At the lowest level of whitening products are toothpastes, floss and mouthwashes that have been specially formulated to brighten your teeth. Generally speaking, if used consistently, they can whiten healthy teeth about one shade over time. These products can be purchased over the counter, and may cost about the same as “regular” counterparts, or slightly more. Therefore, they are a cost-effective means of whitening your teeth, if you only wish to take off surface stains, and you are motivated to prevent stains from reoccurring in the future.

Whitening strips have become very popular in the past 5 or 6 years. They are easy to use and much less messy than bleaching kits. The cost is still significantly more than whitening toothpastes and products discussed above, but you will see more dramatic results more quickly. Besides cost, there are two additional drawbacks to mention with respect to strips. First, they only work on healthy teeth that have yellowed due to age and stains. Second, they may cause significant tooth sensitivity.

Consult with your dentist before paying the $20-40 for one of these kits. There are several major brands and formulations for whitening strips, including Crest, Listerine, Oral B and Rembrandt. Listerine’s strips dissolve in your mouth, which they claim to be a benefit because you don’t have to take them off 1/2 hour after you put them on.

Crest Strips come in a variety of styles, including Daily Multi-care, which you use for only 5 minutes a day (brightening more slowly over time), and Crest Whitestrips Premium, which you only need to use for 7 days (1/2 hour morning and night). Most brands require use for 14 days, 1/2 hour morning and night.

These products contain hydrogen peroxide as a bleaching agent, and will only work on natural teeth; they will not whiten veneers or other dental work. Amounts of the bleaching agent differ, from 6% to 10%, depending on formulations. You also may want to speak with your dentist should any side effects become bothersome.

For example, teeth can become sensitive during the period when you are using the bleaching solution. In many cases, this sensitivity is temporary and should lessen once the treatment is finished. Some people also experience soft tissue irritation—either from a tray that doesn’t fit properly or from solution that may come in contact with the tissues. If you have concerns about such side effects, you should discuss them with your dentist

Question: I am told I need braces, I wondering for how long. I do not really want them and if I have to have them would like it to be for a short period of time.

Answer: Ask the orthodontic dentist that you are seeing. He/She can normally tell how long they think it would take. If you have not yet seen an orthodontic then I would suggest looking for one that can give you a free consul

Many dental hygienists across the country visit schools during the academic school year to teach youngsters about oral hygiene. It may be time to teach chewing instead, especially to the younger kids and particularly to young and expectant mothers.

A few of the valuable benefits of chewing are listed below.Chewing can be affected by insufficient nasal breathing (due to enlarged lymph tissue like tonsils and adenoids) and impacts the function of the following:

• Temporomandibular joint (TMJ)
• Muscle tension and tone
• Dental occlusion or malocclusion
• Saliva production or lack of
• Neurological or genetic disorders such as strokes, hemiparesis, hemifacial microsomia, and traumatic brain injury

Proper dental care for your child begins even before your baby cuts their first tooth. As and infant you want to keep your baby’s gums clean. You can do this by running a damp washcloth over your baby’s gums following feedings, by doing this it can help to prevent buildup of damaging bacteria. Once your baby has a few teeth showing you can then begin to brush them with a soft child’s toothbrush. Feeding habits for babies is very important in maintain dental health.

Even babies can have problems with dental decay when parents do not practice good feeding habits. Putting a baby to sleep with a baby bottle in his or her mouth may seem convenient but it can do great harm to your baby’s teeth. A Parent should consider taking your child to a dentist who specializes in treating kids. Pediatric dentists are trained to handle the wide range of issues associated with kids’ dental health

Having a Sugar Free Diet Equals healthier Children and Healthy Teeth.

It can be difficult to give your kids a sugar free diet when sugar is an ingredient which is used to enrich a high percentage of baby foods, snacks and prepackaged foods. Processed food in today’s society is represents alot of what people are eating. However do your best to stay away from these type of food is you want your child to stay healthy.

If sugar is consumed in excess, it can bring about plenty of health complications. Try to eat more sucrose-free food products, and make sure to replace the high sucrose foods with healthy foods that contain vitamins, minerals and fibers. These types of foods will help your child develop healthily and grow strong teeth.

Dentures can be costly and if you do not have current insurance you may not be able to get new denture covered for over a year or more. Whenever you need to have denture replacement think about having your dentures repaired by a technician. Dentures can chip and brake if you drop them by mistake since they are fragile. However that does not mean that you have to get new ones. You should know that there are many professional denture repair labs out there that can fix the problem for you. Repairing your dentures is definitely a much cheaper method than having them replaced with new ones.

Periodontal disease (Gum Disease) is a serious infections that, left untreated, may lead to tooth loss. Periodontal disease is a chronic bacterial infection that affects the gums and bone supporting the teeth. Periodontal disease can affect one tooth or many teeth. It begins when the bacteria in plaque causes the gums to become inflamed. If left untreated by a dentist, plaque can spread and grow below the gum line. Toxins produced by the bacteria in plaque irritate the gums. The toxins stimulate a chronic inflammatory response and the tissues and bone that support the teeth are broken down and destroyed.

There have been enough study and evidence to help prove that by having poor dental health (bad teeth and gum) you increase your risk of health issues like heart disease. However the good news is by seeing your dentist regularly for your general cleaning which most dental insurance plan offer for free will help to not only keep your teeth and gums healthy but reduce your risk of other health issues.

Cosmetic Dentistry provides a great range of dental services. Cosmetic dentistry is more then just having dental implants. For people that have teeth loss, damaged teeth, broken or chipped teeth a cosmetic dentist may be the right choice for you. Cosmetic dentistry can include service such as invisalign, Dental Implants, Veneers, Bonding, Teeth Whitening Facial Aesthetics and Crowns. If you have dental issues that you need to address beyond a general dentist you may wish to seek an consult with a cosmetic dentist.

Signs that may be telling you that you have periodontal disease. If after reading this you see that you have two or more of these signs to periodontal disease, you may want to see a dentist to confirm your dental and health. Red and Swollen Gums, Bad Breath, Bleeding gums when brushing and or flossing your teeth, A constant bad taste in your mouth, Receding gums and Tooth Loss. These signs should not go unchecked by your dentist. Links to periodontal disease and other health issues have been found and by maintaining health gums you also help to maintain your over all health care.

Having poor teeth and gum health can effect your overall health care. Keeping and maintaining your gums and teeth health is important in maintaining good over all health care. When you do not take proper care of your teeth and gums plaque and tartar can easily build up.

When this happens numerous problems like tooth decay, gum disease, and tooth loss a can happen. From their other health problems can arise like heart disease and strokes. For diabetes patients it is most important to maintain healthy teeth and gums because in this case you have more chance of developing periodontal disease.

Some children are more vulnerable to tooth decay the others. In order to maintain good dental and oral health here are a suggestions. You want to be able to provide a good diet throughout their childhood. Make sure to brush your child teeth until they are able to do so on their own ( normally around six to seven years of age) Supervise your child make sure they are brushing and flossing twice a day.

For babies never put a baby to bed with a baby bottle filled with anything more the water, and never dip pacifiers in honey or syrup. The American Dental Association suggest that a baby should see a dentist before their first birthday when they cut their first tooth. Having proper dental habits at home and seeing a dentist regularly will help keep your child teeth and gums healthy.

Most people know that brushing and flossing are the daily tips to maintaining teeth and gum health. However there are others ways to also help maintain teeth and gum health. Having a well-balanced diet provides the minerals, vitamins, and other nutrients essential for healthy teeth and gums. Fluoride, occurring naturally in foods and water, or added to the water supply, can be a powerful tool in fighting decay. It can reduce the rate of cavities by as much as 60 percent.

Just like health problems like cholesterol and high blood pressures, parents can also pass on bad breath and dental disease. Cavities are not genetic but oral bacteria that causes dental diseases are contagious. Parents that share utensils, drink out of the same cup, kiss or share toothbrushes with children, they can spread bacteria to their children’s mouths. Children can also spread the bacteria amongst themselves by such actions as mouthing the same toys. Establishing good oral health care habits is very important for you and your family dental care.

Retired Dentist Invents Color Changing toothpaste called Vortex. St. Louis dentist, inventor and retired Chaminade chemistry teacher Dr. Howard Wright has invented Vortex, which bills itself as the world’s first color-changing toothpaste. Dr Howard Wright hopes the color-changing process, from red and blue to purple, will make kids want to brush their teeth longer and more vigorously. Kids from the Hazelwood Community Center Tiny Tots program were the first to try the FDA-approved Vortex at the Delta Dental Health Theater.

The American Dental Association advise a child should see a dentist by the time they are one or before their first birthday. Even though this is best advise many children do not see a dentist until they are much older. By having your child see a pediatric dentists early on you can help to avoid dental fear later on in life.

Published in the Journal of Dental Research is a report on a preclinical investigation titled “Flagellin Enhances Saliva IgA Response and Protection of Anti-caries DNA Vaccine,” Wei Shi the leading Author at the Wuhan Institute of Virology, Chinese Academy of Sciences, and his team of researchers demonstrate that anti-caries DNA vaccines, including pGJA-P/VAX, are promising for preventing dental caries. However, challenges remain because of the low immunogenicity of DNA vaccines.

Study done by Western Reserve University School of Dental Medicine researchers found the human body is better at fighting gum disease when fat cells, which trigger inflammation, disappear. The pilot study of 31 obese people with gum disease. Half of the group with an average body mass index (BMI) of 39 had gastric bypass surgery and had fat cells from the abdomen removed. That half fared better than a control group of obese people with a BMI of 35 who also were treated for gum disease but did not have the gastric bypass surgery or fat removed.

Treating periodontal disease not only makes for a healthier mouth, but also freshens breath. Researchers treated 102 people with gum disease. Everyone in the study done also had bad breath. Dentists used a device that measured their levels of three chemicals that commonly cause bad breath. In the Study some people were randomly assigned to get periodontal treatment first, followed by tongue cleaning. The rest of the people got tongue cleaning first, and then periodontal treatment. Everyone’s breath was tested twice. This was done after the first type of treatment and again after the second.

Tests showed that both types of treatment helped bad breath. For patients with periodontal disease, periodontal treatment improved people’s breath more than tongue cleaning did. This study appears in the July 18th issue of the Journal of Periodontal Research.

According to Scottish researchers homeless people with tooth decay or missing teeth are more prone to depression than those with health teeth. The study was done on about 850 homeless. the research found that people with poorer dental health were more likely to be depressed. In addition, homeless people with decayed and missing teeth also tended to have lower quality of life and more dental anxiety. Both of these could lead to depression, said the authors.