Your Newly Whitened Teeth Are Sensitive!... Now What?

So you paid good money to have your smile whitened and spiffed up, but now you're temperature sensitive when you eat or drink hot or cold items. That's the major downside to this otherwise beautifying procedure.

Some people may have so much sensitivity problems after whitening that they wished they didn't do it in the first place. Remember that whitening agents contain potentially irritating...bleach! These bleaching formulas actually go through the enamel and to the surface of the underlying dentin. There are small tubes in dentin that are normally blocked at the outer ends by minerals. Nerves endings from the dental pulp extend through the length of those tubules. Bleaching agents can remove the minerals which normally block and protect the nerve endings. Unprotected nerve endings are vulnerable to fluid movements in them, and these movements can set off pain receptors there. So the dentinal tubule ends need to be blocked or plugged again by adding minerals through the process of remineralization.

The sensitivity you may now be experiencing may only be temporary- one or two days or more, if it just started with the whitening treatments. If you are using an at-home bleaching kit and feel new sensitivity, use it less often, like every other day or so, to let the mouth heal and remineralize between applications. You may want to cut down on the time that the bleach is on your teeth, too. Overuse of whitening products (the “if some is good, more is better" type of thinking) is definitely not advised and may be the cause of the problems. If your sensitivity issues persist, you may want to take some mild pain medication until you can see your dentist. Oragel or UlraEZ desensitizing gels can give temporary relief from dental inflammatory pain but should not be overused. Fluoride varnish may be applied to the teeth to help.

There are things that you can do at home to alleviate the soreness of the teeth. A fluoride-containing rinse and toothpaste can be of great value. They can deliver a remineralizing punch to the teeth and lessen the irritation with twice-daily use. Regular use of store-bought sensitivity toothpaste that contains potassium nitrate or strontium chloride along with sodium fluoride should do the trick, too, but it may take some weeks for the relief to kick in. You may want to do things like drink cold or hot liquids through a straw to keep it off of the sensitive teeth.

Check with your dentist about the new Kor Whitening system, which is a leading-edge whitening product that maintains its superior bleaching potency by requiring constant refrigeration until use, and the product line employs superior desensitizing agents that don't interfere with whitening results.  

May you have many…smooth sailing, can’t touch this, sensitivity-free… smiles!

Watch Out! You Just Might Have Bad Breath Right Now If...

Now that you are paying attention, let's quickly get down to the causes of that embarrassing condition that can throw a wrench into your up-close, personal, and professional relationships. Sometimes we don't even know we might have bad breath (acclimation) unless it's strong enough to be self-noticeable. Also known as halitosis, the Dragon, oral BO, morning mouth, and stomatodysodia (to name a few), this dental malady shows itself when one exhales air that carries an offending smell. The fight against bad breath is a daily, life-long battle, and oral-hygiene companies make billions of dollars from consumers who want better breath.

Here's a way to check your self, right now!: close the lips and suck in the lips and cheeks tight against the teeth. Do you taste anything? And if you do, does that taste have a smell? Status check!

The American Dental Association says that half the population of the United States has halitosis at one time or another. And that half of that 50% group has chronic halitosis. So what can we do to eliminate the embarrassment of breathing out foul odors and risking our personal and professional relationships?

Well, by flossing, brushing, and rinsing (in that order) more, soon after eating preferably, you can minimize the effect of the residual smell of food you just ate on the breath. At least keep a toothbrush and toothpaste with you at work or at school to touch up. Add another dose of toothpaste halfway into your brushing session to suds things up well. Decomposing food hiding out between the teeth and under the gums can contribute to bad breath and give the bacteria there a lot to munch on. Experiments have shown that a major source of fetor oris (bad breath) is the sulfur-compounds-producing bacteria found on the dorsum or back of the tongue. VSCs or volitile sulfur compounds (which smell like rotten eggs) like hydrogen sulfide, allyl methyl sulfide, and dimethyl sulfide are produced by bacteria there. That area offers the bacteria there a warm, moist environment in which to grow and thrive. This area is covered by a hard-to-remove, thick mucous coating or biolfilm. Some of the food you eat gets into the biofilm and into the crevices of the tongue and provides nourishment to those microorganisms. The best way to reduce the bacteria on the tongue (which may make the tongue look like it has a white coating) is to clean the tongue thoroughly with a toothbrush or tongue scraper until radiates a clean, healthy near-pink color. Several dozen bacteria in the mouth out of more than 600 species found in the average mouth are thought to potentially cause the "Gas Face."

If you have cavities or gum problems (gingivitis, periodontitis), see your dentist (whom you should be seeing every six months anyway) and get treated. Some strong foods like garlic and onions are absorbed into the bloodstream and pass through the lungs, where the food gases are expelled through the breath until the body cleans it totally away in about 48 hours or less.

Even though the inner workings of the mouth cause of 90% of “ozostomia” occurrences, a large number of medical conditions in the body away from the mouth can cause "altered breath." They include, but are not limited to, acid reflex, diabetes, throat infections, tonsillitis (tonsilloliths), sinusitis, lung infections, bronchitis, gastritis, some cancers, liver and kidney problems, and foreign objects in the nose. Some medications can affect the breath, too, like antihistamines. Long-time smokers in many cases have gum disease and other problems that can cause oral odors. Alcohol consumption reflects back in the breath and may lessen one's motivational urgency to practice proper oral hygiene. Radiation and chemotherapy can lower salivary gland function, leading to dry mouth and possibly severe caries, along with oral stench.

Partial and full dentures must be regularly cleaned and maintained to prevent them from developing a funky smell. Use a denture cleaning tablet to clean chemically, or, to clean mechanically, use a denture brush, room-temperature water, and a dedicated denture cleaning paste (which can clean a denture better than toothpaste can).

Devices have been developed to check breath quality and to test for the presence of breath-aroma-related bacteria and their enzymes, like the portable halimeter, the hand-held gas chromatograph, the BANA test, and the β-galactosidase test.

Mouthwash, gum, mints, sprays and tongue lozenges can be employed to keep any smell temporarily at bay.

The International Society for Breath Odor Research (ISBOR) was formed in 1996 to research and understand all aspects of breath odors. Organoleptic measurements are made of the type and level of oral odors by trained experts who actually sniff and score the severity of breath levels and assess them on an intensity scale ranging from one to six.

The best approach to prevent almost-flame-throwing bad breath is to stay vigilant with the knowledge that if you don't adequately "touch up" after eating, you're taking your chances!

May you have many...no nose holding, you can get upclose, spring fresh…smiles!

What Your Smile Says About You.

First off, a well-aligned and well-maintained smile reveals that practicing good oral hygiene is a priority to you, along with the daily preparation of the face and rest of the body.

If you like to smile a lot, it could mean that you're basically a happy person, and see life in a positive way. It also adds to your longevity and attractiveness and can influence matters that involve the business, personal and romantic areas of your life. And when you smile, it can lighten the prevailing mood, and others may tend to smile along with you. It's an engaging and  interactive activity! Patients who have just completed esthetic dental work, and love their brand new smiles, feel more free, more confident, and empowered. They want to shine and show off their new social instruments...their grins!

There are degrees of smile , from no smile, with the lips together, to a partial smile, and then  the Duchenne smile, which is more full, spontaneous, and let-it-all-hang-out in character, and is accompanied by wrinkles on the skin below the eyes.

It's great if you have perfect smile. You're blessed!

But there are many medical and dental conditions and situations that prevent many from having great smiles. The lips should have healthy skin on them and should not be chapped, or have pimples or rashes, and should not have blemishes at the commissures. Vitamin deficiencies, especially of the B family of vitamins can evidence themselves by sores or inflammation problems on the gum and tongue surfaces, and at the corners of the mouth where the lips meet. Too much gum around the teeth (gingival hyperplasia) may have several causes. Allergic reactions can temporarily make the face and oral tissues swell up. Facial injuries that leave scars, cleft lip, Bell’s Palsy, and chronic mouth breathing, especially in kids can, can lessen facial esthetics and suboptimize the smile zone.

Piercings of the lips and tongue let others know that you have a rebellious streak, that you are following one the fads of a certain group, or that you want to use the piercings to enhance stimulation during intimate moments. A Monroe or Madonna piercing may let others know about your personal proclivities. It's a little comical that some people want to "show their individualism" by following what others do!

Chipped, missing, or crooked teeth can be repaired, replaced, or straightened, respectively.

Share your nice smile with the world to make it a happier place!

May you have many…cheerfully luminous, transparently true, bursting with hope… smiles!

You Can't Judge A Smile By Its Cover!

Pop and rock stars, smooth crooners, psychologists, and cultural anthropologists all try to explain, analyze, and wax poetic about this beautiful and universal facial feature, but there are so many reasons why people show this most enigmatic of expressions. How and why the emotions express themselves on the face is a white-hot topic in behavioral research, sometimes leaving more questions than answers.  

In 1862, a famous French neurologist Guillaume-Benjamin-Amand Duchenne de Boulogne, MD, who also advanced electro therapy, noted that there are many reasons why a person smiles, and that there are many ways to smile. But he concluded that there was only one type of smile that was definitely associated with positive emotions. He wrote, “The emotion of frank joy is expressed on the face by the combined contraction of the zygomatic major muscle, and the orbicularis oculi. The first obeys the will, but the second is only put into play by the sweet emotions of the soul.” When the zygomatic major muscles contract to lift the corners of the lips for the general smile, and the pars lateralis portion of the orbicularis oculi muscle contracts to squint the eyes, this is called the “Duchenne marker” and is associated with true happiness or enjoyment.

In 1976, Ekman and Friesen , of the UCSF Medical School, established a Facial Action Coding System (FACS) clinical training system that attempted to reliably measure at least 3,000 visible facial actions. Other coding systems have been made to equate facial responses to emotional states.

Two distinctly different neuronal pathways for facial movements have been discovered and validated, one for voluntary, consciously-attempted smile movements starting from the motor cortex of the brain, and another for involuntary, emotion-based smile movements, which involves subcortical nuclei.

But people around the world may smile for different motives, even when they are embarrassed or angry. This observation probably led Landis, et al in 1924 to call the smile "a misleading and meaningless indicator of any particular inner state or emotion."

It's probably true that no one else knows what truly goes on in another person’s mind.Babies who are taught to smile, giggle, and laugh really are excited and happy. And some youngsters and adults smile for sincere, genuine reasons. Others may smile just to be polite, according to the perceived needs of the particular social interaction. So a smile can be an action or reaction, with situation-specific and cultural-specific considerations involved.

People may smile to mask ulterior motives. Look up Scientific America’s Nov 12, 2012 article, “Psychology Uncovers Sex Appeal of Dark Personalities.” How they use techniques involving the friendly and guard-lowering aspects of the smile to draw people in and get them to connect with the “dark triad’ concept will open your eyes!

This brings us back to the message that the singer Jerry Butler so melodically warned, “You can’t see behind smiling faces!”

May you have many …3D printed, not faking me out, conditionally loved... smiles!

Is The Smile The Most Cosmetically Important Part Of The Face?

A recent survey conducted by the ADA, Crest, and Oral B found that the smile outranks eye, hair, and the body as the most attractive physical feature. When one’s smile is in dazzling and orthodontically-great shape, it is said to be the most eye-catching, fascinating, and engaging physical feature to other people. Smiling is the most recognized body language signal in the world. And smiling is an endorphin-releasing action when it's a genuine smile, as opposed to a forced smile. A great-looking smile can make an otherwise homely-looking person appear more confident, even emboldened, by increasing one's face value. But the teeth must be in proper order. The models, moguls, and movie stars that we see in all of the ads on TV, on billboards, and in magazines all show phenomenal sets of “ivories.” And the better one looks, the greater are the chances that he or she can become more successful in life.

Maintaining a brilliant smile takes work: floss, brush, and rinse (in that order!) daily, periodically visit with your dentist, limit sugary-foods snacking, drink plenty of water to stay hydrated, minimize drinking colored beverages and acidic liquids, get adequate sleep, don't smoke, and practice a healthy lifestyle.

A person with visibly decayed, missing, discolored, and unattractive teeth may find people trying to avoid them to a degree, and he or she might have anxiety about it. Some may think that people with unsightly teeth have a financial, mental, medical, and/or a social problem and are to be given as much separation space as possible.

In the animal kingdom, predators, including humans, may dangerously brandish their teeth to get an aggressive, survival-of-the-fittest point across. Teeth are needed to fight, to kill, and to eat. Do teeth-rich sharks look "sexy" to sharks of the opposite gender? I don't know. But human teeth have evolved and our modern dentitions seem to have a more esthetic, golden-proportioned value to other humans when in an orthodontically harmonious form. The muscles involved in smiling include the levator anguli oris, triangularis, obicularis oris, and the zygomaticus.

Martin Charnin said, "You're never fully dressed without a smile!" And Phyllis Diller quipped, "A smile is a curve that sets everything straight!"  I have heard that it takes more muscles to frown than to smile. So, go ahead…relax… and show us your “Duchenne” smile!

May you have many…I’ll take that first, cosmetically-great, center of attention… smiles!

Fun Floss Facts, Part 2.

Mass- produced silk floss, first available in 1882, was made by the Randolf, Massachusetts-based Codman and Shurleft Company.

When used properly, floss breaks up and removes plaque masses so they can't grow, organize, and mature into more efficient, self-perpetuating, microbiological colonies that can cause dental problems like dental caries, gingivitis, and bone loss, and may contribute to systemic problems like diabetes, heart disease, and premature birth because excessive amounts of bacteria can enter into the bloodstream through ulcerated gum tissues.

Wash the hands well, maybe even twice, before flossing to reduce the amount of germs introduced by otherwise dirty fingers. If the hands can't be washed, use gloves to floss hygienically.

A New Orleans dentist, Levi Spear Parmly, is credited with inventing the original form of floss in silk form  in 1815. He was born on August 29, 1790 in Braintree, Vermont.

Some floss manufacturers include sodium fluoride or other antimicrobial ingredients into the coatings of their products for additional therapeutic benefits.

The WaterPik Power Flosser FLA-220 uses a mint-coated tip that is of adequate length, to  place between teeth, and oscillates about 10,000 times per minute to clean and whiten areas between the teeth and gums.

The Bryton Pick, available at brytonpick.com, is a small, super thin, flexible, germ-resistant, stainless steel plate that is vertically placed between the teeth to remove dental plaque. It can be reused for up to thirty days.

Floss threaders are large, soft plastic needles through which floss can be strung and then used to clean under fixed bridges, fixed retainers, and between braces and teeth.

Dessert Essence coats its floss with extracts from the same tree, the Melaleuca alternifolia tree (over 200 species), that some Australian Aborigines used for medicinal purposes. It contains dozens of beneficial compounds, and is the source of tea tree oil, which is revered by many people around the world for its anti-fungal, antibacterial, antiviral, and anti-inflammatory properties.

In 1994, enough floss, almost three million miles of it, was purchased by the public, which is more than enough to encircle the Earth at the equator more than one hundred times!

Your Dentist and Hygienist can help choose the right floss for you. See both of them often.

May you have many…silly string, floss is the boss… smiles

Don't Use These Home Remedies To Whiten Your Teeth!

It's understandable that people want to put their best foot and smile forward to make the best social impression. And in this current economy, saving money while getting a brighter smile may lead some to try folk remedies not done in the dental office. Some people have misplaced motivations and leave the concoctions on the teeth too long and/or use them too often, thinking that more is better. The enamel of the teeth and the soft gum tissues can be harmed with these chemicals. Instead of trying potions you might find or prepare at home, use modern, proven methods from your store or pharmacy, or under the controlled conditions at your dental home, which are evidence-based, safe, and actually work.

I have come across several home remedies, which I feel shouldn't be used, that purport to whiten the teeth:

Baking Soda- As an abrasive, it won't brighten the teeth, but it will remove surface stains, so that the natural whiteness of the teeth will show. With overuse, it may remove too much enamel which is only replaceable with a filling. Add a strong acid like lemon juice, and you will remove your precious enamel at a much faster rate.

Strawberries- Malic acid in strawberries can remove stains from enamel caused by, say, dark wines and dark sodas, but it also removes surface minerals. Some people have a tendency to leave the crushed up strawberry paste on too long. When mixed with baking soda and brushed on the teeth, too much enamel can be removed.

Lemon Juice or Grapefruit Juice- Both contain strong citric acid (lemon pH is about 2, grapefruit pH is about 3) that can decalcify teeth surfaces and make the enamel softer, and prone to loss. They do have beneficial effects inside the body, though. People who suck lemons a lot will destroy their enamel and need dental work.

Apples- From the plant Malus domestica, apples contains mineral-removing malic acid which is present in apples, in foods, and in some teeth whitening products, to dissolve stains.

Sea Salt and Cider Vinegar- Rubbing a paste solution made from these items, which is acidic, will whiten the teeth by removing stains, but removes needed enamel minerals.

The aforementioned substances will not whiten your teeth much at all, only a shade or two, and then, only temporarily. Any additional whiteness that you achieve is the result of stripping the salivary and surface minerals away, leaving a decalcified, bleached look. In this state, the microsurface of the enamel is at its most fragile state. Nature has given us all a certain thickness of enamel to last a lifetime. Don't wear yours away too quickly. Your teeth can stay their whitest by regularly flossing, brushing and rinsing with remineralizing, commercially-available toothpastes and mouth rinses, and seeing your dentist and hygienist at least every six months to use their whitening powers.

                 

May you have many…nonacidified, luminous, enamelly-rich… smiles!

Smile Quotations, Part 2.

It ain't over till the fat lady...smiles!-Ralph Winge, D.D.S.

A smile is a powerful weapon; you can even break ice with it.-Author Unknown

Children smile on the average 400 times a day; Adults: 15 times a day. Ever wonder why?-Author Unknown

The first one to smile...wins!-Ralph Winge, D.D.S.
    

If you whistle while you work, a smile isn’t far behind!-Ralph Winge, D.D.S.

Don't cry for a man who has left you, the next one may fall for your smile.-Mae West

A smile is the universal welcome.-Max Eastman

People who keep stiff upper lips find that it's damn hard to smile.-Judith Guest

Wear a smile and have friends; wear a scowl and have wrinkles.-George Eliot

If a man smiles all the time, he's probably selling something that doesn't work.-George Carlin

People seldom notice old clothes if you wear a big smile.-Lee Mildon

A smile is like tight underwear - it makes your cheeks go up.-Author Unknown

If you're reading this...Congratulations, you're alive. If that's not something to smile about,then I don't know what is.-Chad Sugg

Peace begins with a smile. -Mother Teresa

Thinking a smile all the time will keep your face youthful.-Frank Burgess

Everyone smiles in the same language.-Author Unknown

Courage, not compromise, brings the smile of God's approval.-Thomas S. Monson

May you have many…deep thinking, quotably-cute… smiles!