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Using anything but floss to clean between your teeth can cause recession or abrasion of the gums, damage to the enamel or damage to the root surface.

You’re driving down the highway during rush hour while enjoying your McDonald’s breakfast sandwich. Mid-meal, a clump of sausage wedges itself between your teeth, up near your gums. It’s more irritating than the guy in the giant SUV zipping by you as he uses the shoulder as his personal lane. You can’t do anything about the rude driver, but the pork piece is another story.

Your dental floss, of course, is home in your medicine cabinet so you look around the car. The laces from your son’s soccer cleats? Not only are they dirty, but they’ll never fit up there. How about the air-freshener string on the rear-view mirror

Hmm. A possibility.

While looking at the pine-tree-shaped freshener, you catch a glimpse of yourself — and your diamond studs — in the mirror. An earring post. Perfect! You pop the earring out of your ear, poke it between your teeth, dislodge the offending meat — and cut your gums in the process. Sound crazy? Gross? Believe it.

“When you’ve got half a meal stuck between your teeth, you’ve got to do something,” says Bill Winglosky a mortgage banker from Clifton Park, N.Y. The anything-goes attitude toward flossing is much to the dismay of Winglosky’s dentist.

Read more: canada.com

Whoa, this story is hilarious and yet so true. A piece of food stuck between the teeth can be very irritating sometimes. Always carry floss with you if you know a gap between the teeth existing somewhere in your mouth.

Sugar & plaque cause decay, while saliva & fluoride strengthen teeth.

This chewing gum reduces the development of dental cavity; however, regular dental check-up every 6 months is still required. This product only targets one bacterium and does not remove plaque, so daily brushing & flossing are required.

Scientists have developed a chewing gum containing friendly bacteria which they say can help prevent tooth decay.

The good bugs in the gum prevent other harmful mouth bacteria from sticking to and attacking the teeth.

Toothpastes and mouthwashes containing Lactobacillus anti-caries are also in the pipeline, German chemical company BASF told Chemistry and Industry.

Friendly bacteria, normally found in live yoghurt, are already purported to be good for treating bowel conditions.

Probiotics

Another potential use of Lactobacillus include the prevention of body odour. BASF are looking to produce a deodorant which can stop the odour-producing bacteria in the armpit.

The bacterium responsible for dental cavities, Streptococcus mutans, persistently colonises the surface of the teeth, where it converts sugar into aggressive acids that breaks down the enamel.

Dr Gordon Watkins of the British Dental Association

L. anti-caries reduces the concentration of this harmful bacterium in the mouth making S. mutans clump together, preventing them from adhering to the teeth.

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Dr Gordon Watkins, a member of the British Dental Association’s health and science committee, cautioned: “These new products will not remove the need to brush your teeth as their action is targeted against just one bacterium.

“It’s not a substitute for brushing the teeth, because this removes the plaque that contains a whole range of bacteria that causes gum disease and bad breath.

“The best way to minimise tooth decay is to reduce consumption of sugars; strengthen the teeth through the use of fluoride; and brush teeth to remove dental plaque.”

Read more on: bbc.co.uk

What is the eruption sequence of baby teeth? Which tooth comes out first? Which tooth comes after? Many parents simply aren’t aware of it and yet it is very important to recognize any abnormal eruption pattern. There are several causes where a tooth will fail to erupt, such as congenital missing teeth, impacted teeth, teeth erupting in wrong directions, etc.

In addition, by recognizing the eruption of the very first tooth in the infant, parents can adopt certain preventive measures that minimize the transmission of dental cavities from themselves to their babies. Did I mention cavities can be transferred to other people? You bet! Dental caries is the most common bacterial infection in childhood, more common than any other childhood diseases or infections such as asthma, hay fever, strep throat, flu, you name it. Talk to your dentist about how to reduce the vertical transmission (parent-child transmission) and hence the risk of future cavities in your kids. If your parents have lots of cavities and so do you, blame your parents?!

The following table provides an estimated time frame for each baby tooth to come out. The time is in month.

Eruption Sequence of Deciduous Teeth (Baby Teeth / Primary Teeth) in months after birth
	central incisor	lateral incisor	canine	1st molar	2nd molar
Upper	8	9	18-20	14-16	22-24
Lower	6	7	16-18	12-14	20-22

The above time frames are only estimates. It varies among individuals. Therefore, it’s more important to recognize the eruption sequence rather than the exact eruption time. That is, central incisor > lateral incisor > 1st molar > canine > 2nd molar.

Cheat-sheet

As a general rule, lower teeth erupts before their upper counterparts. For example, lower incisors erupt before upper incisors.

The first tooth to comes out is lower central incisor at the age of 6 months.
First molar comes out during the First year of age.
Second molar comes out during the Second year of age.
By age of 3, all 20 deciduous teeth should be present.

With full eruption, babies have 20 teeth, whereas adults have 32 teeth.

First Dental Visit for Kid

When should a baby start seeing a dentist?

It’s recommended by American Academy of Pediatrics that every child should begin to receive oral health risk assessment by the age of 6 months (ie, when the first tooth starts to come out) from a pediatrician or a qualified pediatric health care professional. [Pediatrics 2003; 111:1113-1116]

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Proper oral hygiene may do a lot more than keep your teeth bright and cavity-free - it could be a boon to your overall health.

A growing body of research suggests that periodontal disease may exacerbate a variety of health problems as wide-ranging as diabetes, heart disease, respiratory disease - even premature births, experts say.

For instance, several promising studies have found that blood-sugar levels in diabetics with periodontal disease were reduced to normal when the patients’ gum disease was treated. Other research revealed that the incidence of respiratory diseases among nursing-home residents was cut when they were treated for gum disease, said Dr. Robert Genco, distinguished professor of oral biology at the School of Dental Medicine at the State University of New York at Buffalo.

“All of these are pilot studies, and whether (the periodontal disease) is causal, we cannot say, but we can’t ignore these associations,” Genco said. “Further, from a practical standpoint, there is no harm in treating periodontal disease in these patients.”

Gum disease is very common, Genco explained. Approximately 80 percent of Americans have some form of the condition, which is a bacterial infection of the gums surrounding the teeth.

Gingivitis is the mildest and most common form of gum disease, causing inflammation of the tissues around the teeth. More serious is periodontitis, when the inflammation affects the connective tissue supporting the teeth and, eventually, the bone. An estimated 20 percent of Americans have periodontitis, making it the primary cause of tooth loss in adults.

Because periodontal disease is so common, Genco said, treating the condition successfully could have a significant impact on public health, even if it’s associated with only a small portion of other ailments.

One reason gum disease could contribute to other ailments, researchers say, may be that oral bacteria get into the bloodstream and cause inflammation of other body tissues. Another possibility is that an oral infection could trigger inflammatory responses from the immune system, adversely affecting the rest of the body.

Dr. Steven Offenbacher, distinguished professor at the Department of Periodontics at the University of North Carolina School of Dentistry, is studying the link between periodontal disease and preterm birth, and thinks inflammation could play an important part in the connection.

“Organisms are capable of invading the bloodstream and challenging the fetus by inflammation of the fetal and placenta unit, thus promoting premature birth,” he said.

Source: cbc.ca

Good stuff to know!

It’s been long known that there are associations found between periodontal disease and diabetes, between periodontal disease and valvular disease (a condition that affects heart valve), between periodontal disease and smoking, etc. Research studies are continuous to point at evidence for the link between gum disease and the rest of the body health.

So brush up your teeth and keep them clean to avoid gum disease. Brushing alone is not sufficient because toothbrushes can only reach the front and back surfaces of the teeth and cannot brush off the plaque trapped “between” the teeth. As such, it’s also important to floss the teeth, which cleans the surfaces between the teeth very well. Currently, it’s recommmended to brush at least 2x per day (one in the morning and one before bedtime) and floss 1x per day before bedtime. Of course, brushing and flossing are USELESS if you don’t know how to use them properly! Talk to your dental professionals and ask for a demonstration! It’s amazing that a huge percentage of population uses wrong technique to maintain their oral hygiene. Just ask your dentist or dental hygienist. It doesn’t hurt to ask to confirm your technique!!!

Cranberries may help prevent tooth decay and cavities, research suggests. Scientists have found a compound in the fruit can stop bacteria from clinging to the teeth, blocking the formation of damaging plaque deposits.

However, researcher Dr Hyuan Koo warned many cranberry-containing products were loaded with sugar and consuming large amounts could lead to tooth decay.

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Cranberries can be enjoyed, they should be limited to mealtimes only to avoid potential problems

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Dr Koo said people should not eat or drink excessive amounts of cranberry-containing products in an attempt to improve their dental health.

He said many cranberry products contained large amounts of sugar, which is the leading cause of tooth decay.

In addition, the fruit contains a natural acid that can strip away essential minerals in the teeth.

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He said: “Scientists believe that one of the main ways that cranberries prevent urinary tract infections is by inhibiting the adherence of pathogens on the surface of the bladder.

“Perhaps the same is true in the mouth, where bacteria use adhesion molecules to hold onto teeth.”

Dr Nigel Carter, chief executive of the British Dental Health Foundation, said: “Cranberries are naturally very acidic, while manufacturers also tend to add sugar to cranberry products.

“Every time you eat or drink something acidic the enamel on your teeth is softened temporarily.

“If given time to recover, then your saliva will neutralise this acidity in your mouth and restore it to its natural balance.

“However, if this attack happens too often the mouth does not have the chance to repair itself and tiny particles of enamel can be brushed away. This is called erosion.

Source: bbc.co.uk

Cranberry, anyone? Good stuff.