“How High Is Your Dental IQ” Test, Part 2.

WHEN PULLED ASIDE IN ANY HALLWAY AND ASKED IN A QUIET BUT STERN WHISPER BY POSSIBLY UNKNOWN BLACK TRENCH COAT AND DARK SUNGLASSES-WEARING COLDWAR OPERATIVES: “DO YOU BELIEVE OR DO YOU NOT BELIEVE?,” IT IS BEST THAT YOU ANSWER IN THE AFFIRMATIVE, because you solemnly know that your “I’m so happy now, because I just counted my blessings” smile will always be at the cool forefront of the HSR’s global caries-and-gum-problems-eradicating humanitarian mission!

1)  T or F

Chewing sugarless gum is a great way to help teeth stay healthy.

2)   The American Dental Association recommends that people floss

a)    at least once a day.

b)   after every meal.

c)    once a week.

d)   once a month.

3)    The main cause of dental cavities is

a)    coffee.

b)   not toothbrushing enough.

c)    age.

d)   acids produced by cariogenic bacteria.

4)     Bad breath, also known as fetor oris, and halitosis can be caused by

a)    garlic in the foods we eat.

b)   not flossing and brushing the whole mouth, including the tongue, properly.

c)    diabetes mellitus.

d)   oral sores or infections.

e)    all of the above.

5.    T or F

      

        When used properly, a fluoride rinse can help prevent new caries from forming on enamel surfaces and under existing crowns, veneers, and fillings.

6.   The most common chronic condition among the children of the world is

a)    ear infections.

b)    persistent bullying.

c)     gum disease.

d)    asthma.

e)    tooth decay.

        

Answers:  1-T , 2-a , 3-d , 4-e , 5-T , 6-e.

May you have many… sometimes, do you feel like you just have to have a hot chocolate and a doughnut?...they said that computers would help us use less paper, but the last time I checked, the sales of paper are at all-time highs!...when I put my feet up, I want it to be a while before I put them back down again!…smiles!

Poetry About The Beautiful Smiles Of Lovers, IV

“WITNESSING YET ANOTHER SUN-AND-CLOUD–SOAKED SUNSET OVER THE SEA, WITH MOTHER NATURE PRODUCING AWARD-WINNING CLOUDS AND COLORS AGAIN,” the tongue speaketh from the dusty unrolled scrolls, deep in HSR’s secure cavernous vaults, and says that your “moutheth will be saved” smile, in fact, will be saved!

I wake up from a nap

On our beach

I barely open my eyes

There’s still sunshine,

And the birds that want to be heard,

And the widest blue sea,

To which we eternally owe

Many glances

Of awe and amazement…

I look your way

And try not 

To look at your smile first

Because it always wins…

Instead I look into your eyes

Deeply

I want to see something

Inside

But I don’t even know

If I can understand

What might appear

Or what I might feel

But I look

Without fear

Of what I might find

And I do find

A city of lights

Hiding in your eyes

There’s somebody home

Sitting and looking

Out of a window

At the city of lights

You reach your hand

Out to me without looking

Like you knew I was there

I touch your hand

And I start to sink slowly

Into your body…

When I finish blending into you

I look into a mirror

And see you

But where am I?

I know!

I’ll just blink my eyes

And come back to reality

But after I blink

I’m still in the eye

With the panoramic city lights

I turn to a mirror

And reach

To touch your reflection

In the mirror

Ever so gently

Around your

Cheek

So soft and fluffy

Like a computer cloud…

Your lips emotionally frame

And poetically command 

Your smile…

After soft stroking

Over your cherubic cheeks

Twice

On the mirror

My finger tips

Start to heat up

More and more

Rising to the

Tantilizing temperature

Of passion…

Signals quickly alert the brain

I inhale

And inhale more

I raise my head

And open my eyes…

It’s so sugar

To see you

Again…

TO BE CONTINUED…

May you have many…we are of water and are from water…in the dark, the ocean doesn’t look that big…our universe’s prevailing quantum mechanical laws dictate that we can only be on one beautiful beach at a time…smiles!

Your Smile’s Dark Side Can Hurt You!

BANGING THE HEAVY HONDURAN MAHOGANY EXECUTIVE GAVEL ON THE HUGE AND HIGHLY GLOSSED, PRISTINE, AND POLISHED JAPANESE CHERRY BOARDROOM TABLE, the top management at the HSR, votes and seconds all proposals that improve and maintain your ”life feels so sweet, and my smile feels so sweet, too“ smile!

Yes, there are parts of your smile where the sun doesn’t shine!

And those hidden, hard-to-get-to areas are mainly between the teeth and under the gums.

The teeth and gums usually are so anatomically tight together that photonic light can’t get into and reveal the inside of those dark, hard-and-soft-tissue areas.

And I tend to think that the microbes in our mouths don’t want the toothbrush and floss nosing around in their businesses—because they want to multiply and prosper—just like we humans want to!

Those intimate gingival areas are the innermost, warmest, most opportunistic, and most microbiologically active interfaces of the mouth.

These malicious microbiological enemies do their dirty deeds in the shadows, where no one can see them, and work out their grand schemes to take over and deteriorate our “oralas!”

These are also the same areas where the toothbrush—powered or manual—finds difficulty in penetrating into, and disrupting the continually-growing oral biofilms that take up residence there.

Interdental aids, including floss (waxed or unwaxed) need to be used early and often to remove plaque where the eyes can’t visualize. 

If the American Dental Association’s Healthy People 2010 survey is to be believed, only 50.5% of people (almost 150 million of our current 313 million people) in the United States pick up and use floss daily.

The report does not say what percent of that group uses floss toothpicks vs. floss string. Or if the average person’s flossing technique removes subgingival plaque sufficiently.

That same survey states that 10% of Americans never floss—that’s almost 31 million people, with unbearable breath! Do you know one?

  

Cleaning between the teeth with floss toothpicks can be of value, but they only “stir up” the material found sloshing around between the teeth.

String floss can actually remove between-the-teeth material alba as one pulls the floss out through the side from between the teeth.

Washing the hands well with hot water and soap, before using floss and cleaning the teeth, is highly recommended, so germs won’t find their way into your mouth through dirty fingers! Or just use gloves!

The author believes that before floss became more readily available to the consuming public during the late 19^th Century, everyone had bad breath! It was just a matter of how bad…could one knock a painting off of a wall just by toxically breathing on it?

So, floss first, then brush, then rinse, with an appropriately revitalizing mouthwash!

When you close your mouth, and it becomes dark inside, do the plaque microbes get up and dance on the tongue, making faces, and clowning around until you open your mouth again?

Don’t believe me when I say that dental plaque is the sworn enemy? A convincing post!

May you have many…is darkness always on the other side of light?... are our smiles the same in our parallel universes?...if we were to roll up all of the floss used by everyone in the world in a year, it would be much larger than Pee Wee Herman’s aluminum foil ball!.…smiles!

Reinfecting Your Mouth With Your Toothbrush Everyday! Yuck!

Your “what’s cookin’, goodlookin’” smile, which the HSR takes very seriously and fiduciarily, NEEDS YOU TO, EARLY AND OFTEN, BE UP-FRONT, CLOSE, AND PERSONAL WITH THE TOOTHBRUSH, TOOTHPASTE AND FLOSS OF YOUR CHOICE, SO YOUR GRIN CAN STEADILY REIGN SUPREME!

We’ve all heard the spiel…brush at least twice a daily, floss at least once a day, and use a remineralizing mouthwash, plus semiannual visits to your dentist, just like the big dental authorities recommend.

But, on a microbiological level, the toothbrush can be one of our best dental hygiene-promoting devices, or one our worst source-of-infection enemies, as far as harboring germs and gunk bewtixed and between the all-mighty bristles and around the head of the brush, is concerned.

Take Away Point: to keep your smile and body as healthy as possible, keep your toothbrushes clean between uses.

Yes, the foundation of any serious daily oral hygiene regimen starts with the trusty toothbrush!

So, take care of your toothbrushes, and they will take care of you.

Care for your toothbrush properly by:

-first starting off with a soft-bristled toothbrush. It’s easier on the teeth and gums and reduces your risk of chronically experiencing toothbrushing trauma, which may result in ever-growing abrasive lesions.

-storing your toothbrush in a room other than the bathroom, which is the most contaminated room in the residence, because of the aerosolized human waste products kick into the air from the flushing toilet, and the dampness produced by the hot water from the shower or tub.

-thoroughly removing any visible toothpaste and other material off of the toothbrush bristles with drinkable water after brushing.

-shaking any water off of the toothbrush and let it air dry after each use.

- soaking your toothbrushes in an antimicrobial mouth rinse for a short time, every once in a while, to kill any susceptible germs.

-having a second toothbrush on the ready, so you can use it while the other one finishes thoroughly drying.

-not storing your toothbrush in a tightly-sealed container, because microorganisms can multiply easier in a damp environment.

-changing your toothbrushes for a new one after an illness like a cold, flu, or oral sore.

-keeping several new and unopened toothbrushes at home, for emergency replacement for yourself, and for visitors who may need one.

-replacing your toothbrushes when they shows signs of wear or when they have  been used for three or four months. Plastic-derived bristles do irreversibly degrade over time and with constant use.

-not sharing a toothbrush with another person, even in emergencies, because bacteria that cause cavities, gum disease, and other maladies can possibly spread among the users.

-realizing that newly packaged toothbrushes are not sterile when we first buy and open them.

-changing your toothbrush after dropping it on a floor of questionable cleanliness.

-habitually flossing before brushing. Then remineralizingly rinse afterward.

-using an Ultraviolet light system to disinfect your toothbrush if possible.

-rinsing the mouth with a mouthwash before brushing to reduce the total microbiome and residual food load present in the mouth, so there is less materia alba to debride away in the first place.

-separating your toothbrushes from those of other people so that they do not touch and possibly cross-contaminate each other with debris and germs.

-using a force appropriate to remove plaque from the teeth and gums, but not excessive force. Use a force about equal to the weight of an average orange fruit.

-hygienically treating the brushing heads of battery-powered toothbrushes just as you would the manual type.

Compliment, not complicate!

May you have many…mindfully meditate, using all of the senses, and you will feel all of the various energy flows that radiate by you and saturate into you…visually witness all of the forces of nature, from the serene, quiet, and colorful, to the chaotic, volcanic, and tumultuous…don’t forget to breathe!…smiles!