We have learned that an important part of oral health is education — but more importantly, making it fun to learn so that you retain (and apply) what you learn! For this reason, we have put together the following self-test so that you can quickly access your knowledge on the subject of mouthguards.

1. The first sport to use (and require) protective mouthguards was:
   1. football
   2. boxing
   3. baseball
   4. ice hockey
2. Research conducted by the American Dental Association (ADA) found that individuals are ___ times more likely to damage their teeth when not wearing a mouthguard while engaged in contact sports or rigorous physical exercise.
   1. 10
   2. 20
   3. 40
   4. 60
3. As a rule of thumb, females do not require mouthguards because they are not as physically active as their male counterparts.
   1. True
   2. False
4. The American Academy of General Dentistry (AAGD) reports that mouthguards prevent more than ______ injuries to the mouth and/or teeth each year.
   1. 200,000
   2. 300,000
   3. 400,000
   4. 500,000
5. Which of the following sports or activities does the ADA recommend that participants wear protective mouthguards:
   1. acrobatics
   2. bicycling
   3. handball
   4. all of the above
6. The US Centers for Disease Control (CDC) reports that more than ______ sports-related injuries end-up in the emergency room each year with injury or damage to the teeth and mouth.
   1. 275,000
   2. 425,000
   3. 600,000
   4. 735,000
7. Over-the-counter mouthguards are just as effective as professionally made mouthguards.
   1. True
   2. False
8. In addition to the trauma of having a tooth (or teeth) knocked out, individuals who have suffered from this type of injury may end up spending ______ per tooth over a lifetime for teeth that are not properly preserved and replanted according to the National Youth Sports Foundation for Safety.
   1. $10,000 to $20,000
   2. $15,000 to $25,000
   3. $25,000 to $35,000
   4. Less than $10,000

Answers: 1) b, 2) d, 3) b, 4) a, 5) d, 6) c, 7) b, 8) a

You can learn more about the importance of mouthguards when you continue reading the Dear Doctor magazine article “Athletic Mouthguards.” And if you have already experienced a dental injury, it may not be too late. However, we need to evaluate the damage so that we can establish a plan for restoring optimal oral health. Contact us today to learn more about protecting your mouth and teeth or to schedule an appointment.

When dentists talk to patients, they often use specialized vocabulary referring to various dental conditions. Do you understand what they mean when they use these words — or are you wondering what they are talking about?

Here's your chance to test your knowledge of ten words that have a particular meaning in the context of dentistry. If you already know them, congratulations! If you don't, here's your chance to learn what these words mean in the dental world.

Enamel
In dentistry, enamel is the hard outer coating of your teeth. It is the hardest substance produced by living animals. It is a non-living, mineralized, and composed of a crystalline form of calcium and phosphate.

Dentin
The dentin is the layer of a tooth that is just beneath the enamel. It is living tissue similar to bone tissue.

Pulp
When dentists speak of pulp, we mean the tissues in the central chamber of a tooth (the root canal) that nourish the dentin layer and contain the nerves of the tooth.

Bruxism
Many people exert excess pressure on their teeth by clenching or grinding them. This is called bruxism, a habit that can be very damaging to teeth.

Occlusion
By this we mean how the upper and lower teeth are aligned, and how they fit together. This can also be referred to as your bite.

Dental caries
This term refers to tooth decay. Dental caries and periodontal disease (see below) are two of the most common diseases known to man. Today, these diseases are not only treatable, but they are also largely preventable.

Periodontal disease
A term for gum disease, this term comes from “peri,” meaning around and “odont,” meaning tooth. It is used to describe a process of inflammation and infection leading to the progressive loss of attachment between the fibers that connect the bone and gum tissues to the teeth. This can lead to loss of teeth and of the bone itself.

Erosion
When you consume acidic foods or drinks, the acids in your mouth react directly with minerals in the outer enamel of your teeth, causing chemical erosion. This is not the same as tooth decay, which is caused by acids released by bacterial film that forms on your teeth (see below).

Dental implant
A dental implant is a permanent replacement for a missing tooth. It replaces the root portion of the tooth and is most often composed of a titanium alloy. The titanium root fuses with the jaw bone, making the implant very stable. A crown is attached to the implant and can be crafted to match your natural teeth.

Plaque
Dental plaque is the whitish film of bacteria (a biofilm) that collects on your teeth. Your goal in daily brushing and flossing is to remove plaque.

Contact us today to schedule an appointment to discuss any questions you may have about your teeth and gums. You can also learn more by reading Dear Doctor magazine article “How and Why Teeth Wear.”

How many of these questions can you answer correctly? The more you know about nutrition and oral health, the healthier you are likely to be.

What are free sugars?
“Free sugars” is a term for sugars including refined cane, beet and corn sugar, which are added to foods or occur naturally in honey, syrups or fruit juices.

You probably know that foods with added sugars are not healthy for your teeth. What is the maximum recommended sugar intake for oral health?
The recommended daily limit for free sugar is 10 teaspoons per day. Note that one can of soda contains over 6 teaspoons.

If a sugary snack is bad for your teeth, what could you substitute that would be better?
Fresh fruits and vegetables would be a better snack. Fresh fruits contain fructose, a sugar that has not been shown to be harmful to teeth if eaten in reasonable amounts.

How can you get enough fluoride to guard your teeth against decay?
If your water supply does not contain fluoride, or if you usually drink bottled water, you may or may not be receiving enough fluoride from your toothpaste. We can assess if you are receiving enough fluoride by examining your teeth, testing your plaque and reviewing your past history of tooth decay. If you are having a problem with tooth decay, we can create fluoride trays for you so you can apply a fluoride solution to your teeth daily.

What is dental erosion and how is it different from tooth decay?
Some acidic foods, particularly drinks such as juices and sodas, wear away your teeth's outer coating (the enamel) when exposed to the teeth's surface. Erosion does not involve bacteria, the cause of dental caries (tooth decay).

Can certain foods stop acidity from attacking your teeth?
Yes, there are foods that reverse the increase in acidity that comes from eating free sugars. One of these is cheese. Cheese stimulates saliva in your mouth, and it contains high levels of calcium, allowing calcium to be added back to your teeth. Many vegetables and starchy whole grain foods require thorough chewing, which also stimulates production of saliva and guards against tooth decay.

We hope you learned some useful facts from this nutrition quiz. If you modify your habits so that you eat less free sugar; drink more water (preferably fluoridated), drink fewer juices and sodas; and snack on fresh fruits, vegetables, and cheese, you can count on having healthy teeth and gums.

Contact us today to schedule an appointment to discuss your questions about diet and oral health. You can also learn more by reading the Dear Doctor magazine article “Nutrition & Oral Health.”

You've probably heard that old song about the leg bone being connected to the knee bone; it's easy to see how the human skeleton links together. But the concept of anatomical parts being interconnected actually goes further than you might think. Problems in almost any part of the body can have profound effects in other areas. Your gums offer a perfect example.

Believe it or not, medical research has established a connection between gum disease and cardiovascular disease (CVD). They appear to be linked by inflammation, a protective response to infection. Inflammation can be characterized by a redness and swelling of the body's tissues that you can see. Or its effects can be less obvious.

Gum disease is an infection caused by bacteria, which build up in the mouth in the absence of regular or effective brushing and flossing. When left undisturbed, the bacterial biofilms (dental plaque) change over time so that a small set of highly pathogenic (“patho” – disease; “genic” – causing) organisms emerge that cause periodontitis (“peri” – around; “odont” – tooth; “itis” – inflammation).

Periodontitis can cause not just a localized inflammation of the gum tissue, but also a systemic (whole-body) inflammation. And this chronic, low-grade inflammation throughout the body appears to increase the risk of heart disease considerably. The good news is that there is a lot we can do about gum disease. And when we reduce the inflammation it causes, we can also reduce the risks for CVD and the heart attacks and strokes that can result.

The first step is a thorough, professional periodontal cleaning to remove the bacterial biofilm attached to the roots of the teeth. Sometimes a short course of antibiotics is prescribed to further fight the infection. Advanced periodontitis may require surgery so that we can reach all of the contaminated root surfaces for removal of the bacterial biofilm.

We will also review with you how you can prevent the growth of harmful bacteria through an effective daily oral hygiene routine. This is crucial to maintaining your oral health, which in turn affects your general health and overall well-being.

Contact us today to schedule an appointment to discuss your questions about the relationship between gum disease and heart disease. You can also learn more by reading the Dear Doctor magazine article, “The Link Between Heart & Gum Diseases.”

If you have ever had halitosis (bad breath), you know it can cause you to feel self-conscious and embarrassed. And while the odor is typically a primary concern, determining what is causing it is a task we can assist you with resolving. This is especially true when you experience bad breath outside of those times when you've just consumed pungent foods and drinks such as coffee, garlic or raw onions. For example, it is quite a different scenario to have family members, friends, co-workers or even total strangers consistently complaining or using body language to denote your bad breath. If the later best describes your situation — and be honest with yourself — then you need a thorough dental exam to discover the ultimate cause (or causes) of your halitosis. This is especially important because so many people are unaware that there can be numerous oral and/or general health concerns triggering their bad breath.

Most unpleasant mouth odors arise from the more than 600 types of bacteria found in the average mouth, with several dozens of these bacteria being the primary culprits for producing foul odors. And while food particles left between teeth can be key contributors to bad breath, the tongue or more specifically, the back of the tongue, is the most common location. Dry mouth is another cause for bad breath, as evident by the dreaded morning breath we all experience from mouth breathing as we sleep. Bad breath is also caused by certain medical conditions such as liver disease, lung infections, diabetes, kidney infections or failure and cancer.

The good news is that we can work with you to develop an effective treatment for your bad breath. And if necessary, we can work with your physician on a total treatment plan should your condition be due to health conditions outside your mouth. However, if your bad breath originates in your mouth, we may recommend any or all of the following to return your mouth to optimal oral health:

• Oral hygiene instruction to learn the proper ways to brush, floss, scrape your tongue and use mouthwashes
• Denture hygiene instruction for proper cleaning and maintenance of both full and partial dentures and bridgework
• Periodontal (gum) therapy that includes professionally cleaning your teeth (scaling), smoothing your teeth's root surfaces (root planning) and possible antibiotic therapy
• Removal of tooth decay where large, open cavities (caries) are present
• Repair of broken fillings
• Removal of wisdom teeth (third molars) with gum flaps
• Treatment of yeast infections (candidasis)

To learn more about the causes and treatments for halitosis, read the Dear Doctor article, “Bad Breath — More Than Just Embarrassing.”

Ready To Take The Next Step?

If you want to address your own concerns with bad breath, contact us today to schedule a consultation for an examination and treatment plan. You will find yourself smiling and laughing more once you are confident you have a clean, healthy mouth.