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WE'VE ALL HEARD of the active ingredient in toothpaste: fluoride. It supplies tooth enamel with important minerals to keep it strong and it protects against tooth decay. It's the one ingredient toothpaste must contain to earn the American Dental Association's Seal of Acceptance. But what else is in toothpaste?

Other Active Ingredients
1. Mild abrasive ingredients help scrub the surfaces of our teeth clean as we brush (and it doesn't take more than a soft-bristled toothbrush and gentle brushing to get the job done).
2. Foaming detergents help the toothpaste reach every tooth. (Fun fact: the foam is why actors rarely use toothpaste when they brush their teeth onscreen. It's too messy for TV!)

Inactive Ingredients
1. Humectants keep toothpaste from drying out, so that it can come out of the tube in a smooth piece.
2. Flavoring and sweeteners make toothpaste taste good, but they can't include actual sugar and still get the ADA Seal of Acceptance. Toothpaste for adults is usually a strong, minty flavor, but that can be overpowering for kids, which is why theirs often tastes like fruit or candy.

Which Ingredients Have Whitening Effects?
A lot of toothpaste contains bleaching agents, but anyone with braces should avoid those until Braces Off Day. Using whitening toothpaste could result in a slight difference between the color of the spot where the bracket was and the rest of the tooth, so save that for after the orthodontic treatment ends!

Thank you for being part of our practice family!

Top image used under CC0 Public Domain license. Image cropped and modified from original.

Disclaimer: the content on this blog is not intended to be a substitute for professional medical advice, diagnosis, or treatment. Always seek the advice of qualified health providers with questions you may have regarding medical conditions.

IF BRACES-WEARERS want to keep the results of their treatment long term, they should be carefully following the orthodontist's instructions on how to use their retainers. Part of that isn't just about wearing the retainers but about keeping them clean.

Why Do Retainers Need Cleaning?
Retainers are just as susceptible to plaque and tartar buildup as our teeth are, so they need to be cleaned just as diligently. If we don't, they will quickly become filmy, smelly, foul-tasting, and covered in crusty white spots. Gross!

Removable Versus Permanent Retainer Care
For those with removable retainers, rinse them with cool water and soak your removable retainer daily for the best results with Retainer Brite Tablets. Permanent retainers can make flossing trickier but it's important to persevere and floss around them even if it's difficult because tartar can build up around them otherwise. Floss threaders can help with that!

Never use hot water or harsh chemicals on a retainer!

Top image used under CC0 Public Domain license. Image cropped and modified from original.

Disclaimer: the content on this blog is not intended to be a substitute for professional medical advice, diagnosis, or treatment. Always seek the advice of qualified health providers with questions you may have regarding medical conditions.

OUR GOAL IS FOR all of our orthodontic patients to make it to Braces Off Day without any worries of their results being marred by tooth decay and stains. However, a lot of that depends on the daily habits of our patients when they’re away from our practice. Follow theses tips to ensure the best possible result at the end of treatment:

1. Brush after every meal.
Twice a day doesn’t cut it quite so well when it means waiting from lunch until bedtime with food stuck between brackets. It’s a good idea to bring a toothbrush and toothpaste along to lunch to deal with stuck food. Just make sure to find a place to store the toothbrush where it can dry out between uses!

2. Don’t skip flossing.
We know it’s trickier with braces, but persevere! Use floss threaders, floss picks, or water flossers if regular floss is too frustrating to work with. Daily flossing is actually more important than brushing, and it’s essential for preventing post-braces stains.

3. Whitening products and braces don’t mix.
Wait until the braces come off so that the entire surface of each tooth can get the same amount of whitening treatment. Trying to do it with braces on can leave uneven patches where the brackets were!

Top image used under CC0 Public Domain license. Image cropped and modified from original.

Disclaimer: The content on this blog is not intended to be a substitute for professional medical advice, diagnosis, or treatment. Always seek the advice of qualified health providers with questions you may have regarding medical conditions.

YOU 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 as few as six are required for frowning. But that's no reason to frown more; if you think about it, it just means that smiling burns more calories! Even better, there are many other benefits that come from a smiling face.

We Smile When We're Happy...and Vice Versa?
We obviously smile when we feel happy, but evidence indicates that smiling and happiness are so closely linked that the simple act of smiling can cause happy feelings. Even if it's a fake smile, it can still release endorphins (also known as the feel-good hormone) and make us feel better. It might be worth trying a smile the next time you're having a rough day to see if it helps.

Smiling Can Reduce Pain and Stress
Thanks to that endorphin boost from smiling, we can get a lot of other benefits beyond improving our mood. In the moment, endorphins can help reduce pain and relieve stress. They function a lot like painkillers, except that they are free of side-effects!
In 2012, an experiment showed some interesting results with the simple act of smiling. Subjects were given a stressful task, and some were required to hold a pencil between their lips as they did the task (simulating a pouty expression) while others were required to hold it between their teeth (simulating smiling). The second group's heart rates returned to normal more quickly, suggesting that smiling helps us manage stress.

The Effects Multiply Over Time
It's lovely to get some short-term effects from endorphins, but those effects are cumulative over time. If we make a habit of smiling more, we can end up with long-term health benefits like being more resilient against illnesses and less likely to get cancer. The reason it reduces the risk of cancer is that when we are better at managing our stress, our cells undergo fewer stress-induced mutations throughout our lives.

Add to Your Lifespan Through Smiles
People will often perceive a smiling face as younger and more attractive, but that can go deeper than appearances. A lifetime of smiling may actually come with enough health benefits to be longer! But it can be difficult to smile when we aren't confident in the way our teeth look. Having a smile we're proud to show off requires us to be diligent with our dental hygiene routine, and it may mean orthodontic treatment or other dental work is necessary.

Come to the Dentist With Your Beautiful Smile!
You don't have to fight alone for your smile's health — the dentist is your biggest ally. Make sure to schedule regular cleanings and exams so that you can get that deep clean from the hygienist and so that the dentist has a chance to catch any problems when they are minor and easy to treat. Also bring your questions about your dental health!

Our patients always make us smile!

Top image used under CC0 Public Domain license. Image cropped and modified from original.

Disclaimer: The content on this blog is not intended to be a substitute for professional medical advice, diagnosis, or treatment. Always seek the advice of qualified health providers with questions you may have regarding medical conditions.