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.

Question: My five year old daughter has dental caries.  She currently need four filling an a possible baby root canal.  I have dental insurance but it does not cover much and I have already maxed out it 1000.00 yearly limit.  I found this is easy to do when your child’s teeth keep getting cavities.

Answer: You could look into buying and HMO dental insurance plan that dose not have any waiting periods for the services you daughter needs.  Or buy a another PPO plan with a high yearly maximum limitation then just $1000.00. However, that would mean you may have to deal with waiting periods that will not help you with your daughter current dental care needs.  I would also suggest calling your current dental insurance plan and seeing if you can increase the maximum limitation without restarting the plan.

Tooth decay forms because certain types of bacteria in a person’s mouth consume sugar from human food and produces a small amount of acid, which can break down the protective enamel layer of the teeth. By constantly drinking acidic drinks, such as juice, soda and sport drinks, it has the same affect, making the deeper layers of the tooth vulnerable to bacterial infiltration and infection.

However, research out of the University of Illinois at Chicago College of Dentistry and published in the Journal of the American Dental Association shows that by using “food sequencing,” or eating foods in a certain order, people can prevent the onset of cavities by changing the pH, or acidity, of their mouths.

Some people may feel that getting dental insurance is not really worth the cost of having the plan. That may be true for some dental insurance plans if the person wanting it only wants the dental insurance for short term use.    Sadly many people put off their dental care until they are in pain or having major dental issues.  Because of that, these people can tend to get upset when they find out that many PPOs or Indemnity insurance plans have limitations that will not be able to help them with their major dental needs right away.

A dental PPO plan is not for those people that only want’s to buy a dental insurance plan to fix a current dental issue then turn around and cancel the plan once the dental issue if fixed. Reason being is that dental PPO are designed to be long terms plans and not for sort term.  The thing to try and keep in mind when thinking about buying a dental PPO or Indemnity plan is your long term dental needs. When getting these type of plans it would be a dental plan you would want to keep for at least a few years.

Question: My son is not yet two but I want to take him to see a pediatric dentist.  I currently do not have dental insurance for him.  I would like to get some insurance in place before I take him to see Pediatric dentist.

Answer: Yes there are some HMO plans to do provide for specialist. However generally you have to be refer to one by the general dentist you would have picked within the plan.

According to a Surgeon General’s report issued in May 2000 labeled Americans’ bad oral health a “silent epidemic” and called for a national effort to improve oral health among all Americans.   What is important to know is that in most people gum disease is preventable. Attention to everyday oral hygiene, coupled with professional cleanings twice a year, could be all that’s needed to prevent gum disease as well as actually reverse the early stage.

Question: My 20 month old son teeth are coming in crooked. A couple of them are straight but it look like the other teeth are crooked. What should I do? I cannot tell if his teeth are hurting him and he does not complain much about them.

Answer: I suggest that you take your son to see a dentist. The dentist could advise you if in fact the teeth are coming in crooked and if any action is needed in order to make corrections on how his teeth are coming in.

Senior citizen are seeking out dental insurance to help reduce the cost of oral care. With dental care cost on the rise buying and having dental insurance in force is a good way to control cost for dental care needs.  This website provide a broad selection of dental insurance plans from HMO, PPO and Free choice of provider plans (Indemnity). These plan type can range in cost from affordable HMO plans that fits into most people budgets, to PPO and Indemnity plans that let you stay with or pick your own dental provider.

In California this website provide many good low cost dental insurance plans which are available for seniors.  Dental HMO insurance plans provides dental insurance services at a much more affordable cost making it easier for many seniors to budget in there dental care needs.  Dental discount plan also are low cost plans that help to reduce the cost of dental care services.  Take a moment to review the many different dental insurance plan options and please call member services if you have any questions about the dental insurance plans we offer.

One large problem for many seniors in taking care of their oral and dental health is cost. The cost of seeing a dentist exceeds their budget. That is because many seniors do not have dental insurance and the cost of dental insurance can also exceed their budget. However there is a low cost dental alternative for seniors.  Dental discount plans are available in most states they run around $10.00 a month and greatly reduce dental care cost.  Making dental care more affordable.

A dental is a fixed dental restoration used to replace a missing tooth by joining an artificial tooth permanently to adjacent teeth or dental implants.

It is important to understand with most dental insurance plans there will be out of pocket costs.  Out of Pocket costs is any amount the enrollee is responsible for paying, such as coinsurance or co-payments, deductibles, and costs above the annual maximum.

Dental Bonding is a composite resin applied to a tooth to change its shape and /or color. Bonding can also refers to how a filling, orthodontic appliance or some fixed partial dentures are attached to teeth.

Many dental insurance will have a limiting age of coverage clause. This is the age at which a dependent covered by a dental insurance plan is no longer eligible to receive benefits. However, most dental insurance plans offer an extension of benefits beyond the limiting age of coverage to student and handicapped dependents. Therefore make sure to read the plans terms and conditions if you have an older depending living in the household.