Oral Hygine Archives - Diary of a New MomDiary of a New Mom

Oral Care: The Key to a Healthy Body

Ask any dentist and they will tell you that good oral health is an essential component of physical well-being. If, for example, a person had a gum infection, this would seriously affect the body’s ability to ward off germs and bacteria, as your antibodies are tied up with the gum infection. Bad brushing habits can quickly lead to tooth decay, which also affects the physical equilibrium, not to mention the damage it causes. If you have noticed a rough area on one of your teeth, this could be the onset of tooth decay, as the roughness of the tooth surface aids bacteria as it looks for an anchor point. Once it does create a foothold, the decaying process begins and the sooner you see your dentist, the better.

Image Source: Storyblocks

Correct Brushing

This is a critical part of good oral hygiene and if you are unsure about the effectiveness of your brushing technique, a quick Google will provide you with a tutorial that uses images to describe what happens when brushing. Due to the shape of our teeth and the way they are connected, there are lots of tiny closed off spaces, and if your brushing does not reach these regions, tooth decay will come visiting.

Regular Flossing

Flossing gets in between the teeth and removes any trapped particles of food, which would provide a platform for decay if allowed to remain. Next time you visit your Sydney dental clinic, you can ask your dentist about flossing and they will likely stock good quality floss, and once this becomes a part of your daily routine, it will become second nature. You should floss after every brushing session, especially before going to bed. Those hours of sleep can provide bacteria with enough time to get established, so it is vital that your mouth is clean prior to retiring for the night.

A Reflection of Good Health

Your overall well-being could be measured with an oral examination, and if a person is not feeling well, this could spark a gum infection. Oral issues could be a symptom of something else, and with regular oral examinations, your dentist can remedy any problem as it first arises, rather than treating it when it is established. We should all establish best practices with our oral care. Brushing, flossing and daily use of an antiseptic mouthwash will all help to ensure good oral health, and watching what you eat and drink will minimise the risk of tooth decay and discolouration.

Make it a Family Outing

If you, your partner and the kids make appointments on the same day, then everyone can have an oral examination, something that should happen every 3 months. Children are especially vulnerable to tooth decay – due to the many sweet things they ingest – and once a child learns best oral hygiene practices – they will rarely require treatment.

If you have just relocated and are looking for a good family dentist, a Google search is the best way to go about sourcing a local clinic, and with a yearly schedule, you can all enjoy the benefits of good oral hygiene and minimise the risk of dental issues.

A Guide to Knowing When You Need a Dental Crown

21 06 , 2018 No Comments

Dental crowns are a usual tooth restoration procedure for patients. It is a common solution to a few dental problems. However, it can cost a few hundred dollars to have a crown operation, even with insurance cover, and so a question that we’re often asked is: “Do I really need a crown, or can I get by without it?”

We’re here to iron out some of your queries about getting dental crowns Gold Coast patients prefer, including reasons why they are necessary, how long they last, and any other options. Before getting any crown procedure done, you can understand all your choices and if a crown is really necessary.

Is a Crown Completely Necessary?

Crowns are usually required for tooth cracks. Whilst your teeth are similar to other bones in your body, once you have a crack, the fracture will not heal. In this case, getting a dental crown is absolutely necessary to avoid pain and also limit infection.

You can usually tell if your tooth is cracked as you will experience pain when you bite down. Clearly, this would be a problem every time you eat food. If you have a vertical crack that reaches your gums, you may need a full-coverage crown. Indeed, if the crack goes beyond the gum line you may require root canal surgery, or possibly even tooth extraction. In this case, it is best to treat the problem early on with a crown before it develops into something worse.

However, you should make sure that your tooth really is cracked before applying a crown. Your tooth could just be ‘crazed’, which is not harmful. Craze lines are just simple stress lines and do not affect the structural integrity of your tooth. There are other options to fix them that do not require a crown.

Are There Alternatives to Getting a Crown?

In some instances, a crown may be one of several options. For example, you could go for a filling instead. However, bear in mind that if you do opt for a filling, it may not stop you from needing a crown at a later stage. Also, if you need a big area of your tooth to be filled, the better option is indeed to fix a crown. This is because fillings simply do not give you the same level of protection as a crown does.

Furthermore, if the filling you need is too big, it can cause the tooth to break, which cannot be repaired. In this case, getting a crown as early as possible is definitely the better option.

Do I Need to Get a Crown Immediately?

If you don’t get a crown when you need one and wait to have the procedure done, here are some of the possible outcomes:

Nothing will happen – the best possible scenario.
Your tooth may chip, which means a simple repair.
Your tooth may crack, which would result in definitely needing a crown anyway.
Your tooth may split, in which cases you’d end up needing to get crown lengthening or extraction.
Sometimes, you may wait too long, and the situation requires you to have root canal surgery.

With all these scenarios, we’d simply recommend getting a crown fitted as early as possible. If there is a chance you need a crown, it is best not to wait and see if the problem develops into anything worse. In most cases, you’d need to get a crown anyway, so it’s probably best to get a dental crown sooner rather than later if there is a chance you might need one.

Breastfeeding a Teething Baby : What You Need to Know

04 12 , 2017 No Comments

Teething pains aside, there’s nothing more charming when your little one opens his or her mouth and gives you a gap-toothed smile. There’s just something about those little baby teeth as they come in one at a time, providing your bouncing babe with charm and personality like nothing else.

It’s generally recommended that, if you are breastfeeding, that you provide your child breastmilk for up to the first 2 years of his or her life. As most infants begin teething around their first year, it’s almost inevitable that your little girl or boy will be breastfeeding with growing teeth.

Despite this, many mothers who breastfeed their children are wary of when their kid’s teeth start growing in. There are plenty of fears – many unfounded – about how breastfeeding while a baby’s teeth are growing will affect a child’s development. Here’s what you need to know about this hot-button issue.

No, It Doesn’t Hurt – Probably

“Well, this is going to hurt now, isn’t it?” Almost every new mother has the same thought once their baby’s first few teeth come in. The truth is that no, a nursing baby whose teeth are coming in doesn’t hurt – as long as they’re latched on properly. Of course, the truth is that a child that’s not latched on is going to do a number on your nipple whether he or she has teeth or not.

It’s all in the positioning. When your baby is latched on to your breast properly, it’s physically impossible for him or her to bite you – your nipple is protected by the baby’s gums and tongue. However, if your child shifts positions while you’re breastfeeding them – possibly because they’re uncomfortable because they’re teething – this can lead to some discomfort or even pain from biting.

Tooth Decay Can Happen to Breastfed Babes

Once your baby begins developing teeth, this means that you’ll have to provide those teeth extra care while breastfeeding. In fact, it doesn’t matter if you breastfeed directly, if you pump and fill a bottle, or if you bottle feed from formula – new teeth need to be taken care of to prevent oral issues such as baby-bottle tooth decay (BBTD).

Breastmilk in itself doesn’t promote BBTD. However, baby-bottle tooth decay can occur when new baby teeth are habitually exposed to any liquid besides water. If your child typically falls asleep while nursing – and he or she falls asleep with breastmilk still in their mouths – this puts them at risk for BBTD as much as if they’re bottle-fed before bed. Removing your breast from your baby’s mouth if he or she falls asleep nursing is more than enough to help prevent BBTD.

Never Too Early for Good Oral Hygiene

Even if he or she is breastfed, once your baby does start getting teeth, it’s a great time to adopt some early oral hygiene habits. In fact, you can even start before the first tooth erupts, by wiping your baby’s gums with a damp cloth or a piece of gauze daily from birth. Once your baby starts teething, continue to wipe after feedings and before bed for best results.

Eventually you do want to switch to using a toothbrush and a reasonably small amount of toothpaste, possibly once your child grows enough to begin brushing with your aid. Worried about whether you should begin using fluoridated toothpaste on your child’s teeth? Be sure to contact your family dentist. He or she will be able to recommend whether you need to – and how much you should use – in order to provide the best oral hygiene for your baby.

3 Foods and Habits Known to Cause Tooth Discolouration

20 09 , 2017 3 Comments

Our teeth have to endure tremendous punishment from all angles, and the vast array of different foods and drinks we consume only adds to the strain on our precious tooth enamel. To a certain degree, a person’s teeth will gradually discolour over time, as this is part of the natural aging process, yet there are certain substances we should avoid, as they are known to be harmful to our teeth, and if you would like to minimise the risk of fading white teeth, here are some of the harmful things to avoid.

Image by jackwillsion via Flickr

Tea and Coffee – People mistakenly think that due to its dark colour, coffee is the main culprit, when in fact, the opposite is true. Tea, whether brewed hot or served cold, as it contains acids and tannins, which act on the tooth enamel, causing it to break down slightly. The good news is, you would have to drink an awful lot over time, for there to be any noticeable discolouration, but tea and coffee addicts beware! If you do have tooth discolouration and you would like to regain your healthy smile, an Internet search will locate a local clinic, whether you are looking for a Melbourne or Brisbane CBD dentist, and most will offer a range of cosmetic services, which include teeth whitening treatments.

Smoking – Of course, smoking not only causes cancer, it also can bring about teeth discolouration. There are special toothpastes that are said to remove tobacco stains, but generally speaking, the tar in the tobacco smoke will wreak havoc with your tooth enamel, and if the threat of death isn’t enough to make you quit smoking, losing your pearly white smile might just do the trick.

Red Wine – As nice as it is to sip a glass of wine on occasions, it is not particularly good for a white smile. Like tea, wine is very acidic and is packed with tannins, and red wine also has a natural colourisation, which can stain tooth enamel. As a rule, one should always use a mouthwash after drinking wine, as once the majority of wine is removed, it cannot attack your tooth enamel, and if you find red wine too appealing, there are some effective methods to reduce red wine staining on your teeth that you can try. Chromogens are also present in high numbers, which quickly stick to the teeth, and too much, too often is likely to cause some staining. The good news is that this can be removed with suitable oral treatment, and your local dentist would be able to help.

As we age, the enamel on our teeth becomes worn and tiny cracks and crevices appear, and when these are filled with substances contained in food, staining occurs. Modern teeth whitening treatments might not be a cure, but they will restore the whiteness to your smile. If you have recently moved to a new area and have not registered with a dental clinic, an online search will point you in the right direction, and by trying to avoid the above, your teeth should remain healthy and white.

Finding an Emergency Dentist

07 01 , 2017 No Comments

Image by EthanDenney via Flickr

There is a wealth of information available online about dental care and treatment in New South Wales, and an excellent source of information is the nsw.gov.au website. Sometimes people have dental emergencies meaning that they need treatment outside of regular hours, so in these circumstances, it is important to know what to do, and where to go.

The Different Types of Emergencies

There are many different things that can harm or damage our teeth which may require emergency dental treatment. Some of the reasons that you may require an emergency dentist in the Sydney CBD area are:

Chipped or Broken Teeth
Knocked Out Teeth
Lost Crowns
Lost Fillings
Broken Braces or Wires

If you experience any of the above difficulties, you may wish to contact your local emergency dentist to get the problems fixed as quickly as possible. If you let problems go unfixed, then they could get considerably worse, as well as also becoming more expensive to resolve.

Be Prepared

Ideally, you will want to be prepared in advance of any problem that may arise, and it is worthwhile speaking to your dentist so that you know what to do during a dental emergency. Many surgeries will offer an out of hours’ service, sometimes in collaboration with other dental practices. Ask your dentist about emergency services and see if this is something that they offer. If they do have this type of service available, ask for the details of the service as well as the out of hours contact details. If this is not a service your dentist offers, then you will need to find an emergency dentist for both you and your family.

Finding a Dentist

If you find yourself needing emergency dental treatment, then a good place to start is asking your friends and family for any recommendations that they can offer. Alternatively, you can use the internet to find the closest out-of-hour dentist who will be able to assist you, no matter what your problem is. It is important to ensure that any dentist you are going to visit potentially is properly certified and qualified. Most dental websites will display their accreditations and certificates prominently on their website, and if this is something you cannot see, it is worth the effort to contact them and ask before arranging an appointment.

Check Out Their Reviews

Aside from the recommendations from friends and family, you can also look at all of the online reviews that are available. People love to leave reviews of products and services that they use, whether the experience was good or bad, and it is the same with dentists. Any potential dentists that you are considering using you should be able to find reviews about them online on the various review websites that are available. Read as many of the reviews that you can and compare the potentials dentists with each other.

With all of this information you will be able to choose a reliable dentist that will be able to take care of your teeth, whatever the problem. Just remember to take along your crown, filling, or tooth to them when you visit and they will have you smiling again in no time.

Also check : 3 Foods and Habits Known to Cause Tooth Discolouration

How to Choose the Best Toothpaste for Toddlers and Kids

15 07 , 2016 5 Comments

It is essential to keep and teach good oral habits when the kids are younger. That is why it is essential to start brushing teeth from the time their first tooth appear. While parents can brush their kids’ teeth, it is also essential to teach young kids how to brush teeth and add brushing teeth to their daily routine. However, selecting the best toothpaste for young kids must be done with care considering many reasons.

In this post I want to share some of the tips and things I learnt about keeping good oral hygiene for toddlers as it can be helpful for others too.

Other than the most popular oral hygiene tips such as brush teeth twice a day, here are some concerns about selecting toothpaste for toddlers.

How to select toothpaste for toddlers?

How to Choose the Best Toothpaste for Toddlers and Kids

Usually toddlers are with more chances of swallowing toothpaste. At their first stage of toddler life, they are not skill enough to spit toothpaste. That is why you need to consider the ingredients of the toothpaste which you use for toddlers.

Fluoride is helpful for prevent cavities and decays. That is why it is advisable to use toothpaste and oral wash which contains fluoride. However, it is not a good thing to swallow fluoride. If your toddler doesn’t really know how to spit, then it is better to give him toothpaste which doesn’t contain fluoride. That is why no fluoride toothpaste is good for toddlers. However, most toothpaste includes fluoride. Usually dentists recommend using pea size amount of toothpaste when you brush your toddler’s teeth and this will reduce the harm of swallowing more portion of toothpaste with fluoride and other minerals.

However, isn’t it a good idea to brush teeth of toddlers with non-fluoride toothpaste? When I reached a doctor with our toddler, his advice was to use non fluoride toothpaste as he still doesn’t spit and instead he likes swallowing toothpaste.

After some search, finally I found toothpaste for toddlers and kids which don’t contain fluoride. However it contains Xylitol which is also helpful for reducing the risk of tooth decay and cavity.

GreenPeach, Kids Strawberry Magic Toothpaste review

How to Find the Best Toothpaste for Toddlers and Kids?

Actually I really like my finding of this GreenPeach, Kids Strawberry Magic Toothpaste. It comes with necessary ingredient and it doesn’t include risky ingredients for kids. Specially for young kids who are just over 2 years old.

This GreenPeach, Kids Strawberry Magic Toothpaste is a product of GreenPeach Products, LLC which is a family business.

Below are the special features of ingredients of this Kids Strawberry Magic Toothpaste.

It includes Xylitol which is helpful for reducing the risk of tooth decay and cavity

It is No Fluoride toothpaste

Natural product.

No SLS Or any of its Derivatives. (sodium lauryl sulfate free toothpaste for kids)

No Harsh Chemicals or No Preservatives

No Gluten or No Artificial Colors or Flavors

No Saccharin

No Paraben

Above list of ingredients and features attracted me and I decided to buy it for our son. As this toothpaste seems good for kids, I finally decided to spend time writing this review introducing this product.

Our experience with GreenPeach, Kids Strawberry Magic Toothpaste

GreenPeach, Kids Strawberry Magic Toothpaste review

As mentioned above, my first concerns are its ingredients list. If you check around it is really difficult to find toothpaste without SLS.( sodium lauryl sulfate free toothpaste for kids)

Brushing with this toothpaste is lot of fun for our son. He likes the taste. He still doesn’t throw all the toothpaste out when he brush. He still swallows some portion of toothpaste. However, as this is safe toothpaste for swallowing, I really don’t have many worries.

If you like to read more about this toothpaste, check iHerb for more details.

iHerb Coupon Code of $5

If you decide to buy it, then use the code QWN933 and save $5 on your first order. Actually this iHerb Coupon code of QWN933 is more than enough to buy your first toothpaste.

How do you choose toothpaste for your kids?Do you use toothpaste for kids or do you use family toothpaste for them?

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