ELDERLY PEOPLE ARE not the only people at risk of gum recession, even though that idea is where the expression "long in the tooth" originated. Some people are unlucky enough to be genetically prone to gum recession, but there are…
READ MOREIN THE PHARMACY section of every grocery store, one side of an entire aisle is often dedicated to dozens of toothpaste options. We want to help our patients find the right things to look for to help narrow that selection…
READ MOREOF COURSE WE SMILE when we feel happy, but there's evidence to show that the link between smiling and happiness might go both ways — the simple act of smiling can make us feel a little better! Even a fake…
READ MOREANYONE WHO SWIMS or scuba dives frequently could encounter some unique dental issues if they aren't careful. Let's take a closer look at the big ones. Chlorine's Effect on Teeth The longer teeth are exposed to acidic chlorine ions in…
READ MOREGUM DISEASE, TOOTH DECAY, and other oral health problems don't set in overnight. That's why it's so important to have regular checkups and to be diligent with daily oral hygiene habits. If it's been a while since the last trip…
READ MORETHERE'S A GOOD REASON dental health professionals warn their patients not to chew ice. This habit can cause serious and permanent damage to teeth and gums, so what makes it so addicting in spite of the dangers? A Mental Condition…
READ MORETHE AMERICAN CANCER Society estimates that there will be over 54,000 new oral cancer cases just in 2024. In recent decades, the survival rate of these cancers has risen considerably, and early detection is a huge part of that. That's…
READ MOREWOMEN FACED AN uphill battle establishing themselves in many career fields, dentistry included. That's why, for Women's History Month, we're celebrating three pioneers for women in dentistry. Lucy Hobbs Taylor Lucy Hobbs Taylor, born 1833, was the world's first female…
READ MOREEATING DISORDERS can cause many kinds of damage to the body, including the teeth. Oral hygiene habits and regular dental visits are crucial, but in order to maintain good oral health, we also need a variety of nutrients, vitamins, and…
READ MORE1 IN EVERY 8 Americans (including kids) has sensitive teeth. To understand why, we'll need to take a look at dental anatomy. Erosion and the Layers of a Tooth Every tooth has nerves at the center. When the tooth is…
READ MOREWE'VE BEEN HEARING for decades how dangerous smoking is to many aspects of our health. As dental professionals, our focus is particularly on the dangers to oral health, including unsightly stains on teeth at the less serious end of the…
READ MOREOUR JAWS GET a pretty constant workout between all the talking, chewing, and yawning we do, but those simple activities become more complicated for those with temporomandibular joint disorder (TMD or TMJ). There's a small, fibrous disk that serves as…
READ MOREUNLESS THE DENTIST is an active TikTok user, it's not a good idea to get dental health advice from social media. We've noticed a lot of dangerous DIY ideas popping up so let's take a minute to nip them in…
READ MOREFOR AS LONG AS there have been people, there has been tooth decay, but people in past civilizations didn’t have as many answers about what caused their tooth problems as we do now. That led to some very strange beliefs…
READ MOREWE CAN SEE a hint of the state of dental health in Shakespeare’s England from a sonnet in which he describes his lady love’s reeking breath. The lines “black contagious breath” and “his breath stinks with eating toasted cheese” make…
READ MOREYOU PROBABLY HEARD the line “it takes fewer muscles to smile than to frown” when you were growing up, but the pedantic dentist might point out that it technically isn’t true. At least ten muscles are involved in smiling, while…
READ MOREWE TEND TO IMAGINE that people from earlier eras must’ve had worse teeth than we do because they didn’t have things like modern dentistry, orthodontics, and root canal treatment, but what dental problems were they dealing with and how did…
READ MOREANYONE WHO REGULARLY swims might have noticed that your teeth are more sensitive after climbing out of the pool. That’s not just your imagination. Doing a lot of swimming actually can take a toll on our teeth if we aren’t…
READ MOREBACK IN MEDIEVAL times in England (and in most other places, to be fair), people didn’t have a great understanding of what caused cavities or gum disease, but they still cared about having fresh breath. It wasn’t just out of…
READ MOREDENTAL PROBLEMS LIKE gum disease and tooth decay can easily sneak up on us if we aren’t careful, which is why regular dental checkups are so essential — even when you’re pretty sure nothing is wrong. For most people, two…
READ MOREHOW MUCH DO you know about the anatomy of your own teeth? Let’s give you a quick overview. We believe that the more our patients know, the better they’ll understand how important good dental health habits are, including brushing, flossing,…
READ MOREMANY STRANGE THINGS lie buried in the history of dental care and hygiene, but we think these five traditions really stand out. (Although we don’t recommend any of them!) 1. Ancient Babylonians believed teeth-grinding was caused by demons. So, logically,…
READ MOREWHY DO DENTISTS always warn against chewing ice? It’s because it’s a habit that can do serious and permanent damage to the teeth and gums. Even when ice-chewers know this, they can still find it difficult to quit, so let’s…
READ MORETHE DENTAL CAREER everyone is most familiar with is the private practice dentist, meaning an individual dentist or a partnership working with local patients in their own practice. That’s the kind of dentist we all go to for our normal…
READ MORETHIS YEAR ALONE, the American Cancer Society estimates over 54,000 new cases of oral cancer just in the US. When we say “oral cancer,” we’re usually referring to a broad range of cancers affecting various parts of the mouth and…
READ MORETHE NEXT TIME you need an ice-breaker, why not toss out a few weird mouth facts? We’re confident you’ll be able to impress your friends. Fact #1: We Need our Spit to Taste Our Food Our saliva plays a crucial…
READ MOREA CANKER SORE, a shallow ulcer that can develop on the inside of the cheeks or lips, can mean days of discomfort. Different things can trigger a canker sore. The most common are a bitten lip or cheek (which only…
READ MORETHROUGHOUT HISTORY, WOMEN have faced numerous challenges in pursuing their careers. Dentistry is no exception. It has taken significant determination and persistence for women to establish themselves in the field of dentistry. In this blog post, we will be discussing…
READ MOREON AVERAGE, BOYS and men are up to 20% less likely to brush twice a day and even less likely to replace their old toothbrushes on a regular basis than girls and women. Luckily, it’s a simple problem to fix:…
READ MOREEATING DISORDERS ARE incredibly dangerous, sometimes life-threatening mental conditions. The first health impacts that probably come to mind are the psychological toll they take and the malnutrition they cause if left unchecked. However, they also take a toll on oral…
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