Chandler Dental Health

Prevent a Heart Attack

drtom — Tue, 13 Sep 2011 03:43:58 +0000

Testing mobile blog publishing with an interesting article from Dr Oz.

http://abcnews.go.com/blogs/health/2011/09/12/dr-ozs-advice-brush-your-teeth-to-prevent-a-heart-attack/

Protect Our Athletes

drtom — Tue, 06 Sep 2011 04:52:00 +0000

A recent article in USA Today reminds us that football players are not the only athletes that should wear a mouthguard. In fact, baseball and basketball players have the most mouth injuries. We are committed to protecting your children’s teeth and to that end, we will make them a sports mouthguard free of charge. (adults too!) Just ask our team at your next visit.

If you would like to read the article, click here

All in the Family

drtom — Mon, 21 Jun 2010 04:15:49 +0000

Tooth decay is contagious. A recent study published in the Journal of Dental Research, titled: Mother’s Caries Increases Odds of Children’s Caries, demonstrated that fact. The UCSF study examined the oral health of rural Hispanic families and found when mothers had untreated tooth decay, it almost doubled the odds of tooth decay in their children. The mechanism is simple, the bacteria that cause tooth decay can be transmitted from person-to-person. For example, when a mother is feeding a young child and tastes their food and uses the same spoon to feed the child.

The important take away message is the fact that the dental health of your entire family is important. Too often, we see certain members of a family that seek dental care whereas others are too busy or scared to have treatment. This can be counterproductive to the dental health improvements in the family members seeking treatment.

At Chandler Dental Health, we advise parents to pay close attention to the oral hygiene of their children from the moment the first tooth erupts, usually at 6 months of age. If you would like more information on oral hygiene tips for your children, click here

Prevention Saves Money

drtom — Tue, 11 May 2010 05:59:08 +0000

The benefits of fluoride are well known and our Chandler water has fluoride added to the optimum levels. I recently came across a brief mention of fluoride while reading the book, Super Freakonomics, http://www.superfreakonomicsbook.com by Steven D. Levitt and Stephen J. Dubner. In their chapter titled, The Fix Is In- And It’s Cheap and Simple, they write: “Even the simple addition of fluoride to water systems has saved about $10 billion per year in dental bills.” Dental treatments can be expensive, so every ounce of effort you put towards prevention will save many dollars. Imagine how much you will save when you add flossing to the mix…

Happy Birthday to Us!

drtom — Tue, 11 May 2010 05:58:09 +0000

On April 15, 2010 we were happy to celebrate the 8^th anniversary of Chandler Dental Health. While we have been dentists for nearly twice as long, this was a special milestone as the practice was started from scratch with two employees and zero patients. Thanks to the support of many members of our community, we have grown into a vibrant business in Southern Chandler. We celebrated in the usual way, ordering lunch for our team and doing what we do best: serve our patients. We look forward to number 9 in 2011. Thanks for your continued support.

Dental School Graduation, 15 Years Later

drtom — Tue, 11 May 2010 05:57:38 +0000

This May, on no particular day, will mark 15 years since our graduation from dental school. As many of our patients know, Dr. Grace and I were classmates at SUNY at Buffalo School of Dental Medicine. We share a sense of pride to be blessed with a terrific team and wonderful patients so many years after graduation. We are particularly proud of the many contributions our school makes to the dental profession through numerous research projects. One of the hot topics is the connection between oral bacteria and heart attacks. You can read a press release about this research here. http://www.buffalo.edu/news/10019

CDH on Facebook, Twitter and YouTube?

drtom — Tue, 11 May 2010 05:57:04 +0000

It is likely you have spotted the prominent links to the top three social media outlets. The next logical question might be, why? These websites have become a common thread for many members of our community to stay connected. It is our intention to use Facebook and Twitter as an outlet for some of the news articles that appear on our website as well as an outlet for practice news. YouTube will be used sparingly as a place to host our office video tour and occasionally other useful educational videos for our patients to enjoy. If you have suggestions for the use of our social media sites, we would love to have your feedback. You can click the feedback tab on the left side of this web page. Thanks in advance for following us or becoming a fan!

Your Gums and Your Heart

drtom — Tue, 11 May 2010 05:55:07 +0000

An article that recently appeared in Parade Magazine, provided a clear description of the mounting evidence that gum disease, including gingivitis, is associated with heart disease. Oral health conditions have also been linked to many other systemic ailments. There is an endless supply of excuses to miss a dental check-up, but you may be missing out on more than just clean teeth. Read this article whenever you are tempted to ignore your teeth.

http://www.parade.com/health/2010/03/14-how-your-gums-affect-your-heart.html

The Good Sugar

drtom — Thu, 01 Apr 2010 19:00:27 +0000

Everybody knows sugars cause cavities and toothaches as well as weight gain. Over the years, many alternative sugars have been developed to combat some of these problems. Finally, there is a good sugar for your teeth and it is called Xylitol. Your body makes 5-10 grams of this natural sugar per day via metabolism of carbohydrates, and it can be manufactured from corn cobs and corn husks. The glycemic index is low (7) vs table sugar (68) and honey (55), which makes it safe for consumption by diabetics. Xylitol has been used to sweeten cookies, cakes, hot drinks and candy.

The primary dental benefit of this sugar is its ability to interfere with the bacteria that cause cavities. It passes through the outer membrane of bacteria, and the bacteria must use its own energy to pump it back out. This disturbs the ability of these bacteria to produce acid which is primarily responsible for tooth decay.

Consumption of 6.7 grams of xylitol per day has been shown to reduce caries by 85% in the Turku Sugar Studies. If mothers chew xylitol gum during first two years of a child’s life, they will significantly reduce transmission of cavity causing strep mutans to their children. In children, it has also been shown to reduce ear infections with regular use.

I recently discovered a dentist-owned company that sells a line of products sweetened with xylitol. For more information about the benefits of xylitol containing products, visit www.drjohns.com. Use our office discount code at checkout for 7.5% off your order. Code: pips88tkx. Enjoy the sweet treats.

Don’t Forget to Floss

admin — Mon, 15 Feb 2010 00:40:58 +0000

The American Dental Association advises to floss once or more per day before brushing your teeth;

flossing prior to brushing allows for the dentifrice to reach between the teeth. It should be noted that overly vigorous or incorrect flossing can result in gum tissue damage. For proper flossing, the Association advises to curve the floss against the side of the tooth in a ‘C’ shape, and then to wipe the tooth from under the gumline (very gently) to the tip two or three times, repeated on adjacent and subsequent teeth.