Many different types of food can cause tooth decay in children, not just lollies. Foods that are high in carbohydrates, as well as some fruits, juices and soft drinks, peanut butter, crackers and potato chips are culprits. Factors that cause tooth decay include the frequency in which the foods are eaten and the time they […]
Should loose primary teeth be pulled? Losing primary teeth before they are ready to fall out can affect the proper positioning of the permanent teeth. If a baby tooth is lost too early, other teeth may tip or fill in the vacant space, forcing permanent teeth to come in crooked. If a baby tooth is knocked […]
Though you lose them early in life, your primary teeth, also called baby teeth, are essential in the development and placement of your permanent teeth. Primary teeth maintain the spaces where permanent teeth will erupt and help develop proper speech patterns that would otherwise be difficult; without maintenance of these spaces, crowding and misalignment can […]
What is a denture? A denture is a removable replacement for missing teeth and the tissues connected to those teeth. It is made of acrylic plastic and sometimes porcelain and metal materials. A denture closely resembles natural gum tissue and teeth. Complete dentures replace all of the teeth, while partial dentures fill in the spaces created […]
Dental amalgam is a mix of metal (also known as an alloy) that is made by combining mercury, silver, tin, copper, and sometimes other metallic elements. When your dentist determines that you have a cavity in a tooth, he or she will tell you that you need a filling. But what exactly will your dentist […]
Because amalgam fillings can withstand a lot of chewing, they are useful especially for restoring molars in the back of the mouth, where the chewing load is greatest. They also are good in areas that are hard to keep dry, such as in deep fillings below the gum line. Amalgam fillings, like other filling materials, […]
It’s one of the hardest habits to break and can require a great deal of persuasion: Parents often struggle with weaning their child off of a pacifier. There is much debate regarding the negative and positive effects of pacifiers, and there is evidence to show that there are both pros and cons, according to a study […]
Although dental amalgam continues to be a safe, commonly used restorative material, there have been some concerns because it contains mercury. However, because the mercury in amalgam is combined with other metals, it is safe for use in filling teeth. Major U.S. and international scientific and health organizations, including the National Institutes of Health, the […]
Your general dentist automatically checks for physical signs of bruxism and if it seems to be present the condition may be observed over several visits before recommending and starting therapy. The objective of therapy is to get the bruxer to change behavior by learning how to rest the tongue, teeth and lips properly. When some […]
Not all teeth that are painful need to be extracted. Sometimes if you have enough good tooth structure and the gum supporting the tooth is healthy, you may want to try and save the tooth by having a root canal treatment. This treatment removes the nerves and vessels inside the tooth and replaces it with […]
