How the "Foods of Commerce" Have Shaped Us From where we sit, getting dinner on the table is a piece of cake compared to what faced early man. We "hunt" at the grocery store, "forage" in the produce department, and "stalk" hamburger joints. What we end up eating, though, may be far less nutritious than the food ancient man dished up. How can this be? Well, we may be living longer and rarely do battle with tigers and bears for a meal, but our [...]
Your salivary glands make up to three pints a day of this fantastic fluid. Why so much? Because saliva plays an important role in keeping your teeth and gums fit and smiling. Saliva helps fight cavities by prevent food from sticking to teeth and gums, it also helps neutralize stomach acid preventing heartburn. Saliva even helps strengthen teeth by providing supplemental calcium and phosphorus. Unfortunately, some people are plagued by chronic dry mouth, often called xerostomia. While medical professionals no longer believe that old [...]
Osteoporosis, the loss of bone mass as we age, could affect half of all Americans over 50 by 2020. It is defined as bone loss of about 25 percent, which results in fragile bones that fracture easily. Its reputation as an old person's disease stems from the fact that bone loss doesn't hurt and osteoporosis victims can go years without a clue they are susceptible to the condition. You can guard against bone loss even if factors outside your control put you in one [...]
Originally, these ideas held because no one really knew how to maintain a great smile over a lifetime. Unfortunately, "popular wisdom" still prevents some people from recognizing how modern dentistry can keep teeth natural, attractive and pain free. Do any of the following notions sound familiar? If so, get ready for a little relief! A woman can expect to lose a tooth for every child The Reality: This myth used to be true in many cases, but thankfully with modern medicine and dentistry, there's [...]
We have come a long way in the treatment of serious, life-threatening systemic diseases. Part and parcel of healing more aggressive diseases are—more aggressive therapies. And sometimes as a result of forceful care, complications arise that demand attention of their own: oral problems. When an individual is very sick, nutrition becomes more important than ever. Oral problems can interfere with normal function—eating, speaking, swallowing—just when the patient needs it most. Early evaluation by a dentist can help preserve a patient's oral health. So please, [...]
While nobody enjoys getting lectured about a bad habit, it's important to have all the relevant information available to you, especially when it involves health implication. So if you need any extra motivation to help you quit smoking, we'll discuss some of the lesser known problems it can cause. It isn't just your lungs that suffer! Of course, anyone can understand the relationship between smoking and lung cancer, but there are serious oral health implications too. Gum disease significantly increases with smoking, as nicotine [...]
Dentistry, like any other science, has evolved over time. We've come a long way from the old days of "drill and fill" to a new era of sophisticated technology and technique. And along with this growth has come a new understanding of sterilization and infection control. With a variety of serious illnesses that can be cross-communicated, sterilization protocols have been dramatically refined. And for our practice, there is no "enough." For starters, we use physical barriers over every possible surface. We use disposable products [...]
We'd like to offer one comforting and wonderful fact about today's dentistry: it's comfortable, even pleasant. Technology, new procedures, and some very sophisticated approaches to anesthesia have all contributed to painless treatment, from cleaning to cavity preparations to root canal therapy. But what if you didn't grow up with modern dentistry, and remember it differently? If you've had difficult dental experiences, you may be among the 150 million Americans who suffer through treatment, or avoid the dentist altogether. The fact is, about 80% of [...]
Since childhood we've been told we need calcium to build strong teeth and bones. But the fact is we never outgrow our need for this important mineral. Why...? Osteoporosis and loss of bone around the teeth can result when we don't consume enough calcium Authorities say that to reduce the risk of weak, brittle bones later in life, you need a daily intake of 800 mg (men) or 1000-1500 mg (women). Rapid growth during adolescence and the demands of pregnancy and breastfeeding create even [...]
Beware of the oral complications of this respiratory disease In years past, asthma attacks could be unpredictable and difficult to control. Today, medications have been developed to control attacks—in some cases preventing them from occurring at all. If you—or a member of your family—still suffer the attacks, check with your physician about new treatment methods. Although we may not know its exact cause, most people are familiar with asthma, the chronic lung disease that makes breathing difficult. Asthma may be triggered by allergens such [...]
