When should my child see the dentist?

A common question new parents have is "When should my child first see a dentist?"

The short answer is "First visit by first birthday," according to the American Academy of Pediatric Dentistry. America's pediatricians agree. The American Academy of Pediatrics suggests that children who are at risk of early childhood cavities should visit a pediatric dentist by age 1. Although the idea of such early dental visits is still surprising to many new parents, the infant visit is endorsed by leading national public health groups.

More than 1 in 4 children in the United States have cavities by the time they are 4 years old, sometimes as early as age 2. To prevent early childhood cavities, parents first have to find out their child's risk of developing cavities, then learn how to manage diet, hygiene and fluoride to prevent problems before they start.

But cavities aren't all that parents need to learn about their child's dental health. The age 1 dental visit lets parents discuss:

• How to care for an infant’s or toddler's mouth
• Appropriate use of fluoride for your child
• Oral habits, including finger and thumb sucking
• Ways to prevent oral and facial accidents and trauma
• Teething and developmental milestones
• The relationship between diet and oral health

After this first visit, the dentist will suggest a schedule of follow-up visits. In the past, dentists typically recommended follow-up visits every six months. Now, dentists are increasingly tailoring children's visits to their individual needs and risks. As your child grows, the dental team can share information that will help you prevent common oral problems.
Dr. David Medford, is a dentist in Fort Worth, he is trained in implant dentistry, cosmetic and family dentistry.

What Causes a Dry Mouth

What is dry mouth?

Dry mouth is a condition whereby the salivary glands either reduce or stop the production of saliva (hyposalivation). Saliva is made up of protective enzymes, proteins, mucus, antibacterial chemicals, electrolytes and water. Saliva is produced by the major salivary glands, which are located in the cheeks and underneath the tongue.

FACT: There are over 600 minor salivary glands located around the mouth too that provide lubrication for digestion.

 

Why is dry mouth harmful to your mouth?

• Promotes other diseases
• Cavities
• Periodontal disease
• Bad breath (halitosis)
• Mouth sores
• Sore throat
• Fungal infections
• Difficulty speech
• Difficulty chewing
• Altered taste
• Malnutrition
• Diabetes
• Heart Disease
• Lung Disease
• Cancer

What causes dry mouth?

• Salivary glands reduce functioning
• Salivary stones (blocked ducts)
• Medications
• Snoring / mouth breathing
• Anxiety
• Cancer
• Trauma
• Surgery

What can be done to treat dry mouth?

1. Find the cause (s)
2. Seek alternative medications with physician (that caused dry mouth)
3. Use topical saliva substitutes
4. Use a medication called pilocarpine or evoxac to induce saliva production
5. Rinse with a non-alcoholic fluoride rinse
6. Rinse with water after every snack and drink (within the 7-minute window)

Denture Wearer Improve Taste?

Taste (gustation) is defined as the ability to detect flavors from food, minerals and poisons. Taste is one of the five senses and is a basic function of life.

Taste helps to improve the quality of life and detects poisons to protect you.

There are around 10,000 taste buds in the mouth. Each taste bud has between 15 and 150 receptor cells that derives a specific flavor such as salt, sweet, sour, bitter and umami (savory). That equates to 150,000 to 1.5 million receptor cells. These cells turn over every two weeks.

If you are wearing an upper denture (maxillary complete denture), the roof of the mouth (palate) is most likely covered with acrylic or metal.

There are receptors for taste located all over the soft palate.

Covering the roof of the mouth with a removable complete denture reduces the ability to taste foods. The technical term for reduced taste is hypogeusia. Upper complete dentures cause hypogeusia.

If you are wearing an upper complete denture (people also refer to these as plates), you may be experiencing decreased taste. Foods lose their sharpness. Food and drink may become bland. The joy of eating for pleasure gets diminished. But there is a way to improve your taste:

THE PALATE ON THE UPPER DENTURE CAN BE REMOVED

In the construction of an upper denture, the dentist covers the palate (roof of the mouth) to improve suction. This allows the upper denture to have better retention and increases the chance the denture will stay in place during eating.

Your upper denture can be fixed with dental implants.

The dental implants prevent the need for suction of the denture. Without the need for suction, the dentist can remove the palate on the denture. This opens up the ability to increase taste and feel temperature from food and drink. Your quality of life can significantly improve!

Dental implants = improved taste = improved quality of life

After treating thousands of patients, I have never met a patient that loved having the roof of his or her mouth covered with either metal or plastic. They all mentioned the decreased ability to feel temperatures and taste foods. They are frequently seeking methods to improve taste. Dental implants are the way.

If you are wearing an upper denture, 2-4 dental implants can be used to fix the upper teeth and prevent them from sliding around or falling down during eating. Placing dental implants to fix your denture can increase the pleasure from eating, improve digestion and improve speech.

Dr. David Medford is a dentist in Fort Worth, Texas. Dr. Medford is trained in Dental Implants, Fort Worth, Texas. Call for a consultation today. 

5 Resolutions to Improve Your Smile in 2012

2012, a New Year. A New You! Here are five resolutions to make your smile as vibrant and healthy as ever:

1. Brighter smile.

Stains from food and drinks are responsible for making your teeth darker – brown, blue, green orange and yellow. Rinse with water immediately after eating or drinking darker food and drink for a brighter smile. For more permanent stains, see your dentist to inquire about tooth whitening procedures.

Here’s an ABC News article on whitening from a few years ago where they discussed “bleachorexics” and the implications of tooth whitening.

2. Habits.

Develop new habits for 18 consecutive days. Remember to set up for life and for dental health. Be focused with an oral health plan such as tooth brush, toothpaste, mouth rinse, and water. 

3. Healthy Mouth.

Be resolved to understand that the mouth IS connected to the rest of the body. A healthier mouth can lead to a healthier body as a whole. Understand this key distinction. A recent study linked oral health with the condition of your heart. Share it with your friends. Share it with your family. Share it with your co-workers or classmates. Be a lighthouse for health!

4. 7-Minute Window.

Realize that it only takes 7 minutes for dental disease to start. Understand the nature of the7-minute window and the impact it has on your health. You may begin to feel better and have more energy overall. And learn how to properly clean your entire mouth, not just your teeth.

5. Visit your dentist regularly.

If there any changes in your mouth that last longer than 3 days, call to make an appointment to visit with your dentist. Changes in tooth position, gum color, swelling around the mouth or neck, tooth pain, gum tissue (gingival) pain, tooth color changes, any dental work (such as crowns, inlays, onlays, ceramic veneers, bridges, dentures, or dental implants) or bite changes – can all lead to other long-term mouth problems. Also it’s important to visit with your dentist to have your teeth cleaned regularly with an oral exam – to detect health or disease and treat as quickly as practical

Like a Gift Card from a Control Freak!

I recently came across a great blog from a fellow Dentist and I had to repost this. One of our biggest frustrations comes with dental insurance and coverage.
Bookstore employee: “Hi, how can I help you?”
Customer: “Well, I haven’t been to the bookstore in a long time because I didn’t have a gift card. But my employer bought me a gift card, so I’d like to buy some books! I was thinking of getting the latest Stephen King novel.”
BE: “Oh, I’m sorry. Your gift card won’t allow hardcover fiction titles. They only allow for paperback. We do have several of his older titles in paperback, though.”
C: “Hmmm. O.K. Well, maybe I could try something in nonfiction. Maybe Freakonomics or The Tipping Point?”
BE: “Again, I’m really sorry. This gift card can only be used to buy boring nonfiction. Interesting nonfiction isn’t covered by your gift card.”
C: “Jeez. O.K. So, maybe I’ll just get this magazine then.”
BE: “That’s fine. Your total is $6.95.”
C: “Wait. Um. I’d like to use my gift card. Can I do that?”
BE: “Your gift card has a deductible. You can’t use it for purchases under $50. So, is that cash or credit?”
Dental “insurance” isn’t really like insurance at all. Insurance is meant to protect you against unpredictable calamity to yourself, your family and your stuff. For the most part, dental care is something that can be planned for and isn’t “calamity based.” A lot of dental care consists of regular maintenance which is distinctly different than a heart attack, a car accident or a flood…events that normally are covered by insurance.
Dental benefits are a lot like a gift card. Your dental benefits give you a certain amount of money to be used toward dental care in a given year. Most plans don’t allow you to carry over an unused amount to the next year, so it’s “use it or lose it.” The incentive to the patient is to use their “insurance” to the fullest.

So, if the insurance companies know that they’re obliged to give each subscriber $x/year when the premiums received are less than this amount, how can they make money? They have several strategies.

• The insurance company knows that a certain number of people are not going to use the benefits that their employer paid for. Many people won’t see the dentist even if they have a “gift card” that will help pick up the bill. To the insurance company, this is free money.
• Most insurances have strict control over what they will allow patients to use their benefits for. Some policies won’t allow you to use your dental benefits for tooth colored fillings. Some policies won’t allow x-rays each year. These limitations control costs by requiring the patient to pay more “out of pocket” for them if they decide they would like to have the service done.
• Some insurances cover nothing on really valuable dental services. Dental implants are the best treatment for missing teeth that dentistry has to offer. Most dental insurances will not allow you to use your benefits for the surgical placement of an implant, even when they will allow you to spend your benefits on a less conservative treatment like a bridge or a partial.
• Some insurances require that the patient pays a certain amount out of pocket before being allowed to use their dental benefits. This is called a deductible and is one more way to discourage subscribers from using their benefits.

So if dental benefits are like a gift card, the gift givers are control freaks! I’m not claiming that dental benefits have no value. People with little or no dental problems will do great using their dental benefits. But like a gift card, dental benefits may not cover all of what you want or need for dental care. The mistake that many patients make is to believe their dental needs are in some way related to how much money they have on their gift card. If you’ve got a gift card for $15 in the bookstore, you’ll be able to pick up a couple magazines, but you’ll probably have to kick in a little if you’re looking to pick up the latest John Grisham hardcover.

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If you’re looking for a dentist in Fort Worth, TX, we’re always happy to accept new patients! You can request an appointment online or call the office at (817) 923-9877. And, as always, you can email me at docmedford@sbcglobal.net. I always answer my own emails!

ABC World News Tonight reported last week on the dental crisis regarding children on Medicaid and how the system is failing them.

Click here to read more

Caring For Your Crowns

With proper care, a good quality crown could last up to eight years or longer. It is very important to floss in the area of the crown to avoid excess plaque or collection of debris around the restoration.

Certain behaviors such as jaw clenching or bruxism (teeth grinding) significantly shorten the life of a crown. Moreover, eating brittle foods, ice or hard candy can compromise the adhesion of the crown, or even damage the crown.