Oral Care Advice

This short video teaches you the correct way to brush children’s teeth giving them a healthy start toward a lifetime of good oral health. Visit ColgateOralCare.com for more information on this and other oral care topics. … “dental care for children” “kids teeth care” “kids tooth care” “teeth care for children” “teeth care for kids” “toddler teeth care” colgate “oral care”

Ask yourself these questions:

1. Do you delay trips to the dentist, even when in pain?

2. Do simple dental check-ups worry you?

3. Are annual cleanings a source of nervousness?

4. Has avoiding dental care resulted in bigger problems?

5. Does the sound of the dental drill make you cringe, even when imagined?

6. Do you wish going to the dentist were easier for you?

If you’ve answered YES to three or more questions, dental fears may be restricting you.

What to do?

Ask yourself: What is creating the fear?

Likely culprits are the influence of a dental-phobic relative; what you create mentally when hearing sounds of the dental office, smelling the smells, envisioning the drill, imagining pain, blood, and more.

If you dwell on these whenever dental work is advised, you probably perceived a negative experience with a dentist at some time in your life, or were influenced by a fearful relative.

Those most afraid of pain may neglect checkups, setting themselves up for more difficult procedures when they finally visit a dentist. It’s a vicious cycle.

But you can instead shut off scary mind pictures or dim them. Even shrinking in your mind helps.

If you frighten yourself with imaginary drill sounds, imagine them fainter, farther away, or turn them into another tune. (Yes, you really can do this!)

Do dental smells bother you? Replace them mentally with something that makes you smile, like kids’ fruit punch or peppermint.

Strangely enough, all of this is do-able. Find what’s easiest for you.

Surprising Truths that can also help:

- More-frequent visits are usually gentler visits. When teeth are cared for regularly,

fewer invasive procedures are needed.

- What you create in your mind is probably scarier anything you will experience in the dental chair – especially with today’s anesthesia.

- By intentionally altering your overall feeling about dentistry little by little, and increasing oral care at home, you can benefit from the rewards of less pain, fewer procedures, and even fewer appointments (with your dentist’s approval).

The question is how to achieve this when you fear the dentist?

One very good answer: Hypnosis.

Why?

- Hypnosis quells fears

- Hypnosis creates relaxation you can trigger at the dental office

- Hypnosis helps you alter scary mind pictures

- Hypnosis helps make dental sounds mean something different and better-or disappear altogether

- Hypnosis becomes a process you can do any time you’re in the dental zone, or anywhere else, when you sense fear or nervousness coming on

- Hypnosis can help you create positive, useful habits (like more frequent flossing, brushing, and hygiene, as prescribed by your dentist)

- Hypnosis can provide “mental rehearsal” to make the dental visit more palatable, including appointment setting, entering the office, noticing scents, seeing dental tools and feeling them in your mouth, hearing drill sounds, being given the diagnosis, getting an injection-and anywhere else your mind drifts

- Hypnosis can help you get comfortable with dental appliances more easily and quickly, including braces, retainers, bite guards and others

(Did you feel jittery reading the list? Then you’re among the Most Likely To Benefit From Dental Hypnosis.)

The irony is that the less you fear the dentist, the less scary your appointments are, the more comfortable you feel at the office, the less often you’ll need to come. The reverse is also true.

How to find a hypnotist who deals with dental anxiety or odontophobia? One solution is to ask your dentist prior to your appointment if he knows someone.

Otherwise, locate a local, certified hypnotist, ask about dental hypnosis, and make an appointment or two before your scheduled dental visit.

Many hypnotists who do this work now had their own dental fears in the past. If you saw all the crowns in my mouth, you’d know just how well qualified I am! ©2009 by Wendy Lapidus-Saltz. All rights reserved.

Using a good quality toothbrush and toothpaste can help keep your smile bright!

When we talk about dental care many people think about that trip to the dentists every 6 months. You DO go to the dentist regularly don’t you? OK, may of us don’t because of the time involved or expense. The second best way to protect your teeth is to follow a regular dental care regimen at home. This would include not only brushing your teeth with a quality toothbrush but also using some type of dentifrice or toothpaste and regular use of dental floss. Flossing is probably the least used but most effective way to clean areas of your teeth that cannot be reached with brushing alone.

Toothpaste is a paste used, almost always in conjunction with a tooth brush, to clean teeth. Good oral hygiene demands consistent brushing on a daily basis preferably after each meal. The first reference to toothpaste was found believe it or not in Egyptian writings. Toothpaste back then was probably a mixture of spices like sale and peppermint and probably some herbs. Although not exactly our idea of good tasting, it was most likely very effective for keeping down the decaying food particles and was considered good basic dental care of the day.

In the late 1800’s, toothpaste and dental care become a growth industry for many smaller companies. Oral hygiene of the day was a mixture of chalk and various salts designed more as an abrasive to scrape off plaque than make your mouth clean. We now know that these types of toothpastes or powders actually damaged teeth because of the abrasive nature of the ingredients. The abrasiveness scraped and damaged the enamel coating that protected teeth and left them more vulnerable to decay and plaque build up.

By 1900, baking soda made it’s way into commercial toothpaste products along with a small amount of hydrogen peroxide solution. This was probably the very beginnings of teeth whitening products for the mass market. Although actual tooth cleaning pastes were first marketed in the 19th century, it was not very popular until the mid 1900’s. The Colgate & Company manufactured toothpaste in the first collapsible tube, similar to the tubes we use today. These were actually the first products that had the basic compounds to brighten and whiten teethHydrogen peroxide, although in higher concentrations is being used today to remove staining and whiten teeth. Although tooth powders, a pre cursor product to toothpaste didn’t show up on the market until this time, it wasn’t until the mid 1950-1960 that modern toothpaste that we recognize became the teeth cleaner of choice.

Fluoride started to be added to toothpastes in the 1950 and 1960’s. Fluoride is still controversial due to the claimed “dangers” of anything chemical. Although fluoride is not good for people in large quantities, it’s a fact that as fluoride has been added to the nations water supply, the number of cavities in children has dropped dramatically. Of course, there’s little doubt that fluoride has been instrumental in lowering the number of dental cavities.

Like many shampoos, healthier ingredients (such as baking soda, pseudo-mouthwash etc) are often combined into base mixes of varying qualities and marketed as being beneficial. Toothpaste is most commonly sold in flexible tubes, although one may also purchase it in hard plastic containers with pumps. Packages designed to stand straight up, so as to allow more of the toothpaste to be used, are a relatively recent innovation. You only need a little toothpaste to get the job done however. Remember that the toothpaste manufacturers have an interest in getting you to overuse their product, making more purchases likely. A pea sized amount is more than enough to do a good job brushing your teeth.

Toothpaste comes in a variety of flavors, with those marketed to kids! Tasting like orange, cinnamon and bubblegum. Taste has nothing to do with the quality of the product however but may get some people and children to brush longer. So for a good brushing, use a quality toothpaste and soft bristle brush. Your teeth and gums will thank you!

Good dental hygiene includes dental flossing. I am sure you have heard the complaints. You may even have voiced a couple of these complaints. You know, flossing takes too long, the string always breaks, I can’t get the floss between my teeth, it hurts my gums, and it doesn’t really help your teeth.

Those are just a few of the statements I have heard about dental flossing. I can assure you none of these statements are true. In fact, as we examine these statements, you will be able to better understand how these negative statements can promote poor dental care. That is what needs to change.

Let’s take a look at the first statement, “flossing takes too long.” I would ask how long does it take to drive to the dentist, sit in the waiting room, sit in the dentist chair and drive back home after the work is completed? The loss of a few seconds each day will more than pay off in long term benefits. I have timed myself and I know that I am rather slow, but I can still completely floss my teeth in one minute and five seconds.

What about the floss breaking. Does it happen? Of course. But you can minimize the breaks by using the newer Gore-Tex type floss. Glide is one of the brands. The fibers are stronger. They resist cutting and breaking which makes your flossing experience much more pleasant.

One of the major complaints of many people is that the floss is difficult to slide between close teeth. The Gore-Tex type floss is not only strong, but very slick. It slides between your teeth much smoother with little hanging or tearing of the floss.

Another complaint heard occasionally is, “the floss hurts my gums.” This is usually heard from someone who has not flossed for quite a while and their gums are tender. Proper flossing will clean your teeth and strengthen your gums. It really does help your teeth and gums.

If you haven’t flossed for a while use these six simple steps.

1) Use Gore-Tex type floss.

2) Tear off between 16 to 20 inches of floss.

3) Slide it gently between your teeth, allowing it to conform to the shape of your tooth.

4) Slide the floss up and down your tooth.

5) Follow this procedure between each set of teeth.

6) Don’t forget to floss both sides of your back teeth.

Sometimes there may be food that is difficult to remove from between your teeth. This usually happens between teeth that are too far apart. You can tie a knot in your floss and gently drag it between your teeth. The knot will pick up the material and pull it out from between your teeth. The point is to be very gentle. You do not want to damage your gums doing this.

Flossing daily combined with brushing twice a day will help insure your dental health and well being.

If you have questions on brushing, look for my article on using the correct brushing technique.

A presentation with tips for dental care for children with special health care needs. Web site referred to is sites.google.com

All dental plans charge a membership fee, with the amount varying from one plan to the other. Dental plans are offered to either individuals or to the whole family, with family dental plans usually offering bigger discounts than individual dental plans. You should compare the rates charged under the different plans before selecting the most appropriate one for you.

It is important also to know the type of dental services covered by your dental plan. Routine dental check ups and dental treatments such as oral examination, teeth cleaning, fluoride treatment, teeth filling and teeth extraction are generally covered by most dental plans. However, dental plans do not always cover major dental care treatments such as oral surgery, dental implants, restorative care, braces, root canal treatments etc. In case of such costly dental procedures you unfortunately have to foot the bill yourself. Often there are a number of alternative treatments available for certain dental problems. Under such circumstances dental plans allow reimbursement for the cost of the basic dental treatment, and further costs in excess of the basic treatment cost has to be covered by the patient.

Dental health plans may or may not allow you to choose your own dentist, but it is common practice for patients to generally receive dental care from dentists mentioned in the plan. Before choosing a plan make sure that the participating dentists practice in your area. Choose a plan that is accepted nationwide and not restricted to your state. Check whether you are allowed to visit the dentist unscheduled, or at scheduled hours only.

You also need to decide whether you want an annual plan or a monthly plan. Annual dental plans are more cost beneficial than monthly plans. So get regular check ups with your dentist to reap the maximum benefits out of your dental plan.

When it comes to fighting and preventing gum disease, dental hygienists are not only your friends but they are the unsung heroes of dental care. They are able to handle one of the two major aspects of your dental care maintenance. They take care of your professional dental cleaning needs. They help to remove built up tartar that has accumulated. This tartar is calcified plaque – and it is under this tartar that anaerobic bacteria can run rampant.

Yet, even they will tell you that what you do at home is absolutely critical to your oral health. In fact, they should be the first to tell you that. However, the fact remains that we seem to be stuck in the dark ages when it comes to caring for our teeth at home. Brushing and flossing is enough for a some people to maintain their dental health. But the stats on the number of people with either periodontal disease or excessive caries or cavities is rather high.

Many believe that brushing and flossing are enough to stop dental disease. That’s simply not the case for everyone. It is very important to realize this. There are plenty of people with gum disease and plenty with tooth decay. Some of them actually brush and floss quite well.

In any case, next time that you get a chance to visit with your dental hygienist thank him or her for the excellent job they do. You have no idea how valuable they are to you. They have a tough job, they are trying to help but many people do not realize this and blame them instead. Thank them on your way out of the office, next time. They will appreciate that and you! Next: Follow the links below to learn what you can do to stop gum disease and prevent it from coming back.

Get your free report: How To Stop Gum Disease at : http://www.HowToSTopGumDisease.com

David Snape is the author of the book: What You Should Know about Gum Disease. ISBN: 978-0981485508 – Available online at most book retailer sites. It can also be ordered by most book stores.

Disclaimer: This article is for information and entertainment purposes only. It does not intend to render advice, diagnosis or treatment. If you have or think you might have gum disease or any other health problem, visit your periodontist or physician for advice, diagnosis and treatment. The USFDA has not evaluated statements about products in this article.

If you want to make sure that you have good teeth then you need to use the dental hygienist attached to your dental office. The dental hygienist will help you in taking care of your teeth in a preventive way.

If you don’t like taking trips to the dentist then maybe you should try more trips to the dental hygienist instead. There, you are going to learn ways in which you can keep your teeth healthy without too much effort at all – just creating good, regular routines that take merely minutes each day.

You will learn how to make the most out of your time when you are cleaning your teeth.

The Role Of The Dental Hygienist In Dental Health Care

Your dental hygienist will teach you techniques on how to brush your teeth as efficiently and effectively as possible. This is something that is hugely valuable, in all sorts of ways, to a healthy mouth, and even your whole body.

If you are prepared to make the meager investment of a little time and money you will certainly benefit from such a service. If your dentist scares the pants off you, then the alternative is to pay close attention to what your dental hygienist tells you instead.

In addition, they have some really smart professional gear that they will use to clean off any really tough plaque that seems resistant to normal brushing.

Ever had that stain test that shows how old the plaque is? Well, it’s not a very encouraging sight without help from them!

Flossing Is Just As Important As Brushing

Many people fail to realize just how vital flossing properly is too. It is really to know how to floss properly, because you need to reach the in between areas of your teeth where that nasty plaque builds up.

Plaque which has been implicated in more than just dental health, but, amazingly, heart disease too!

So you see, brushing alone is quite insufficient for oral care.

You have to make sure that you reach those hard to reach places in between your teeth or else it will be a haven for damage and (as we know already that nasty) plaque and you will eventually need to go to the dentist – think about the cost! This is the last thing that you want to happen to you.

If there is a saying that an apple a day keeps the doctor away, then the advice from your dental hygienist would be, ‘brush and floss’ everyday, to keep your dentist at bay!

Don’t forget that not only can your dental hygienist advise you on technique, but they will also be able to suggest the best toothbrush or more exotic pieces of dental equipment around today.

For example, there is a whole array of electronic toothbrushes with gizmo attachments to do this and that – you need advice to work out what’s best for you and, you might be surprised with a special deal on the kit they can sell you too!

Smile With Confidence

If you want to make the most out of your teeth and smile with confidence then you must listen closely to your dental hygienist.

If you listen to them, you are going to have a much happier life (at least orally!). You will be able to smile with confidence in front of your friends and with great looking teeth, you can be assured that you will be more attractive to the opposite sex.

Do not wait for your teeth to become a major problem – it isn’t the way to organize things at all. Do not wait for your smile to get raggedy round the edges – it just isn’t worth it!.

Smile with confidence with regularly (twice a day will do), well brushed and flossed teeth.

Prevention is better than cure and with the support of your local dental hygienist, you can be assured of gainful insights as to the very best you can do for your teeth, gums, mouth and beyond. You do not want to end up with holes in your teeth.

Truth is, you have to listen to your dental hygienist, and do just what you are told!

Regular visits to the dentist can be the key towards perfect oral health. This is important not only to keep your teeth and oral health in perfect working condition but also to prevent you from other bad health conditions. Regular visits to your dentist can be one of the surest means to have perfect dental health. It is recommended by experts to visit the dentist’s office regularly every 6 months. So it is very important for you to never forget your appointment with the dentist.

Any dental condition, if not treated properly and in time, can become a really bad situation. In fact dental conditions are often an indication of some other serious health conditions. Some of these severe health conditions can also be diabetes and HIV infection besides other conditions. Other than keeping your teeth in good condition, maintaining good oral health also gives confidence to a person about his overall appearance.

Following some simple methods of personal hygiene can go a long way in preventing severe dentals condition in individuals. Brushing of the teeth regularly twice a day has been taught to us since our childhood days. However many of us actually make the effort to brush our teeth twice daily to keep our teeth in good working condition. Brushing your teeth hardly requires two to three minutes. However it is also important to brush your teeth using the proper motion with your toothbrush. Also make sure to change your brush regularly.

Always use a mouthwash to keep your mouth clean and fresh. Use the mouthwash recommended by your cosmetic dentist regularly. Most dental specialists insist on the use of a mouthwash which contains fluoride. This is supposed to be excellent for your oral health. Fluoride is perfect for preventing and killing bacteria which is responsible for causing plague that leads to cavities and other gum diseases. Never forget to use mouthwash daily if you are concerned about your oral health.

Flossing your teeth regularly after brushing is another simple means which you can follow for good dental health. Simple flossing in any manner will not do, you must know and floss your teeth in the proper way. The proper way to floss your teeth is to place the floss very gently between your teeth in the gum portion. Flossing is important to remove that debris from the gum portion of your teeth which cannot be reached and removed by your tooth brush. If you are flossing for the first time, you can sometimes experience slight bleeding. Nonetheless this will stop once you start flossing your teeth regularly.

Eating a good balanced diet is also one criterion for having good dental health. Make sure that your everyday diet contains enough of calcium, iron and vitamins in the proper proportion. You can also take pill supplements of vitamin and calcium if you are not getting enough in your diet.

Finding a good dentist is also one of the parameter for having good oral health. There is no dearth of dentists anywhere, but what is important is finding a good dentist to help you in maintaining good oral health. If you can try to take opinions from people who have already used the services of the dentist and see if they are really as efficient as they claim to be!

Today more than ever before, people find the need to take more care of their looks. Oral health is one of the most important aspects of looking good and appearing presentable. Dentistry procedures have greatly evolved over time and many new techniques are being undertaken to help people maintain good oral health. Today almost any kind of dental defect can be mended by a dentist due to advancement in technology.