Healthy Smiles Family Dental

  Sugar negatively impacts your teeth in a big way. We at Healthy Smiles Family Dental in Salem, OR, take pride in educating our patients about the importance of restricting sugary foods and drinks. It would be ideal to cut these out of your diet completely, but we understand that sometimes there’s nothing better than a crisp soda on a hot day. More attention should be paid to, say, how many sugary beverages you drink in a day or week. Is it really adding up? If so, consider restricting your intake for the sake of your teeth.   Sugar easily coats the surface of your teeth and attracts the “bad bacteria,” such as Streptococcus mutans and Streptococcus sobrinus . These destructive bacteria feed on the sugar and disturb the natural pH of your mouth, to the point where the acidity is too much for your teeth. Over time, the enamel on your teeth is broken down little by little. This isn’t ideal since tooth enamel cannot be replaced. Once that natural barrier is gone, it’s gone for good. Ha...

Tooth decay is a common problem, especially among children and older people. Regular brushing and flossing is essential to preventing it, but their are supplementary measures people can take, too. At Healthy Smiles Family Dental in Salem, we offer our patients dental sealants for added protection. Our back teeth, the premolars and molars, are especially vulnerable to decay. Food debris can accumulate in the indentations between their pointy bits, which are called cusps. There, oral bacteria will feed and produce acid, causing demineralization of the enamel. This could lead to the formation of cavities, and if the decay gets bad enough, an infection could spread to the dental pulp. Sealants are invisible plastic shields on the teeth. After a dental cleaning, the patient is given a local anesthetic and the premolars and molars are etched with a mild acid to increase their surface area. The sealant is then painted on in liquid form and hardened with a blue light. By the next day, the pat...

Taking care of your teeth is always important! It’s not something that goes away with age. As you age, your dental needs shift. There are oral health concerns that weren’t present before. Many of these issues stem from aging. Your teeth are bones, and all bones weaken with age. Past the age of sixty, your risk for periodontal (gum) disease, teeth extraction, and tooth decay increase. That’s why it’s important to schedule an appointment with Healthy Smiles Family Dental. Drs. Na Xu and Mark Thomas provide professional and friendly dental care. Learn more at our office in Salem, OR.   You should never take your dental health for granted. Your teeth are a necessary and important part of your life. Keeping them healthy keeps your whole body healthy. Many older patients struggle with brushing. Your Salem dentists have a few pieces of advice. First, purchase an electric toothbrush. These are easier to use while providing thorough brushing. Electric toothbrushes are great for patients who str...

Do you always seem to have tartar and bleeding gums despite your best effort at brushing? It may be time for you to look into getting an electric toothbrush. Healthy Smiles Family Dental treats patients with all kinds of needs. We’re happy to guide our struggling patients toward hygiene products that might improve their oral health. The old model manual toothbrushes are highly effective at preventing tooth decay when they are used correctly. They need to be used twice a day for two minutes at a time, and the patient needs to pay enough attention to cover every tooth surface. Electric toothbrushes are particularly useful for people with physical disabilities or difficulty focusing. They make tens of thousands of brushstrokes per minute, contrasting with the dozens made by manual toothbrushes, and can be used more quickly and with fewer hand motions. Electric toothbrushes could create a risk of overbrushing, but many of them now come with smartphone apps to prevent that. A user would not...

Brushing your teeth is one of the most crucial steps to keeping your oral hygiene in check. The American Dental Association (ADA) recommends that you brush your teeth twice a day. At Healthy Smiles Family Dental, located in Salem, OR, Drs. Na Xu and Mark Thomas want you to have a healthy mouth. That’s why we are sharing some brushing tips and tricks.   First, make sure that your toothbrush is right for you. There are different materials and bristles types. If you have sensitive teeth, buy a toothbrush with softer bristles. Make sure that it can easily fit into all areas of your mouth. As soon as the toothbrush bristles become frayed or worn, replace it. It’s also good to replace your toothbrush every 3-4 months.   When brushing your teeth, follow these steps. First, place your toothbrush at a 45-degree angle. Move the brush back and forth in short strokes across the entire tooth. Make sure to brush the outer, inner, and chewing surfaces of the teeth. For the inside surfaces, tilt the b...

Asthma is a condition with implications for many bodily systems, including dental health. Patients at Salem’s Healthy Smiles Family Dental know that we cooperate with their other care providers to ensure that all their unique needs are being met. If they suffer from asthma, they may need to make some additional lifestyle and hygiene changes to protect themselves from tooth decay. Saliva plays an important role in combatting bacteria that create cavities. It washes away food particles, depriving bacteria of nutrients, and neutralizes the acid produced by their metabolizing process. But people with asthma commonly suffer from dry mouth (also called xerostomia). They may breathe through their mouths because their upper airways are inflamed, or xerostomia may be a side effect of their medication, but they’ll need to drink more liquids, use humidifiers to maintain a less dry environment, and possibly use throat moisturizers. Patients should consult with their asthma specialist before making...

If you had an early-stage dental infection, would you be able to recognize it? We’re committed to preventive care at Healthy Smiles Family Dental in Salem. As part of our effort, we want each of our patients to understand what a white spot lesion signifies and what they need to do if they develop one. As the first sign of tooth decay, white spot lesions are also known as “incipient lesions.” They are spots on the surfaces of teeth that appear unnaturally white and chalky and are usually found near the gum line or the sides of teeth. White spots are caused by enamel having lost minerals, but not enough to form a cavity. The teeth naturally produce a film which sugar and the bacteria that feed on it get trapped in. As bacteria eat, they excrete acid, which erodes the enamel. The more food is available, the more bacteria multiply, and the more acid is produced. It only takes about a month for white spots to develop. Patients should take them as a sign they need to improve their brushing, ...

November is National Diabetes Awareness Month, and at Healthy Smiles Family Dental in Salem, we want our patients to be aware of the link between diabetes and gum disease. Diabetes is a metabolic disorder in which the body does not produce enough insulin, the hormone that breaks down sugars. Lots of bodily systems are put at risk by it, and in the case of gum disease, there appears to be a mutually-reinforcing relationship. One of the effects of diabetes is to thicken blood vessels, limiting the amount of oxygen and nutrients that reach different parts of the body. This makes it harder for people with diabetes to fight off infections, including those of the gum pockets. In people with uncontrolled diabetes, gum infections are much likelier to develop into periodontal disease, putting the patient at risk for tooth loss as their gums and jaw bone tissue recede. There is also evidence that gum infections make it harder for patients’ bodies to regulate blood sugar, setting off a feedback l...

Every February, the American Dental Association declares a National Children’s Dental Health Month. At Healthy Smiles Family Dental in Salem, we’re proud to participate by educating our patients about this year’s theme: the proper use of fluoridated toothpaste. While it is true that baby teeth fall out, taking care of them is still vital to a child’s development and for beginning a lifetime of good health habits. Children with tooth decay commonly have difficulty sleeping, resulting in their being irritable and easily distracted. They also may avoid eating and their speech development may be delayed. Fluoride treatments can help to prevent their teeth from being damaged by the acid produced by oral bacteria, but only regular brushing can prevent bacterial build-up. Fluoridated toothpaste has the advantage of providing additional protection. However, children using it must still thoroughly brush every tooth surface for at least two minutes per session. This will often be the first way i...