Custom Made Mouthguards for Facial Protection Month

It’s Facial Protection Month and that means custom-made mouthguards for the whole family. Spring has sprung and if you and your family love to spend time in the great outdoors playing sports, it’s time to call Gentle Touch Family Dental for custom-made mouthguards.

According to the Academy for Sport Dentistry, everyone who plays recreational sports should be fitted with a mouth protector. Even if you are at the park with your kids, a mouthguard is a great idea, especially if you want to prevent a trip to the ER because of an unfortunate accident on the monkey bars. In a study done from 2001 to 2008 it was discovered that the five most common injuries in children were: 

1. Basketball
2. Football
3. Bicycling
4. Playgrounds
5. Soccer 

The American Dental Association estimates that about 12 millions kids, teens, and young adults were under a doctor’s care or landed in the hospital because of a sports related injury. That resulted in 20 million school days lost and about $33 billion in emergency healthcare costs. However, according to Gentle Touch Family Dentistry, some of the injuries could have been prevented with a custom fitted mouth protector.

Although there are three types of mouth protectors available, there are some things to consider.

Stock-Stock mouthguards are made to fit everyone, and because they are not custom made can be bulky and uncomfortable making it tough to talk and even breathe. You can find stock mouthguards at pharmacy or sports store.

Boil and Bite-These types of mouth protectors are available from your local sports store or over the counter at your local pharmacy. Before use, you heat it up and place in your both to fit your teeth.

Custom Made Mouthguards-The best of the bunch, these types of mouthguards are made by Gentle Touch Family Dentistry and will fit your teeth perfectly. Dr. Ahmed will take an impression or mold to make your new mouth protector that is comfortable and easy to wear.

Everyone who participates in a sport whether it is surfing, water polo, tennis or racquetball should consider a custom made mouth guard. Call or click now and schedule an appointment with Gentle Touch Family Dental for the whole family.

Custom made mouthguards really can prevent an unexpected trip to the emergency room. Call or click now and participate in Facial Protection Month. 

Professional Tooth Whitening Not Over the Counter

Tooth whitening is the most popular cosmetic dental treatment on the planet, but it can also be the most abused.

According to Gentle Touch Family Dentistry, tooth whitening can lighten your teeth, but you need to be careful if you are using over the counter products.

Gentle Touch Family Dentistry explains that those pastes, gels, strips and mouth rinses that you buy at your local pharmacy do not work as well as professional tooth whitening making it easy for people to use too much or too often. There are horror stories out there including transparent, sensitive, and even blue teeth.

Professional tooth whitening uses strong whitening agents that are prescribed by your dentist. Used along with custom-made bleaching trays, your teeth can be lightened from six to 10 shades.

Unlike over the counter teeth bleaching trays, Gentle Touch Family Dentistry custom makes its whitening trays to fit your teeth. Unfortunately, the over the counter trays are a one size fits all, which could have dire consequences to your teeth and gums.

Because over the counter trays are not made to fit your teeth, you could have leakage causing gum and tooth pain. With professional tooth whitening trays from Gentle Touch Family Dentistry, you can be assured that the whole process will be quicker and easier than those over the counter bleaching products will.

When you schedule an appointment for tooth whitening with Gentle Touch Family Dentistry, your teeth and gums will be checked to make sure that you are a good candidate for professional tooth whitening. If you are given the all clear, your dentist will take a mold of your teeth before sending it off to a dental lab.

Once your trays are ready, your dentist will give you a prescription tooth whitening gel that you will use for 30 to 60 minutes once or twice a day depending on your Gentle Touches instructions. In just a few weeks, you will have a beautiful new smile that you will be proud to show off.

If you would like more information regarding tooth whitening, or any other cosmetic or restorative dental procedure, call orclick and schedule an appointment with Gentle Touch Family Dentistry today.  

A New Smile that Will Turn Heads

If you are looking for a solution to your not so attractive smile, call or click and schedule an appointment with your dentist who can determine what cosmetic dentistry solutions would be best for your particular needs.

Web MD explains that Cosmetic Dentistry has certainly changed over the years with innovative technologies that can give you a celebrity smile in just one or two dental appointments.

Some of the available cosmetic dentistry techniques include porcelain veneers, which could take two or three appointments, fixed dental bridges, which may require two dental visits, inlays and on lays, tooth whitening, tooth colored fillings and dental bonding, which could be completed in a single dental appointment. Another new dental procedure is called Invisalign. Invisalign is the clear alternative to conventional braces and can straighten teeth in as little as 6 to 18 months.

When you schedule a no obligation cosmetic dentistry appointment, your dentist will make sure that your teeth and gums are healthy before proceeding with any dental treatment. If you are given the go ahead the two of you will discuss what you do or don’t like about your teeth, a time line and a budget.

In some cases, all you may need is tooth whitening. Unlike those over the counter products from your local pharmacy, professional tooth whitening will give you better results in less time as the tooth whitening gels are much stronger than those that are available from the pharmacy.

There are two types of professional two whitening procedures available. Chair side or custom made bleaching trays that you take home.

Chair side tooth whitening can lighten your teeth up to 12 shades in less than an hour while custom-made tooth whitening trays will give you results in about two to four weeks. Whichever tooth whitening procedure you decide on, you will notice better results that you would from over the counter tooth whitening gels, pastes, strips, and rinses.

If you would like a new smile that turns heads, call and schedule a no obligation cosmetic dentistry consultation withGentle Touch Family Dental today.

Foods that Can Help Sweeten Your Breath

Those raw onions may have been delicious piled high on that burger you had for lunch, but they certainly won’t do any favors for your breath. Most people have no idea that certain foods can mask what you eat, just keep in mind that garlic and onions are the most common instigators when it comes to halitosis or bad breath because they can stay in your system. Your dentist explains that garlic and onions contain oils that are carried from your bloodstream into your lungs giving everyone a sample of what you ate every time you exhale.

However, all is not lost as there are some foods you can eat that will give you an hour or two of relief until you are able to attack the bacteria in your mouth that is producing those foul odors.

According to your dentist, parsley is one of the best ways to treat bad breath and could be the reason that restaurants include a sprig of the herb on your plate. Cinnamon, spearmint, and peppermint are also good for halitosis thanks to the oils. Other herbs that work for bad breath include rosemary, eucalyptus, cardamom, cilantro, and coriander.

Skip the coffee and opt for a cup of green tea as it contains powerful antioxidants including catechin that can help ward off odor causing bacteria.

Recent studies show that the live active cultures contained in yogurt could help with that lingering odor from the garlic prawns that you had for lunch. Yogurt contains good bacteria that can overpower the foul smell caused by bad bacteria.

Pears and apples help saliva production. Saliva is essential when it comes to helping rebalance the ecology in your mouth. Other fruits that can help keep your bacteria in check include berries, melons, and oranges. Fruits that are loaded with Vitamin C not only help rid your mouth of bad bacteria, but can also fight against gum disease.

Carrots, cucumbers, and saliva encourage saliva production helping rid your mouth of odor causing bacteria.

Nuts and other almonds work like vegetables and fruit. According to your dentist, these tiny little toothbrushes help remove bacteria.

Other ways to prevent bad breath include drinking water and chewing sugarless gum. Water rinses your mouth while the gum promotes saliva production.

Of course, food is only a temporary fix. If you are constantly dealing with bad breath, it could have something to do with your oral health. Remember to brush twice and floss once each day, brush your tongue and use a fluoride mouthwash that is recommended by the American Dental Association, and don’t forget regularly scheduled checkups with your dentist.

A Healthier Smile in 2015

Another year has passed and if you are planning to live a healthier lifestyle, better oral health should be on your New Year’s resolution list. Healthy teeth and gums are essential, as your mouth truly is the gateway to the rest of your body.

Web MD explains that poor oral hygiene can cause all kinds of issues with your body. Recent research has linked gum disease with heart problems, diabetes, and even autoimmune disease. In fact, some scientists believe that Alzheimer’s could be related to poor oral health. Brushing, flossing, regular trips to your dentist and a healthy diet are all part of a good oral hygiene routine. 

Of course, if you have been given a clean bill of health from your dentist, but are still unhappy with your smile, ask your dentist about cosmetic dentistry.

Dental veneers, dental implants, tooth colored fillings, bridges, crowns and tooth bleaching are just some of the procedures that your dentist may recommend if you have chips or cracks, or simply want to improve your smile and fill in that gap between your front teeth. Cosmetic dentistry can even lengthen or shorten your teeth. If your teeth are crooked or stained your dentist can help with cosmetic procedures that will make you grin from ear to ear. You can even have your teeth straightened without having to resort to uncomfortable metal brackets and wires with Invisalign. 

Bonding is the affordable alternative to porcelain veneers and can fix stained teeth that cannot be helped with ordinary tooth bleaching. Dental bonding can also fix chips and cracks and can be used to fill gaps and replace silver amalgam fillings. Dental bonding is especially useful for fillings in and behind your front teeth.

If your dentist has determined that you are a good candidate for bonding, the simple and cost effective procedure can be done in as little as one dental appointment. Using a special tooth-colored composite material that is applied and shaped before being cured, smoothed and polished; dental bonding can even be used to protect exposed roots that are sensitive.

This year do something for your mind, body, and spirit and schedule an appointment with your dentist for cosmetic dentistry. A healthy smile really can improve your entire outlook on life. Call now.