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How to Take Care of a Child’s oral Health

When it comes to a child’s mouth, it’s important to get started on taking care of it right away. When the time comes, you should make sure that you do see your dentist to get your child a great checkup that will help them out. But what else can you do for your child? What can you do to help improve their oral health? Well, you’re about to find out. Is article will discuss in great detail, just what you can do to help with your child’s overall oral health.

The first thing you should start is to make sure that your child visits the dentist no more than six months after they begin to teethe. This is typically a guideline to follow, but you don’t have to stress out that much. If you can’t make it in right away and need a couple more months, you will be fine. When you do go with a child to the dentist, you should definitely talk to the dentist about any early dental issues, and also, have a talk with the child to show them that the dentist isn’t something to be scared about. You should make sure that you do have the appointment scheduled for yourself along with the child around the same time. It makes it so much easier.

Now, one thing to remember is that cavities are a huge part of oral problems. Cavities are essentially caused when the enamel is damage. Typically, the damage to this enamel can lead to the dentin, and then the pulp, which is the inner allayer. It’s important to remember that tooth enamel is wicked strong, stronger than steel and it’s the hardest material in the body. But with this, comes a fatal flaw, and that is acid. Despite the strength of the enamel, it can be damaged by this.

The acids come from some of the bacteria in your mouth. There are over 20 million bacteria within the mouth. While some are harmless, others cause major problems. All of them need to eat. Some will eat other bacteria, and some will start to eat the food that is on your teeth. This creates a substance called plaque that will then stick to the mouth.

Bacteria eat sugar, and because of that, it will produce an acid as a byproduct of this. This is kind of like in humans where they inhale oxygen and exhale carbon dioxide. This will allow the bacteria to reproduce.

Now, the acid that the bacteria gives off as a byproduct does damage the enamel. If the plaque, the bacteria within, and the acids aren’t taken out by brushing, flossing, and dental visits, it will result in cavities. Acidic drinks such as soda, juices, and acid additives such as sugar do damage the teeth as well. The more sugary foods you have, the more food you’re giving to the bacteria to eat.

What this means for you as a parent is that you need to make sure that kids are having snacks that they will enjoy, but also won’t lead to tooth damage. If you put your child on a healthy diet, you don’t need to worry about cavities. Most adults and children get cavities at some point, sometimes due to what they eat, and others due to genetics. However, if you eat right, you’ll definitely improve this, and make it easier to prevent this.

You might have to worry about the bacteria in the mouth if you have a history of this being a problem. Remember, every single bacterium in the mouth is unique and because of this, sometimes the cavities are more genetic than anything. You should see your Santa Clarita dentist to help with this.

You can prevent these problems easily by going to the dentist every six months, don’t have a diet riddled in sugar, and also as a parent setting yourself up. These are the two major things to remember when you’re thinking about your child’s oral health, and from there, you’ll be able to prevent issues later on. you need to watch oral health, because if you don’t, it can create problems.

Durability of Dental Fillings

The main purpose of dental filling is to restore the part of the tooth that has been eaten away due to decay. Dental fillings are durable and they can last for several years. However, they eventually need to be replaced.

The failure of dental fillings tends to happen due to consistent pressure the teeth have to undergo when we eat or drink and clench or grind our teeth. Worn out, chipped or cracked fillings leave gaps between the teeth and the filling. These gaps serve as entry points for the food particles and decay-causing bacteria.

Now, if you want to remove these bacteria, you cannot do it with the help of toothbrush; and the resultant decay occurs along the edge of the filling or underneath it. This undiagnosed decay can lead to the tooth infection which can spread to the tooth pulp, a part of the tooth consisting of living nerves and blood vessels. The infection of pulp can lead to the person needing a root canal treatment or the tooth extraction.

Good news is that you can get the problem identified during regular dental checkup. Any damage to the filling and resultant infection, even in the early stage, are identified by the dentist. Even if you do not have any idea that the filling is worn away, your dentist will be able to notice the problem during this regular checkup.

During the checkup, the dentist will try to determine if the existing filling is intact or if it is worn away or cracked. A special instrument called explorer is used for the detection of any worn spots around the dental filling’s edge. The instrument is used in a gentle manner. With the help of explorer, the dentist will be able to know if the dental filling is properly sealed to the tooth or if it worn away enough to need replacement.

In order to detect decay underneath the filling, x-ray test may be run by the dentist. Dental x-ray can help in checking for the decay which is not usually visible during the physical checkup. Upon noticing that there is decay underneath the filling, it is an easy conclusion to make that the filling has failed. And so, the dentist will recommend an immediate replacement of the filling.

You need to visit the dentist regularly more specifically when you have dental fillings. The reason is that there is always a chance for the failure of filling and you may not be able to know about this failure until the problem starts escalating. So, regular dental visit are important for the early detection of any issues with the dental fillings.

A Better Diet Means Better Teeth

I’ve recently been asked by some of my coworkers and friends how my new diet is going and what it’s like to cut out meat, and I’m almost always quick to give glowing reviews of what I’m eating. While I haven’t completely cut out meat (I’m pescatarian), I have definitely found that I’m eating far more veggies and nuts and fruits than I ever had before.

Of course, this is obviously beneficial to my overall health in that I’m receiving the nutrients and vitamins I need, along with plenty of fiber. My gut health has never been better, and I can even tell it’s doing well considering how anytime I eat junk food now, I feel pretty crumby not long after.

One of the most underrated parts to my diet, though, is how much better my oral health is. While I’ve also recently revamped my dental routine by taking care of my teeth even more with daily flossing and thorough brushing, I’ve seen that my gums are bleeding even less and my teeth seem and feel cleaner on a daily basis.

What’s causing all this outside of my reinforced dental routine, though?

There’s no doubt that it can be attributed to my diet. Being able to constantly chow down on more robust vegetables and tougher skinned fruits means that my teeth are getting all sorts of side effect benefits from veggies, namely food particles being dislodged as I chew on leafy greens. And what’s even better is the surge of vitamins and minerals that are important to my gum health that I was missing out on before when I ate mostly meat and junk food.

There’s no doubt that my new diet is beginning to change my life for the better in multiple areas, ranging from my general health to my physical health and even my mental acuity and sleep schedule. It just goes to show that the entire system can be drastically affected by a new change or a new routine. And once that happens, everything comes together and becomes better, healthier, and clearer.

The fact that I’m reading more, finding myself more interested in art, and having the will to run more often just goes to show me that I can and want to improve in every way I possibly can. Once you’ve got one facet of your life down, the others just seem to fall into line right after it.

Quick, Toss Out Your Toothbrush!

The title may be a bit . . . dramatic. But it still stands that Americans wait far too long to get a new toothbrush, sometimes over a year! Can you imagine how many germs and unwanted bacteria are crawling on your toothbrush every single day you use it?

Now that school is starting back up for your kids, it’s as good of a time as any to go out and get a few new toothbrushes. I mean, you’re getting them new clothes and school supplies anyway. May as well grab toothbrushes at the store as well. You definitely don’t want to be sick or have your kids going to school sick so early on in the school year all because of their toothbrush being old.

So to help you get through this new school season with as few coughs and sneezes as possible, here are some helpful tips for surviving the onset of the early-school cold and flu season.

Ditch the toothbrush

Sure, we said it above, but we can’t stress this enough. Toss out your old toothbrushes now and replace them ASAP. You’ll at the very least get rid of unwanted bacteria and other germs that are plaguing your mouth everyday unknowingly.

Avoid sugary medicines.

Yes, cough drops taste good. But they’re actually super sugary, which can be akin to eating hard candy while you’re sick. You wouldn’t normally sit there and suck on a Jolly Rancher while sick, would you? Try to look for sugar-free variants instead.

Eat your fruits & veggies

“Yes, mooooom.” Well, what can you say? She was right. These are so healthy from a caloric point of view, but they’re also loaded with nutrients and vitamins you need to stay healthy. And even better, by chewing these sorts of foods, you can keep your mouth cleaner since they’ll be rubbing against your teeth.

Up your fluid intake

Water, water, water. You cannot have too much water, and the more you drink, the more you keep your fluid levels up. It helps to hydrate you. It helps to produce saliva. And both of these things keep bacteria away from you and fight off any illnesses that you already have.

Hopefully you won’t need to use the tips above since nobody wants to be sick in the first place. But if for some reason you find yourself with a persistent pain in your mouth or prolonged bad breath (even after you’re feeling better), give your dentist a call. It’s better than trying to tackle it on your own.