Reasons skipping the dentist is bad for you
While most don’t love going to the dentist, we try our hardest to make ourselves do it twice a year. But for some reason, we skip the dentist more than any of our other health-related appointments. According to the Centers for Disease Control, 71.4 percent of women over age 18 had their teeth cleaned in 2008. That means more than a quarter of all women are skipping the dentist! Here are exactly what health benefits you are missing out on when you skip a cleaning.(Motivation to set up an appointment?) Here are some non-tooth-related health conditions that may be spotted or prevented by a dentist (or go undiagnosed if you skip an appointment). 1. Heart disease. A new study from researchers at Berkeley found that women who get dental care may reduce their risk of heart disease by one-third. It’s simple – bacteria in the gums, especially bleeding gums can travel to your heart and set up residence. 2. Oral Cancer.Often times oral cancer are asymptomatic. We all have oral cancer risk factors. Smokers (duh) and anyone who consumes more than one alcoholic beverage on a daily basis. New studies are showing HPV from oral sex are very high oral cancer causing risk factors. 3. Nutritional deficiencies. By looking at your tongue and gums, we can tell if you are lacking in certain vitamins and nutrients. One thing they look for is pale tongue, which may indicate an iron deficiency. While its uncommon in our area in Denver, it can be detected. 4. Diabetes. The condition of your teeth and gums may point to diabetes. Uncontrolled gum bleeding after cleanings and other dental observations can lead to a diabetic diagnosis. Just know that the more you skip out on your dentist, the more damage you can do to the rest of your body. More and more studies are finding systemic links coming from the oral cavity. Take care of those teeth and gums and they will take care of you!
Reasons to Have Your Old Metal Fillings Replaced
Reasons To Have Your Old Amalgam Fillings Replaced With Natural-Looking Composite Fillings If your mouth is still full of those old, metallic fillings that were inserted into your teeth years ago, then you may want to consider making the switch to more natural-looking composite fillings. It’s been shown in studies the average life of a metal filling is 8-15 years. If your fillings are older than 15 years, you may want to consider having them updated. Here are some great reasons to upgrade your old amalgam fillings: 1. Hidden Decay A metal filling can have fractures or weak margins allowing bacteria to enter the tooth beside the filling, ultimately causing decay under or around the filling. This cavity can not be detected in the dental x-ray, as the metal filling will mask it. The only way its detectable is to remove it and look under it. 2. Increased Strength Since composite fillings are actually bonded into the matrix of the tooth structure, they can slightly strengthen your teeth and help hold the tooth together. If an old metal filling is large and little natural tooth structure exists, a crown may be the best way to update and strengthen the tooth. 3. Steady Size Silver fillings expand or contract due to temperature change. If your fillings change size whenever you drink hot or cold beverages, then your teeth may develop cracks. Since composite fillings aren’t made of a metal that expands or contracts in such a manner, you will have less potential for tooth damage. 4. Less Invasive If you are terrified at the thought of somebody drilling holes in your teeth, then you should definitely choose natural-looking composite fillings over amalgam fillings. Although the removal of some of your tooth is necessary because of the cavity, much less of the tooth will need to be removed, which means more conservative drilling is involved. Composite fillings don’t need the same depth, thickness and mechanical retention to be stable, unlike metal fillings. 5. Natural Appearance For most people, this is the biggest benefit of composite fillings. Instead of having a mouthful of silver fillings, your teeth will look all-natural, and after a while, you probably won’t even remember which teeth have fillings! 6. Metallic Taste Some get a metallic taste in their mouths from having metal fillings. By getting rid of them, we can eliminate this metallic taste which can allow foods to taste better. Micro metal wear and fatigue occur during chewing. 7. Potential Health risk While the FDA and the ADA do not claim metal fillings pose health risk, there are studies out there that show different conclusions. While I am not legally able to say metal fillings pose a health risk, I do feel there has to be some small merit in these studies. I let people make their own decisions about this subject, and don’t recommend people to remove metal fillings based on this reason alone. Have a great day.
Taste of My Own Medicine
Today, I went to the dentist to update my fillings. I need to admit, I had a horrible love with candy during my teen years, which led to having many fillings completed in my adolescent years. (Being in the dental office so much interested me in becoming one – so its not all bad!) What got me was braces, braces and candy don’t mix. You can’t floss very easily with braces, so I decided brushing would be enough. In college, some of these metal fillings had cracked and needed to be replaced. So in college, I had another round of metal fillings. After college and into dental school, I became and still am, a dental mutt. I had a filling or two done in dental school by other students and teachers. When I graduated from dental school, I had several other dentists I worked with do fillings on me. Two years ago I had a small laser gum surgery at a laser course as a demonstration! So, in my goal book this year, I wrote down to get my routine dental work updated. So today, I went to a dentist I met in a conference in Scottsdale, AZ, who practices in Lafayette, CO. His name is Dr. Greg Keene of Keene Smiles. Last night (the night before the appointment, I was nervous. I thought about shots, drills, feeling the pain, etc. This morning on the drive to the appointment, I was also nervous. I had to tell myself everything would be ok! However, I was going to a new dentist I have never gone to before, trust is huge, other than knowing Dr. Keene at dental courses, I did not know what he was like as a dentist. This morning he replaced 8 metal fillings on my upper right and lower right side. I replaced them with composite and porcelain onlays. My teeth were not bothering me, I just knew that it had been over 13 years since those fillings were placed. I know that fillings can leak and decay can set up under them and go undetected, even with dental x-rays. I was right, some of my fillings, had decay under them. I have had excellent hygiene, a fairly good diet, and received professional cleanings every 6-8 months the last 10 years of my life too! So, today, I felt the needles, drill sounds and vibrations, was opened for long periods of time, numb lip, bad tastes, etc. Was the work totally comfortable? No, but it wasn’t bad at all. Dr. Keene did a great job! I am so proud of myself today that I took care of this and know my teeth are in much better shape. I have one more round on the left side and my teeth and fillings will be up to date. I now have a thorough understanding and appreciation of the drilling noises, vibrations, needles, taste, numbing feel, etc. During the appointment, I thought about all my future patients and what I can do to make it more comfortable for you all. I want to give a big thanks to Dr. Greg Keene of Keene Smiles in Lafayette, CO for all the work he did on me today. In conclusion, I wanted to share with you, that today – I received a dose of my own medicine.
Top 11 Reasons Cerec is Better..
(For those of you who don’t know what a Cerec Machine is….please see our webpage over here here) This past weekend, I attended the Cerec 3rd Annual Symposium, in Scottsdale, AZ at the Scottsdale Center for Dentistry, a premier leader in Cerec Education. Many Topics were covered over the weekend and we even met the software designers from Germany. They presented us the new Cerec software coming out next month, version 4.0, which is one of the best software improvements of Cerec over their 25+ year history. We heard from independent dental material researchers,dental lab technicians, and top clinicians. I took home many things from this meeting, but mainly the confidence that Cerec is the best way of making dental restorations. Here are reasons why Cerec is better than traditional dentistry (presented to us again by top researchers and lap technicians in the world). 1) No Temporaries / One Visit – Temporary restorations can break, fall off, or not last during the 2 weeks needed to fabricate a crown at a lab. Teeth can be sensitive, micro-shift and drift, etc. that can allow the crown from the lab not to fit well or damage to the unprotected tooth. 2) No lab remakes – A lab presenter from a major dental lab stated on average crowns remakes range from 6-10% of the time. This means a crown could take up to 3 maybe even 4 visits! 3) Machine Made Materials – Traditionally porcelain is stacked from a powder liquid technique allowing for weak micro space in the porcelain. Regulated, precise, machine made porcelain is precise and uniform, allowing for a consistent, strong and predictable material. 4) Accurate Impressions – Digital scans are shown to be up to 20-40% more accurate than traditional impression material. Traditionally, a impression is made, sent to the lab and poured up in stone. There are about 20-40 inconsistencies / distortions that can occur in this traditional step. Materials can shrink, expand, get to hot or to cold during shipping, etc. This more accurate scan leads to a more accurate fit and seal with the tooth. 5) Better Bonded Strength- Traditionally, dental crowns are cemented. Cerec crowns are bonded to the tooth vs cemented, using stronger, high sealing, long lasting bonded materials. 6) Every step can be controlled by the dentist – From Start to Finish, the whole CEREC procedure is controlled by the dentist. You can tweek everything about the crown such as bite, tooth contacts, anatomy, width, etc. 7) You can copy– With Cerec, existing Teeth can be copied. This means we can let you keep the exact shape you are used to. This cannot be done with a dental lab. We scan, prepare tooth, copy the scan onto the prepared tooth and give you exactly what you were used to. 8) No 2nd Numbing – many times you need to get numb again to take the temporary off. Not a concern with Cerec single visit porcelain dentistry. 9) In office custom staining and glazing – Traditionally if the crown color we got back from the lab isn’t correct, we had to send it back or you had to go to the dental lab. With Cerec, we can re-stain and glaze the custom color right here in the office. 10) Crown is saved – If you happen to break or fracture a crown make with Cerec, we have the crown stored in the computer. We hit mill and make you a new crown instantly. 11) Environmentally friendly – Instead of delivery trucks to send the case to the lab, we can now email the precise scan to a lab, and the lab can fabricate the crown. You also don’t have to come here twice, so that also saves gas. No need for impression materials, stone, temporaries to go into landfills. Have a great Day
85% don't make it!
Wisdom teeth, or third molars, are the last teeth to erupt in your mouth and are the teeth least needed for good oral health. Most people have four wisdom teeth that usually erupt through the gums in their late teens or early twenties. Sometimes wisdom teeth remain trapped in the jawbone under the gums because there is insufficient room for them to erupt. Wisdom teeth can cause gum disease, crowding or other damage to adjacent teeth, decay (due to the inability of your toothbrush to keep the area clean), and bone destroying cysts. Pain and swelling are the most common symptoms of problem wisdom teeth. Whether you have obvious symptoms or not, it is important to diagnose existing or potential problems caused by your wisdom teeth. Ultimately, at one time or another, its been shown that 85% of all wisdom teeth are removed due to crowding, gum disease and cavities. If they are in, and there is room for them, these usually go on to develop large cavities, as cleaning them is challenging. Waiting to have them removed after your 30’s can go on to become more challenging with longer healing times. We urge you to do this in your teens and 20’s. Removal is the wisest decision for your health and well-being. We can removed them for you, before they cause problems! Make your appointment today! This video can explain it.
Cigarette Warning Labels
Cigarette Health Warnings Beginning September 2012, FDA will require larger, more prominent cigarette health warnings on all cigarette packaging and advertisements in the United States. These warnings mark the first change in cigarette warnings in more than 25 years and are a significant advancement in communicating the dangers of smoking. Effects of smoking on your teeth is one of the warnings. Click here to read more and see all the warnings…
Attitude is Everything
About 4 years ago, I went through a very bad business situation while working for another dentist/dental practice. This led me to having a negative attitude and outlook. The last few years of my life, I have been mentored, coached, counseled and have read many books about attitude. What exactly is attitude and why write a blog about it on your website about dentistry? https://youtu.be/KLn6OOicCz0 Attitude is a noun that is defined as: 1. a manner, disposition, feeling, position, etc., with regard to a person or thing; tendency or orientation, especially of the mind: a negative attitude; group attitudes. 2. position or posture of the body appropriate to or expressive of an action, emotion, etc.: a threatening attitude; a relaxed attitude. Now that we know what attitude’s definition is, lets look at my definition. To me, attitude is a mindset, that is naturally developed over time, through experience and learning. It comes in two forms, positive and negative. Positive attitude is a mindset, where things, situations, etc. are going to be okay to good. A negative attitude is a mindset where its believed things are going to go wrong or not work out for the best. Again, these mindsets can come from experiences over time, which develop into beliefs which effect attitude. So, what does this have to do with dentistry? Everything! Lets look at a positive patient attitude verses a negative one: Positive attitude when going to the dentist: Everything is going to go great, It’s not going to hurt, I am glad I am taking care of this and myself, I am in good hands, This is a good investment, etc. Since learning about attitude and how it works, I constantly work on a positive attitude. A positive attitude attracts others with positive attitudes, allowing for successful situations. Negative attitude when going to the dentist: Its going to hurt, Why am I here? This sucks, I could be doing better things with my time and money)It works the same way for patients. When I get in the dental chair, I need a dentist with a positive attitude. This helps put me at ease, knowing two positive attitudes are coming together. I know two is definitely better than one! I see this first hand, patients come in with positive attitudes, it rubs off on the office, so our attitude gets better, which leads to a great visit. I truly feel that positive attitudes lead us down a great path in life. People want and need to be around other positive energy. Is it always easy to have a positive attitude? No, our mind wants to go negative very quickly. I work on my attitude daily, and if my attitude is not where it needs to be, I tell people to let me know about it. My staff, wife, friends all are quick to help make me aware of my current attitude. My 9 month year old daughter is the best detector of my attitude each day. Here are some books that I have read on attitude: Attitude is Everything: by Keith D. HarrellAttitude 101: What Every Leader Needs to Know by John C. MaxwellThe Winning Attitude Your Key To Personal Success by John C. MaxwellLittle Gold Book of YES! Attitude: How to Find, Build and Keep a YES! Attitude for a Lifetime of SUCCESS by Jeffrey H. Gitomer There are many great books out there on attitude. They all stress what this blog does. Have a great day.
Oral B ProfessionalCare SmartSeries 5000 Kit Now Avaliable!
We are now selling Oral B’s best electric toothbrush. Oral-B’s most technologically advanced toothbrush, ProfessionalCare SmartSeries 5000 with SmartGuide provides Oral-B’s most advanced cleaning technology for ultimate plaque removal and also features a wireless SmartGuide. Separate, wireless SmartGuide helps maximize brushing performance Deep Clean mode removes up to 99.7% of plaque from hard-to-reach areas* Pressure sensor stops pulsations when brushing too hard Gentle on teeth and gums Improves gum health better than Sonicare FlexCare Offers outstanding whitening and polishing in 3 weeks** 5 modes: Daily Clean, Sensitive, Whitening, Massage, Deep Clean Oral-B is the #1 dentist-recommended toothbrush brand worldwide Also includes Crest Bag, Toothpaste, Rinse and Floss We are selling these for $125 and it comes with a $15 mail in rebate so your price is $110 total. Compare this to 159.99 at Target.com. We feel this is a great deal and toothbrush. Give your mouth the clean it deserves!
Do you feel metal fillings are safe?
Over the last 10-15 years, major controversy has been associated with metal (mercury) fillings. It has been banned in 5 countries within the last 10 years. The FDA has cleared the fillings as safe with a study completed in 2008. However, in 2011 the FDA plans on reopening an investigation on metals fillings safeness. A few things come into play: Most dental insurance companies only pay for metal fillings. The ADA and the insurance companies refuse to say metal fillings have any health risks. Due to the controversy, I have decided not to do metal fillings at Ascent Dental. I also leave the decision strictly up to the patient if they want to update their metal fillings or not. After all its YOUR mouth / body, not mine. If I see a cracked or broken down metal filling, I will suggest replacing it. My gut feeling – Sometime in my career, they will be banned… I am on the fence and see both sides of the argument.
To know or not…
Today I had to go to the Dermatologist to get some bumps on my thighs that had developed over the last few years The Dermatologist thought they were lipomas (a non cancerous tumor that is made up of fat) It was optional to get them removed, they were not hurting, but I didn’t want to take any chances. (In my business, just because it doesn’t hurt doesn’t mean nothing’s wrong, so I took the same philosophy in this situation ) It had taken me 8 months to get in and get this done. It was mainly fear that held me from not going in for so long. So, I can understand why people take their time and don’t go into the dentist right away. So, today I was on the end of the needle, scalpel, stitches, etc. I have to admit, I can give shots with no problem, but when it comes to taking them, I am terrible at it. Needless to say, the procedure went well and was way less than my mind had conceived with worry. When getting stuck (the only part of it I felt), I was glad to know when it was coming. I am not sure how all people feel about this. Some people seem to want to know, some don’t. I myself like to know, so in that split second, my mind can prepare my body to feel something. Let me know what you like. See you in the chair.
What do you look for in a dentist /dental office?
I am from a smaller oilfield/cotton town in west Texas (Big Spring, TX). At age 22, moving to San Antonio, TX from Lubbuck, TX, for dental school was a shock to me. I always thought city folks were “out to get me and take my money”. Now, I am smack dab in the middle of Denver, a large city, which I have learned to love. I have poured everything (my life) into my office to make it the best experience for my patients. I try to think of any and every way to make patients visit to the dentist as comfortable as possible. I go to bed, thinking about my patients comfort and ways I can make it better and ways I can Be better.I have had a few complaints from patients from small towns, that I am out to get them. HA! Interesting? How did I end up on the other side of the fence? I am just the same small town guy who wants to have a close knit group of folks I take care of. I want people to view me as their dentist and appreciate the relationship. I love being a part of peoples lives and viewed as being a friend. A few generalities, I have learned about practicing in the city: Lots of price shoppers looking for the best “deal”, people come and people go (usually back to their small town), people are in a hurry and don’t take time to relax, people are more tech savoy and know their research, people have to find the answer from other sources, there are LOTS of other things out there to spend money on. With that being said, I do have wonderful patients and look to build and grow with more! So…My question is….what do you look for in a dentist? Everyone is different and has different needs…. See you in the chair.