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NEWSAugust 22nd, 2011Secrets from your Dentist 
Bad breath? Bleeding gums? The things your dentist isn't saying will change how you think about dental hygiene.
Do you floss about as often as you flip your mattress? Do you spend more time putting toothpaste on your brush than actually cleaning your teeth? Dentists notice these things. And that’s not all. They also know when you’re asking for a procedure that’s going to disappoint you and when insurance companies are stinting on the care your smile needs. We asked 22 dentists from across the country to tell us what they’re really thinking as they peer at our teeth. What came out of their mouths will change the way you treat yours.
Free Advice Use a toothpaste that you like, not the one someone recommends. Toothpaste is good as long as it contains fluoride. Brushing teeth with the toothpase that you like will help you brush longer! – Eric Calian, DDS, White Plains, New York, Westchester County
Some people give up on tooth whitening because the gel irritates their teeth and gums. Just use a fluoride rinse or gel before and after—it’ll make your teeth much less sensitive. – Chris Kammer, DDS
With any kind of mouth piercing, there’s a huge risk of infection if it’s not done in a really sterile environment. I’ve seen cases where we’ve had to cut out pieces of the tongue because the infection was so rampant. Even when things go well, virtually everyone I see with a tongue piercing has chipped front teeth. Don’t pierce your tongue. – Jay Grossman, DDS, cosmetic dentist, Brentwood, California
“New and Improved”? Yeah, Right There’s no reason to sanitize a toothbrush unless you’re sharing it with other people. Those UV devices and other germ zappers are totally unnecessary. – Joel Slaven, DDS
There’s a limit to what toothpaste can do. New whitening formula? It can get rid of surface stains, but it can’t whiten like a bleach. – Careen Young, DDS, prosthodontist, Beverly Hills, California
Your Teeth Can Alert Us to Disease Misaligned teeth can cause migraine headaches. If we can align the teeth and fix the bite, the pain often goes away. – Mai-Ly Ramirez, DDS, general dentist, San Francisco, California
One of the first signs of diabetes is bleeding gums. I started taking blood samples from all my patients with bleeding gums and bone loss around the teeth and discovered that many of them were diabetic or prediabetic. – Ron Schefdore, DMD
We’re Not Miracle Workers Teeth get whiter when they dry out. Some dentists promise that their office procedures will make your teeth four shades whiter. But if you leave your mouth open for an hour, you could easily be two shades whiter just from dehydration. – Careen Young, DDS
Quit Worrying A lot of patients are worried that dental X-rays can cause cancer, but if you’re outside for an hour, you’re exposed to more radiation than you’d get from a full set of dental X-rays. What I worry about is that if I don’t take an X-ray, I might miss something serious. – Bryan Tervo, DDS
We Blame You When Baby Teeth Go Bad For the past 20 years, we’ve been telling parents about baby bottle tooth decay and not to let a child go to sleep with a bottle. But I haven’t seen much of a change. – Winifred J. Booker, DDS, pediatric dentist, Owings Mills, Maryland
I call soda pop the liquid chain saw. It cuts through teeth. And it’s not just the sugar—it’s the acid. – Chris Kammer, DDS 
You Don’t Get It Some truly educated people think that if nothing in their mouth hurts, they’re fine. High cholesterol doesn’t hurt, either, but it’s a big problem. I honestly think that the general population doesn’t understand that their mouth is part of their body. – Danine Fresch Gray, DDS, general dentist, Arlington, Virginia
If your hands bled when you washed them, you’d run to the doctor. But in the public’s mind, bleeding gums are okay. Unless you’re really whaling away with your brush, if your gums bleed even a little, that’s periodontal disease, period. – Ron Schefdore, DMD, general dentist, Chicago, Illinois
The advice to see your dentist twice a year applies only if you have healthy gums. Most people don’t. – Chris Kammer, DDS, cosmetic dentist, Middleton, Wisconsin
Many of my patients have periodontal disease affecting their back teeth, but their front teeth are fine. Evidently, they brush only what others see. – Joel Slaven, DDS, general dentist, Valencia, California
Dentists often tell patients with advanced gum disease to floss more often. But flossing is useless at that point. Imagine trying to clean out the bottom of a shirt pocket with a piece of string tied to your fingers. – Reid Winick, DDS, holistic dentist, New York, New York
People come to me with a mouthful of tooth decay and say, “I got my grandfather’s soft teeth.” I don’t even know what soft teeth are. – Bryan Tervo, DDS
Our Noses Still Work Brushing doesn’t go deep enough into the gums to reach the plaque that causes bad breath. You need to floss every day and get a cleaning every few months. If you do all that and still have bad breath, I start looking into diet and checking for health problems. – Ned Windmiller, DDS, general dentist, Stillwater, Minnesota
A mouthwash with alcohol dries out your mouth—you’ll smell nice and minty for a half hour, but then the bad breath comes back worse than ever. – Gary Herskovits, DDS, family dentist, Brooklyn, New York
If your breath is bad, we won’t tell you unless you ask. – Gary Herskovits, DDS
We Feel Your Pain People say something difficult is like pulling teeth. But pulling teeth is really fast and easy. – Mark Mutschler, DDS, pediatric dentist, Oregon City, Oregon
I tell nervous patients that we can give them the sedative triazolam an hour or so before their appointment—they just need to have someone else drive. It works so well that sometimes they don’t remember the appointment. – Chris Kammer, DDS
A study showed that tooth implants increase libido, probably because people feel much more confident without missing teeth or dentures sliding all over the place. – Jim Janakievski, DDS, periodontist, Tacoma, Washington
Many people without insurance don’t go to a dentist until they’re in a tragic situation. They could wind up needing $20,000 worth of work. – Paul Hettinger, DMD
We Choose Our Own Dentists Carefully When choosing a dentist, Check if the magazines in the waiting room are current. That shows attention to detail. – Michael Alkon, DMD
(source: Rider's Digest)
August 10th, 2011 (Secrets from your Dentist) Tea 'good for teeth' 
Compounds in tea attack harmful bacteria
Scientists believe that drinking tea may be a good way to keep your teeth healthy. They have discovered that compounds found in black tea may attack harmful bacteria in the mouth that cause gum disease and cavities. Researchers have previously focused on the possible health benefits of green teas.
"Dentists feel that drinks such as tea are a good alternative to soft drinks" - British Dental Association
A Team from the University of Illinois College of Dentistry found that compounds in black tea were capable of killing or suppressing growth and acid production of cavity-causing bacteria in dental plaque.
Enzyme
Black tea also affects the bacterial enzyme glucosyltranferase which is responsible for converting sugars into the sticky matrix material that plaque uses to adhere to teeth. In addition, certain plaque bacteria, upon exposure to black tea, lost their ability to form the clumpy aggregates with other bacteria in plaque, thereby reducing the total mass of the dental plaque. One experiment showed that when volunteers rinsed with black tea for 30 seconds five times at three-minute intervals, plaque bacteria stopped growing and producing acid, which breaks down the teeth and causes cavities. Lead researcher Dr. Christina Wu said the research indicated that black tea could have a "significant" impact on dental health. However, she warned that the beneficial effect was dependent on people taking good care of their teeth in other ways.
'Good alternative'
The British Dental Association said both black and green tea could help to combat the build-up of plaque. A spokesperson said: "Dentists also feel that drinks such as tea are a good alternative to soft drinks since tea is non-erosive." Dental erosion involves demineralisation where teeth are attacked by acids and tooth enamel is consequently worn away. It can be extremely painful, especially if it is extensive enough to wear through the enamel and expose the dentine and tooth pulp underneath. The BDA spokesperson said that tea was also a good source of fluoride which can help to protect the teeth. (sourse: BBC news)
August 3rd, 2011 
Calian Dental Group is proud to intoduce the Sonic-Activated Filling System into their modern practice. Sonic-Activated Filling System is a cutting edge technology which allows patients to have their cavity filled (once cleaned) withing 3 seconds! 
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