Fighting dry mouth

If your dental professional tells you that you have “xerostomia,” it doesn’t mean you have a bizarre, serious ailment. It means you have a condition colloquially known as “dry mouth,” where your mouth feels persistently dry due to lack of saliva.

Dry mouth is caused by a variety of factors, such as anxiety, alcohol or drug use, smoking or dehydration. It’s also a common side effect of many diseases, treatments, and medications, including chemotherapy, antidepressants and antihistamines.

Dry mouth can be more than just a minor annoyance – it can actually affect the health of your teeth. Saliva controls bacteria and fungi in your mouth, which helps prevent tooth decay. If your saliva isn’t naturally washing away food particles, that can lead to bacterial growth.

While usually you can resolve the problem with an adjustment of your type or dosage of medication, it’s important to ask your dentist and hygienist for their input. They may also prescribe a special mouthwash, or advise you to use a saliva substitute. And they’ll definitely remind you to drink plenty of water!

Original Source: http://www.brightnow.com/our-blog/how-ocmbat-dry-mouth

Do you have it – Dry Mouth?

Symptoms of dry mouth may include trouble swallowing, cracked lips, sores inside the mouth, bad breath and thirst. Dry mouth, also known as Xerostomia in the medical world, can be the result of any number of factors:

• dehydration
• medication side effects
• symptom of a medical condition
• nerve damage
• smoking

Resolving the uncomfortable feeling of dry mouth may depend on the severity and source of the issue. However, there are a handful of home remedies that can help alleviate the problem. Stimulating saliva production is one technique and can be achieved by drinking lots of water, chewing sugar-free gum, sucking on sugar-free hard candies or even using a saliva substitute (can be purchased over the counter). Caffeine contributes to mouth dryness, so try to limit your intake. Avoid mouthwashes containing alcohol, as that ingredient can make your mouth drier.

Other tricks to help you deal with dry mouth include: breathing through your nose, using a humidifier at home, eliminating any use of tobacco and avoiding salty foods and soda pop. The final piece of advice is, of course, to make regular visits to the dentist to monitor the issue should it progress and worsen.

Changing Your Smile – One Veneer At A Time

Are you unhappy with your uneven and/or discolored smile? Have you noticed small chips or cracks in any of your teeth? Well, don’t worry— Dental veneers are an affordable and reliable solution to imperfect smiles, we’re highly experienced in cosmetic veneer treatments.

Dental veneers are a form of cosmetic dentistry in which the surface of the tooth is covered with a layer of tooth-colored porcelain composite to protect the tooth from additional damage, and give you the beautiful smile you desire. In fact, veneers can solve most, if not all, of your cosmetic dental issues, including:

Uneven Tooth Alignment: Through the years your teeth can become uneven as a result of grinding, or wear and tear.

Wide Spacing: Veneers can (if needed) add an extra layer to widely spaced teeth, filling in those gaps, and giving you a more symmetrical smile.

Worn Enamel: Over time, the thin protective layer of enamel that covers your teeth may become dulled, discolored, and worn. Though this can sometimes be caused by genetics, it’s usually the result of smoking or drinking soft drinks, coffee, and/or tea.

Wear And Tear: As we age, our teeth naturally wear down and become less resilient. Aged teeth are also more susceptible to minor cracks and chips.

Veneers can help you change the color, shape, alignment, spacing, and length of your teeth using cosmetic dentistry! Cosmetic veneers are considered a form of cosmetic dentistry because they create vibrant and beautifully aligned smiles—but, they also protect the surface of your teeth and can help eliminate future damage and additional treatment!

Basics of Gum Disease

Have you ever been advised to watch for signs of gum disease?

Chances are, if you’ve ever visited a dentist, you’ve been checked—to some extent—for symptoms of this problem.

Gum disease can be divided into three stages… which can range from a simple amount of gum inflammation to major tissue damage and tooth loss. It’s been said before, but as a reminder, the sooner periodontal disease is caught the more we can do to successfully reverse the effects.

If you are experiencing any of these symptoms:

• Gums bleed easily while flossing or brushing
• Swollen, red or tender gums
• Receding or separated gums that are exposing teeth
• Changes in how your teeth fit together
• Constant bad breath or unpleasant taste in your mouth

Of course, never having gum disease is the best scenario.

Because gum disease starts with bacteria in the plaque on your teeth, paying close attention to your oral hygiene is your greatest defense. This includes your daily care—thorough brushing and regular flossing, as well as your regular checkups. If plaque hardens to your teeth, only a dental cleaning can completely remove it and stop gum disease from starting.

Original Source: http://martinandshengdentalblog.com/2011/05/gum-disease-basics/

All About Root Canal Therapy

MYTH #1: Root Canal Treatments Are Painful

Typically, it isn’t that the actual root canal treatment is painful—rather, the irreversible condition that is requiring the treatment is far from comfortable in the first place! Most people who have root canal therapy admit that the pain they experienced was prior to the procedure, not during it…  And, they felt so much better after.

MYTH #2: Root Canals Always Require Several Appointments

Some cases require a tooth to be restored after the root canal is completed, but these appointments are not part of the actual root canal process.

If you are already scheduled for root canal therapy with one of our doctors, and if you’re experiencing discomfort, here are a few ideas from our friends at eHow:

MYTH #3: Root Canal Therapy Leads to Illnesses

This myth stems from some research that is 100 years old—and, has NEVER been duplicated or confirmed through modern research. That is, the bacteria that may be present from doing the root canal procedure can somehow make you sick after your root canal therapy. The fact is that all kinds of bacteria can be found in your mouth at any time, even if you don’t have decaying teeth, gum disease, or an upcoming root canal treatment. This myth truly is just that—a myth you don’t need to worry about.

MYTH #4: Root Canal Therapy Isn’t Necessary Until Your Tooth Hurts

Teeth in need of root canal therapy don’t always hurt. In fact, some dead teeth may just require a root canal to prevent infection. You may have a tooth in need of a root canal and not even know it.MYTH #5: The Benefits of Root Canal Therapy Don’t Last Long

This fifth myth probably starts with people who have had a tooth crack at some point after having had a root canal treatment. While it’s true that when a nerve is removed from a tooth, the blood supply is eliminated and the tooth can become brittle—making it more fragile and susceptible to cracking. Technically, this means that although the complete restoration solution may need to be examined, it doesn’t mean that root canal therapy doesn’t “last”.

Original Source: http://martinandshengdentalblog.com/2011/05/general-information-root-canal-therapy/