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Bad Breath and How to Beat It
Valentine's Day is just around the corner. Are you ready for the big day? Flowers and presents are great, but also don't let bad breath keep you from kissing your Valentine.
Whether you call it bad breath or halitosis, it’s an unpleasant condition that’s cause for embarrassment. Some people with bad breath aren’t even aware there’s a problem. If you’re concerned about bad breath, see your dentist. He or she can help identify the cause and, if it’s due to an oral condition, develop a treatment plan to help eliminate it.
What you eat affects the air you exhale. Certain foods, such as garlic and onions, contribute to objectionable breath odor. Once the food is absorbed into the bloodstream, it is transferred to the lungs, where it is expelled. Brushing, flossing and mouthwash will only mask the odor temporarily. Odors continue until the body eliminates the food. Dieters may develop unpleasant breath from infrequent eating.
If you don't brush and floss daily, particles of food remain in the mouth, collecting bacteria, which can cause bad breath. Food that collects between the teeth, on the tongue and around the gums can rot, leaving an unpleasant odor.
Bad breath can also be caused by dry mouth (xerostomia), which occurs when the flow of saliva decreases. Saliva is necessary to cleanse the mouth and remove particles that may cause odor. Dry mouth may be caused by various medications, salivary gland problems or continuously breathing through the mouth. If you suffer from dry mouth, your dentist may prescribe anartificial saliva, or suggest using sugarless candy and increasing your fluid intake.
Tobacco products cause bad breath. If you use tobacco, ask your dentist for tips on kicking the habit.
Bad breath may be the sign of a medical disorder, such as a local infection in the respiratory tract, chronic sinusitis, postnasal drip, chronic bronchitis, diabetes, gastrointestinal disturbance, liver or kidney ailment. If your dentist determines that your mouth is healthy, you may be referred to your family doctor or a specialist to determine the cause of bad breath.
Maintaining good oral health is essential to reducing bad breath. Schedule regular dental visits for a professional cleaning and checkup. If you think you have constant bad breath, keep a log of the foods you eat and make a list of medications you take. Some medications may play a role in creating mouth odors. Let your dentist know if you've had any surgery or illness since your last appointment.
Brush twice a day with fluoride toothpaste to remove food debris and plaque. Brush your tongue, too. Once a day, use floss or an interdental cleaner to clean between teeth.
Mouthwashes are generally cosmetic and do not have a long-lasting effect on bad breath. If you must constantly use a breath freshener to hide unpleasant mouth odor, see your dentist. If you need extra help in controlling plaque, your dentist may recommend using a special antimicrobial mouth rinse. A fluoride mouth rinse, used along with brushing and flossing, can help prevent tooth decay.
Oral Health and Overall Health
Happy New Year! We hope your holiday season was filled with peace, joy and lot's of laughs. With 2010 here, it's time to remind ourselves of our New Year's resolutions. Most of us promise ourselves to stay healthy, and as part of staying healthy is keeping up with your oral health.
Beyond the normal concerns of cavities and straight teeth, your oral health can have a negative or positive impact on many aspects of your overall physical health. In fact, some of the first signs of a disease can appear in your mouth.
The bacteria that are constantly invading and habituating your mouth can be kept under control when proper brushing and flossing are taking place. But when they are not kept under control, bacteria can infiltrate your body through the blood stream causing or exasperating other conditions in your body.
Such conditions as cardiovascular disease, osteoporosis, respiratory conditions and even AIDS can be affected by poor oral health. Poor dental health can also affect sleeping patterns, development in children, and potentially cause premature births. Were you aware brushing your teeth could be so vital to you outside of your teeth and gums?
If you weren’t already convinced that maintaining your oral health was important, hopefully understanding better the relationship between oral and overall health will help out. Ask us what symptoms you should be aware of and what important dental care steps you can take to protect you and your families’ overall health.
A Confident Smile Will Change Someone’s Day
Give them a smile: a happy, friendly, and genuine smile. Go ahead, flash it; its contagious, it’s infectious, It’s the universal expression of happiness. A simple smile can change someone’s day.
Some people are a little nervous about smiling. They don't think their smile looks good, or they think that smiling makes them look unprofessional or vulnerable. No matter how professional, intelligent, or “together” you think a serious face makes you appear, people almost always respond better to a smile.
We all know of someone we consider to have an "infectious" smile. Infectious smiles always start with confidence. If you're not 100% confident in your smile, we’re here to help.
While our first concern is keeping your teeth and mouth as healthy as possible, we have the tools and the training to make sure you have a smile that gives you confidence and a smile that you’re excited to share with others.
We’re more than happy discuss with you the many options available to help you achieve a smile worth sharing and a smile that will change someone’s day –including your own.
Complete Care Dental's Family is Growing!
We are very excited and proud to have Dr. Daisy Varughese join our practice as our newest dentist. She will be here on Monday mornings, Wednesdays and occasional Saturdays. Her enthusiasm and understanding of patient's priorities is a great fit for our practice. We look forward to having her provide the compassionate care that our patients deserve.
Dr. Dhake will continue providing care on Monday afternoons, Tuesdays, Thursdays, Fridays and occasional Saturdays.
Angelica Alfaro has also recently joined our practice as our newest dental assistant. She loves learning as much as she can about dentistry and meeting new people.
We are thrilled to have them as part of our team. Please stop by or make an appointment to meet our two newest members!
Have you maximized your dental insurance benefits?
It is officially fall and there are less than 90 days until the end of the year. As a reminder if you have dental treatment you have put on hold, now may be a good time to schedule an appointment to maximize your insurance benefits and use any remaining flex account dollars you may have. Our fall and holiday schedule tends to book up pretty quickly, so call us today to make your appointment.
Less than a month until school starts!
We are more than half way through the summer!
Are you ready for the new school year? Make sure you and your family start the new school year with a healthy smile. Call us to make an appointment today!
Opalescence® Treswhite™ Supreme Sometimes, even if we give great care and attention to dental hygiene, our teeth just aren’t as white as we would like. While regular dental check ups and brushing can minimize discoloration, certain layers of our teeth naturally become yellow over time. But most of us feel our most comfortable with a whiter smile. Currently, we have an introductory offer for Treswhite for $89! Come on by or give us a call today to learn more about how to make your smile brighter!
To help in accomplishing the brighter smile, Ultradent recently released a new whitening product that can be used at home. The Opalescence® Treswhite™ Supreme. It really is as simple as wearing a small transparent tray for 30-60 minutes a day for 5 days. But the gel on the inside of the tray can make your mouth a whiter place. It is available in 3 flavors, none of which is named “disgusting dental stuff”, but are peach, melon and mint. The gel even helps protect your teeth in rebuilding enamel and preventing cavities.
As with all dental procedures, there are certain limitations, depending on your case. It should not be used if you are wearing braces and cannot take the place of good old fashioned dental hygenie. But if the look of a whiter smile is what you want, Opalescence® Treswhite™ Supreme is up to the task.
Summer is Around the Corner!
Summer Vacation is Here!
School is out and it's time to bring your child to see us! Don't forget to set up your and your child's appointment for their routine check up and cleaning. Also, make sure to get school examination forms taken care of before it's too late! Call us today. Our scheduled fills up fast during the summer!
Picnic Time!
Summer also means picnics, baseball games, popsicles, lemonade, and ice cream. Make sure you are taking the right measures to take care of your and your family's teeth while enjoying those summer snacks and cold beverages!
Acids found in food and liquids can have a harmful affect on your teeth. Each tooth has a hard protective layer called the enamel. When acids come in contact with the enamel, the acids can make it soft. When this happens repeatedly, your enamel can wear away and can never be restored naturally.
The chance of getting cavities increases for those whose teeth are regularly exposed to food with high acid contents. It is impossible to make a complete list, as acidic foods are found everywhere, but following are some of the more common acidic food and beverages: Beer, Beef, Soft drinks, Coffee, Fish, Lamb, Pasta, White Flour, Table Salt, Pork and White Bread. Even grazing on fruits and vegetables slowly throughout the day can expose your teeth to acid damage.
Bacteria in your mouth, which feeds on sugars, can also create acid. The best way to avoid acid damage is to avoid snacking continuously throughout the day. Rinsing and flossing, and chewing sugar free gum after eating during the day can be helpful. Brushing right after eating acidic foods though, can actually damage the teeth, because the enamel is soft from the acid. Nuts and dairy are also good acid balancing foods.
Whitening Specials!
Do you have a wedding, shower, or graduation party coming up? Treat yourself or someone you love with a whiter smile! Ask us how we can get you a whiter smile for $89!
Smile into Spring!
If you have a child that needs a school exam, please call us today to set up your appointment!
Illinois state law requires children entering Kindergarden, Second (2nd) and Sixth (6th) grades to have proof of a dental exam prior to the going back to school. Many schools already sent the forms home to be completed. Call us today to set up an appointment for their dental exam and form completion.
Prom, Graduation and Summer Weddings are right around the corner!
Have a whiter and brighter smile for those memorable pictures! Do you know someone who is going to prom or graduating soon? Are you standing up in a wedding or getting married? Treat them and yourself to a whiter smile for as low as $89! Call us today and ask us about our whitening options.
Regular Exams Are Important
Because we are committed to preventing dental problems before they happen, we recommend that all of our patients see us at least every six months for a routine cleaning and examination. Dental problems usually start out small but can quickly worsen to become much more serious. These problems are much easier to treat—or better yet avoid—if they are caught early.
Happy Spring From Complete Care Dental
Are you smiling enough?
Smiles are an interesting feature of everyone’s life. Everyone has one, but everyone feels differently about their own. Consider a few interesting facts about smiles:.
• 62 - Number of times a day the average woman smiles.
• 8 - Number of times a day the average man smiles.
• 63% - Percentage of people who say they look best in photos when they are showing their teeth.
• 99.7% - Percentage of adults who say an attractive smile is an important personal asset.
• 74% - Percentage of people who say that an unattractive smile can hurt a person's chances for business or career success.
• 23% - Percentage of people who say they look the best with their mouth closed.
Mark Twain once wrote, "Wrinkles should merely indicate where smiles have been!" The act of smiling is a very uncomplicated and important human activity. It really isn't important that your smile be perfect- but that you feel good about it and you give it away! If your stingy with your smile because it’s something less than what you want it to be, we can help - Smiles are what we do best.
Give us a call and we’ll set up a time to talk about getting you a smile that you can’t just keep to yourself.
Everytime you smile it is an action of love - a gift … ~Mother Teresa
Ask us about our whitening special!
We have introduced a new level of whitening at a very affordable price. Now we have three different options for whitening for as low as $89! Come in to our office for this limited time offer!
We hope you are enjoying the weather as the days get longer and the weather gets warmer. We look forward to seeing you and your family soon!
Happy Spring!
February is National Children's Oral Health Month
February is National Children's Dental Health Month! Make sure your children, cousins, nieces, and nephews are coming in regularly for their checkups and cleanings every 6 months!
This past month, went out into the community and visited three different schools to share some helpful oral health tips, provide toothbrushes, and other goodies. We want to thank the staff, faculty and students of Burroughs Elementary School, Healy Elementary School and UNO Veterans Memorial School for inviting us to their schools to meet with their students and parents.
Below are some quick helpful tips to keep kid's mouths clean and healthy!
- As part of their routine, make sure they brush twice a day for two minutes- once after breakfast and once before they go to bed.
- Start to practice flossing daily with them at an early age also. The best time to floss is before going to bed.
- Avoid juices, sodas, chocolate milk, and other flavored beverages. Each sip you take with these drinks, you are bathing your teeth in sugar- which causes cavities. If you do drink them, have them with a meal and rinse afterwards. Read labels and stay away from drinks that have the follow on their nutrition labels:
* Sugar
* High Fructose Corn Syrup
* Sucrose
* Phosphoric acid
* Citric acid
- Tap water is the best beverage for our teeth, because it has fluoride in it. Fluoride is a vitamin that helps make our teeth stronger.
- After you brush your teeth at night, avoid eating or drinking anything besides water.
Great News!
After 6 months and 25 days later, we can happily say that our front office is DONE! We finally have a brand new brick facade, windows, doors, ceiling, lights, and carpet. We designed the office with fresh new colors and made it feel like home. Feel free to come by and see the new look! Once again, we want to thank you for your support throughout this challenging process. Your concern and support helped us get through this tedious process with a smile!
Stay warm, dry and safe! We hope to see you soon!
Happy New Year From Complete Care Dental
Happy New Year! A new year means new years resolutions and goals to healthier and happier you!
Is Flossing Daily Part of Your New Years Resolution?
Why should flossing daily be part of your new year’s resolution? Because even with proper brushing, the areas between your teeth don’t get completely cleaned. And most cavities start between your teeth! To keep your teeth and gums healthy you must use dental floss to remove the plaque between your teeth at least once a day.
How to use dental floss
First, take about eighteen inches of floss and wind the two ends of it around your middle fingers, leaving about five inches between your hands. Pinch the floss between your thumbs and index fingers and leave about one inch in between to work with. Gently guide the floss between the first two teeth using a side-to-side motion.
Pull the floss tightly in a C shape around the side of one tooth and slide it under the gum line. Clean the surface of the tooth by using and up-and-down motion not the side-to-side motion you used to guide the floss between the teeth. Repeat on the adjacent tooth. Then remove the floss, wind it to an unused s
ection and repeat the process to clean both sides of every tooth.
If you are just beginning to floss for the first time, your gums will probably bleed a little. The bleeding should stop after about a week of regular flossing. If the bleeding continues after a couple of weeks let us know right away. It might indicate problems or it might just be that your technique needs adjusting. We can help either way. Also, if you have trouble getting the floss between your teeth or if it catches or tears, let us know as soon as possible. It could indicate a problem that needs to be corrected.
Give the gift of a whiter smile for Valentine's Day!
Valentine's Day is less than one month away! Give your loved one a whiter smile with an in-office whitening treatment or an home professional whitening kit. Call us to learn more about our whitening specials!
We hope you are staying warm and dry during this cold and snowy winter. We look forward to seeing you and family soon!