another material.

Am I being exposed or poisoned by the Mercury in the Metal Fillings in my mouth?

Yes you are being exposed, but you may or may not be sick or get sick depending on the conditions in your mouth and your genetics. The truth is that every time you eat, or perform any function on your teeth where your Mercury Fillings are touched, you are exposed to mercury. In fact, if you clench your teeth and you have Mercury Fillings you have an even higher exposure to the Mercury in the Metal Fillings due to the increased clenching or grinding on the mercury surfaces of your teeth.

Will the Metal and Amalgam Fillings make me sick?

Whether you get sick or not depends on the amount of Mercury you are exposed to and your genetics. Some people have genes where they are more tolerant to mercury and other metal exposures. Others are more sensitive and can get quite sick even to very small exposures.

What is the best material to replace Metal and Amalgam Fillings?

Once the amalgam with Mercury is removed from your teeth, we evaluate the tooth for decay and cracks. Any external cracks need to be supported or removed and all soft rotten tooth structure needs to be also removed. Your tooth is then treated with oxygen and ozone to be sure the tooth is free of bacteria and to promote healing. At this point your tooth is ready to be filled or rebuilt. A BPA free composite or tooth colored filling can be placed as long as there is more than 50% of your tooth structure remaining. If the tooth is more broken down and more than 50% of the tooth is missing than your tooth lacks the structural integrity to support another filling and it needs to be rebuilt with a tooth colored, metal-free porcelain or a porcelain-like tooth colored material called zirconia. It is very important to place crowns when more than 50% of the structure is missing. Teeth that are over filled will not hold up to the forces of chewing and the tooth will break and more aggressive treatment such as a root canal or an extraction may be consequently necessary.

How do I get rid of bad breath?

Posted on October 3, 2015 by Holistic Dentist

How do I get rid of Bad Breath?

For better or worse, there aren’t many new-and-improved methods for getting rid of bad breath, or what’s also called ‘Halitosis.’ A certain type of bacteria, which can build up in the mouth in the absence of regular brushing or flossing, causes Bad Breath. This is almost always the culprit—but there’s an exception we’ll get to in just a moment.

For many people, the occasional instance of Bad Breath is a part of life. For those who worry about it a little more, let’s review the steps we suggest to our patients every day, ranging from the basic to the slightly more obscure.

First of all, are you brushing? Are you flossing? If not, let’s just start right there.

If you’re brushing and flossing regularly, but still have an issue with Bad Breath, another suggestion our hygienists suggest is a tongue scraper. The most highly-rated tongue scraper on Amazon, now that we’re taking a look, costs under $7. One reviewer says that this particular product “just might be the Cadillac of tongue scrapers.” Sounds pretty good.

Beyond that, we would suggest you watch your diet. If fresh breath is your priority, it’s possible that onions and garlic should be on your personal list of foods to avoid.

Moving along from the more obvious pieces of advice, we’d also like to suggest that you stay hydrated. A well-hydrated body usually creates enough saliva needed to flush the mouth of much of the bacteria that causes bad breath. If you’re on certain types of medicines, this can also lead to ‘dry mouth’ so keep that in mind if you’re trying to root out a mysterious case of recurrent Halitosis.

Unfortunately, some people with healthy mouths and good habits still get Bad Breath, and there can occasionally be reasons that trace beyond the mouth. In particular, acid reflux can cause Bad Breath, and can also damage your teeth. While protecting your teeth is your dentist’s job, treating acid reflux is beyond the scope of dentistry.

Some more serious causes of Bad Breath include untreated gum disease, teeth with untreated dental decay, and wisdom teeth that cannot be cleaned properly and need to be removed. If you have a healthy diet and brush and floss regularly, but still have Bad Breath, we recommend coming in for a consultation so we can determine the cause.

When should a tooth filling be replaced?

Posted on July 24, 2014 by Holistic Dentist

When is it necessary to replace fillings?

amalgam filling removal

It is necessary to replace a tooth filling when:

if the filling is leaking
if the tooth has suffered a new infection with new decay around the filling
the tooth structure around the filling is cracked
the filling is cracked
the patient is having a reaction to the material.

A Filling may leak or come loose for many reasons, but over time fillings separate from the tooth and come loose naturally. When fillings become loose, bacteria leaks under the filling and the tooth will decay under the existing filling. Decay or dental cavities under fillings can become big problems because cavities under fillings can escape detection by even the best dentist and persist causing a lot more damage to the tooth and the need for tooth procedures such a root canals, crowns and extractions.

Teeth with dental fillings can get new cavities next to an existing filling. In fact if is more likely to get a cavity around a filling than in an area where there is no filling. Ultimately dietary sugars and normal wear and tear cause dental cavities to occur.

Many people clench and grind their teeth. Clenching and grinding is cause by a misalignment between the way teeth fit top to bottom and the way the jaw should close. This condition is called TMD or TMJ or temporal mandibular joint disorder. People who clench their teeth get more cracks and teeth with fillings more easily crack than ones without fillings. Clenching also can cause cracks in dental filling and fillings to come loose from teeth.

Some people are allergic or hypersensitive to dental materials. For this reason a new material may need to be selected and the filling removed.

Replacing fillings in a timely fashion is a matter of preventative care. It is better to replace a filling early to prevent further decay to the tooth and prevent more complex procedures such as root canals, extractions and dental implants.

It is necessary to take extra care when taking out toxic materials such as Amalgam. We have a Safe Amalgam Removal protocol in our holistic dental offices in Rockville Maryland.

How much does a tooth filling cost?

Posted on March 27, 2014 by Holistic Dentist

How much does a tooth filling cost? Or specifically a tooth colored filling. The cost of a tooth colored composite filling depends on how many surfaces the filling covers. For example if the filling is only on the biting surface of a tooth it costs less than a filling that is on the biting surface and front surface of the tooth. Typically if a filling involves 4 or more surfaces it is no more expensive than a four surface filling. If a dental filling begins to include more than 50% of the surface of a tooth and/or it is rebuilding a major functional surface of a tooth than a crown may become necessary. The cost of a filling also is a function of where the dental office is located for example a dental office in Chevy Chase Maryland may be more expensive than one in Silver Spring, Maryland. The likely reason for geographic changes in cost is the difference in business operating costs. What a person pays out of pocket for a tooth colored filling as opposed to the total cash cost for the dental filling may be what is of concern. Generally in Rockville, Maryland a filling will cost between $200-$400 for a tooth colored composite filling.