Deciduous teeth are the first teeth a child gets often referred to as baby teeth or primary teeth. A child should see a dentist by the time the first deciduous tooth cuts though or no latter then by their first birthday.

After our last post you may be wondering how do you safely store your toothbrush. Here are some tips you may want to practice.

1) Make sure to rinse your toothbrush well after brushing your teeth. Before putting your toothbrush away give it a good rinse with tap water, making sure not to leave any toothpaste or debris in the brush.

2) Put your toothbrush upright, in a cup or a holder, this will allow the water to drain away from the head of the brush. You want the toothbrush to air dry thoroughly. So make sure it has access to good air circulation, and is not suffocating in a small drawer or cabinet when not in use

3) Keep your toothbrush away from other people’s toothbrushes. Even if you are all family members do not let your toothbrush touch another toothbrush. Bacteria on one brush can cross-contaminate another.

4) Avoid keeping your toothbrush too close to the toilet and sink. In tip two we tell you to keep your toothbrush out in the open for it to air dry thoroughly. However you want to make sure it is not too close to the sink. You do not want it to get splashed with dirty or soapy water when family members are washing their hands. Likewise, keep the brush at least four feet away from the toilet. (Remember our prior post about this on 6/29/15) If you have a small bathroom that dose not let you keep this distance store your toothbrush in a different room away from your bathroom

5) Sanitize or Not. Although you can buy toothbrush sanitizers (usually a small counter top device), there is no evidence that these make a difference to your health. They can, however, provide you with a safe zone for storing your brush. Also, there has been no study that shows soaking your brush in an antibacterial mouth rinse makes a difference.

Study confirms that there is transmission of fecal coliforms in communal bathrooms at Quinnipiac University and that toothbrushes can serve as a vector for transmission of potentially pathogenic organisms.

Lauren Aber, MHS (Graduate Student, Quinnipiac University) stated “The main concern is not with the presence of your own fecal matter on your toothbrush, but rather when a toothbrush is contaminated with fecal matter from someone else, which contains bacteria, viruses or parasites that are not part of your normal flora,”

All toothbrushes were collected from participants using communal bathrooms, with an average of 9.4 occupants per bathroom. Regardless of the storage method, at least 60% of the toothbrushes were contamination with fecal coliforms.

There are several potential sources of contamination of one’s toothbrush; toothbrushes stored open in the bathroom are especially vulnerable to contamination with material from the toilet or contamination from other occupants. Sanitization and storage practices of a toothbrush are very important to the potential bacteria present on a toothbrush.

Sensory issues is probably one of the main anxiety triggers at the dentist for individuals with an ASD. The obvious areas of difficulty will be tactile and auditory. Mouths are extremely sensitive places and for a person with an ASD the sensation of a cold instrument entering their mouth could be very painful. In addition, the noise of the drills and cleaning instruments could also be a problem.

Sometimes the taste of the mouth wash or the paste being used will also have an adverse impact.   It is also important to check whether there are any factors in relation to the dentist as an individual that might cause distress; for example, their perfume, mustache, or the color of their clothing.

As a parent you know that your child/children need to maintain good dental and oral health. Yet increasing dental care services make it harder and harder to afford their needed dental care check ups and cleaning’s let alone any other larger dental care needs.

That is why having dental insurance for your family is an important part in keeping your dental family dental care cost low.  Your budget and dental care needs for your family will help you choose which type of dental insurance plan would work best.

Our website offer a broad range of dental insurance plans from PPO’s, Indemnity and HMO dental insurance plans. We also offer dental discount plans for a lower cost alternative.  Review our plan options for your state and if you have any questions please call our member service line at 310-534-3444 as they will be happy to help you with any of our dental plan options.

Malignant tumours of the oral cavity are the sixth leading cause of cancer-related deaths worldwide. Investigators from the Biomedical Research Institute (IBI), in Galicia (Spain), who form part of the BIOCAPS project, have patented a faster, more reliable and less invasive technique for detecting carcinomas in the oral mucosa. This patent has been licensed to the company Irida Ibérica, which is currently developing a portable prototype and will fund further research by the IBI scientists to establish the exact malignancy parameters by way of in vivo trials, in other words using tissues analysed in patients.

Dental sealants are thin plastic coatings that are applied to the grooves on the chewing surfaces of the back teeth to protect them from tooth decay.  Dental sealants are effective in preventing dental caries in the occlusal (chewing) and other pitted and fissured surfaces of the teeth.  Dental sealants were assessed in permanent molars (occlusal and buccal surfaces in lower molars and occlusal and lingual surfaces in upper molars), premolars (occlusal surface), and upper lateral incisors (lingual surface).

Dental sealants are highly effective in preventing dental caries that occur on the surfaces of teeth that have pits and fissures.  Dental sealants are usually applied in a dentist’s office.  Dental sealants last for 4-5 years and can easily be reapplied by your dentist when they do wear off.  Dental sealants represent one of the greatest, but least known advances, of modern dentistry.

Question: Can a baby just have rotten baby teeth?  My friend’s baby is just now cutting his first few baby teeth. His teeth are coming in grayish white in color.  She does not know why this is happening.

If she does take her son to see a dentist will a dentist be able to fixed her son’s teeth?  I would like to be able to get her some helpful information.  Since she is afraid of what the dentist is going to say about her son’s teeth.

Answer: I would advise seeing a dentist. It is possible that baby teeth can be bad from the get go. However, that is just even more of a reason why seeing a dentist now would only be in her son best interests.

Your friend need to stop worrying about what the dentist may say and find out what is wrong with her son teeth. Best case is that her son teeth are just find.

However if he has carries or BBTD then only a dentist will know how to address and fix her son’s teeth.

Question: My daughter is seven and got into an accident were she lost four of her top front teeth.  They are just her baby teeth but I do not like that she has to deal with such a big gap.

Could she get a dental bridge until her adult teeth come in?  Or would that be consider as cosmetic dental services since they are only her baby teeth?  I know my dental insurance plan does not cover for cosmetic.

Answer: Your child may be able to get space maintainers and in most dental insurance plans, they do over coverages for space maintainers. Talk to your child dentist to see what he/she would advise.

Many seniors do not receive needed dental care services do many factors. One such factor is cost.  Seniors that live on a very fixed income may put of their dental care needs thinking it is not that important.    Another reasons can be do to the ability to get to a dental office.  Many seniors do not drive and they may not have any family members or friends that can take them to a dentist as often as needed.   One way to address the cost issue is by having a low cost dental insurance plan such as an Dental HMO. HMO dental insurance plans are the more affordable dental insurance plan type and they will greatly reduce the cost for dental care services.

For many seniors often times there are services available that will take them to and from their doctor appointment either free of charge or at very little cost.  Therefore try finding a dentist that is located in or near the same building as your doctors and book your appointments back to back. By doing this you are able to not only get a ride to your doctors but to your dentist as well.

Question: My daughter is nine but her teeth are really crooked and her dentist as stated she may need braces.  Right now she has a space maintainer in hopes to avoid braces.  If she does need to have braces would that be when all her baby teeth are out?  I see no point in putting braces on baby teeth.   Yet is almost seems that is what her dentist is hinting at.

Answer: It would be hard to say, sometimes children do get braces while they still their baby teeth. The braces help keep the teeth in place as the adult teeth come out.

You should talk to an orthodontic as a consult. Some orthodontic dentist will offer free consults and it will be very helpful information for you to have. You may also want to consult your dental insurance carrier to confirm you coverages for braces.

There is an ongoing debate about the role of psychological disorder symptoms as risk factors for temporomandibular joint (TMJ) pain. Previous studies have associated depression and TMJ pain but large scale studies have not been performed. German researchers writing in The Journal of Pain evaluated community subjects and found that those with depression and anxiety had increased risk for temporomandibular pain upon palpation.

Two new studies published this week suggest that a type of gut bacteria found in the mouth may trigger colorectal cancer by influencing the immune response and switching on cancer genes.  The researchers believe their findings may lead to more timely and improved ways of diagnosing, preventing, and treating colorectal cancer.

Question: Looking for an affordable dental insurance plan for my family of four in the state of  New Jersey.  Where can I get dental insurance that does not bust my bank account.  I am finding out that there seems not to be any affordable dental insurance that a family can buy.

Answer: I would suggest reviewing our Dental HMO options that are available in the State of New Jersey.  Dental HMO plans are the more affordable insurance option.  We also provide dental discount plans as an option to help reduce your dental care cost at an affordable cost.

During the last 25 years Kim McFarland, D.D.S., associate professor in the University of Nebraska Medical Center College of Dentistry in Lincoln, has seen an increase in the number of dental patients with erosion of the tooth enamel.  According to the new research root beer could be the safest soft drink for your teeth, however, may other popular diet and sugared sodas are nearly as corrosive to dental enamel as battery acid.

Prolonged exposure to soft drinks can lead to significant enamel loss, even though many people consider soft drinks to be harmless or just worry about their sugar content and the potential for putting on pounds, the study says.

Question: I have a family of six and we do not have dental insurance.  We use to but the plan we had cancelled when my husband changed jobs.  We can not afford much so we would like to know where we can get low cost dental insurance or low cost dental services.  Either right now would be fine.
 
 Answer: For a lower cost dental insurance option, I would suggest reviewing our Dental HMO plans as they are the more affordable insurance option. You may also wish to review our dental discount plans, as help to reduce your dental care cost.

A study has found that people with poor oral hygiene or gum disease could be at higher risk of developing  Alzheimer’s compared with those who have healthy teeth.   Lancashire (UCLan) in the UK, discovered the presence of a bacterium called Porphyromonas gingivalis in the brains of patients who had dementia when they were alive. The bug is usually associated with chronic periodontal (gum) disease.

Question: So I was reviewing your dental insurance plans.  I am a signal dad and my son lives with me for most of the year.  We are in TX and I would like to get a dental insurance plan for him.

I really do not care about the monthly cost as long as it is a good dental insurance plan that will be able to take care of any future dental needs my son may have.  It it helps to know he had really good teeth at this point in time.  Can you tell me your best plan is.

Answer: What would be the best insurance plan would be based on your own dental care needs. Such as if you do not want any waiting periods you may wish to review our HMO or dental discount plan options. However with these options you do have to choose a dentist in the plan network of providers.

If you are wanting to stay with or choose your own dentist then you may prefer a dental PPO plan that provides that option.  Call our member service line at 310-534-3444 go over your needs and they will be able to help pick the “best” plan for you and your son.

According to a study in mice, researchers at Duke Medicine identified a protein that is critical to TMJD (Temporomandibular joint disorder) pain, and could be a promising target for developing treatments for the disorder. Their findings are published in the August issue of the journal PAIN®.

Question: My six year old does not really brush her teeth.  She just plays around and acts like she is. Where as my eight year old son has no problems with brushing his teeth.  The only time she brush for the full three minutes is when I am watching her.

I would think by six she should be able to brush without it be an issue every day two times a day.  Do you have any helpful tips that I could try to maybe make her like brushing her teeth better?

Answer: One way that may make her brush is by brushing your teeth together. Make brushing your teeth a family time where you both brush.  Showing her you can enjoy brushing your teeth may make her want to brush her more.