tooth decay Archives | Sterling Heights Dentist, Dr. Farhat of Dental 1 Care

The Truth About Fighting Tooth Decay With Sugar

January 11, 2018 by Sterling Heights Dentist Leave a Comment

Dr. Fadi Farhat regularly sees children with tooth decay. About 42% of children aged 2-11 years old have had decay in their permanent teeth, whereas about 32% of children aged 9-11 experienced decay in their permanent teeth. It is important to help your child fight tooth decay. So, what is the truth abought fighting tooth decay with sugar?

How Sugar Plays a Role in Oral Health

It is quite difficult for your little ones to resist sticky candies and sugary foods. But these foods can lead to tooth decay, especially when they get stuck in between your kids’ teeth. Moreover, most children love drinking sports drinks and sodas, which are known to have high sugar content and a highly acidic pH. The combination of these dietary factors, and drinking more unfluoridated bottled or tap water, explains why the incidences of tooth decay are increasing.

Brushing at least twice a day, flossing daily, and paying regular dental visits at Dental 1 Care is vital for good oral health. But aside from these, an article published in the July 2010 issue of AGD Impact revealed that children can also enhance their oral health by adding xylitol to their day-to-day oral hygiene routine.

How Xylitol Helps Prevent Tooth Decay

Reputable dentists like Dr. Fadi Farhat, say fighting tooth decay with sugar is possible. And xylitol is a great weapon against tooth decay. It provides the simplest solution for tooth decay in children because this is a natural sugar that does not cause cavities. In fact, it helps prevent a cavity.

Apart from naturally occurring in fruits, trees, and vegetables, xylitol is also found in the human liver. Thus, it is safe for you and your children to consume. Table sugar breaks down in your mouth and creates a cavity-promoting pH while xylitol won’t break down. This further means that it does not create any harmful acid.

Furthermore, xylitol is found in different products like all-purpose sweeteners, lemonades, candies, mints and other brands of chewing gum.

As per research, you should consume 6-10 grams or 3-5 servings of xylitol per day. Also, it is vital that you consume xylitol throughout the day, but not all at once. This makes sure that xylitol interacts with bacteria in your mouth often to fight cavities.

Although there is no fast solution for eliminating tooth decay, xylitol might provide a realistic way to solve the problem, especially for children. As a parent, you should know why our Sterling Heights dentist recommends consuming a sugar-like substance. With more education, you will realize that xylitol is the best natural product that will help prevent cavities and tooth decay. Remember though that xylitol can be deadly to canines so you should not give any xylitol-containing products to your dogs. Check out our other blogs to learn more about how nutrition impacts your oral health.

What Foods Cause Tooth Decay In Children?

January 2, 2018 by Sterling Heights Dentist Leave a Comment

Your child’s teeth are vital to the creation of a lifetime of healthy smiles. As a parent, you need to help protect their teeth and gums for the future. So, what foods cause tooth decay in children?

Even when you teach your kids to brush their teeth twice daily and floss before bedtime, plenty of eating and snacking happens in between. To make sure that their oral health is in tip-top shape, you must give them a menu that is healthy for their teeth and body. Also, you should know what foods cause tooth decay in children.

To prevent tooth decay, here are some of the foods that must be avoided, along with teeth-saving tactics.

Cracker Snacks May Cause Cavities

There are better snack selections than classic crackers when it comes to ensuring good oral health in children. From potato chips to bagel chips, goldfish to grahams, most snacks turn into sugar on your kids’ teeth, which increases cavity risks.

You need to give your children snacks that will not attack teeth. These include whole grain crackers and whole-grain pretzels without added sugar. You can also add a side of cheese as this helps clean bacteria off your kids’ teeth.

Fruit Snacks Also Cause Tooth Decay

Children are also fans of fruit snacks and other sticky treats. Sticky foods are quite easier to cling onto and in between teeth. Giving your little ones a box of fruit snacks may put a beautiful smile on their faces now but can wreak havoc on their smiles in the future.

As subs for sticky sweets, you can give your children luscious grapes, juicy melons, succulent strawberries, and mouth-watering mangoes. For a sweeter treat, go for a little chocolate or ice cream because these are better choices than dried, sticky fruits.

Juice in a Sippy Cup Lease To Tooth Decay

Serving juice sippy cup-style is a good recipe for cavities. Since most sippies will release liquids slowly, there is more time for that sugary drink to pool in your kids’ mouth. And this will give the bacteria enough time to break down tooth enamel, thus triggering tooth decay.

So dentists recommended diluting the juice with water when serving it up. As much as possible you must only serve 4-6 ounces per day. Also, serve it with snacks and meals to prevent tooth enamel wear and tear. If not, swap the sippy cup for a cup with a straw. A straw will send the liquid on the fast track to being swallowed instead of encouraging it to pool in the mouth. This further means that the teeth will be bypassed and protected.

There are plenty of foods that cause tooth decay in children, not only candies. Nutritious meals are tooth-friendly, while a diet heavy in refined carbs and sweets isn’t. Starches and sugars are food to bacteria that produce tooth-eroding acid baths that will harm those pearly whites. The frequency with which these foods are eaten, and the time they remain as debris and particles in the mouth, are important factors as well.

If your children love to eat sweets, a reputable Sterling Heights dentist recommends paying regular visits to the dental office. This way, any dental problem can be detected and treated early on to prevent extensive treatment like tooth extractions.

Here are some other great dental blog posts that may help you with dental care for your children.

Drinking Tap Water May Help Your Teeth

December 22, 2017 by Sterling Heights Dentist Leave a Comment

Drinking Tap Water May Help You At The Dentist

When tooth decay is left untreated, it can cause infections and pain that will hinder speaking, eating, learning, and playing.

With the controlled addition of fluoride compound to the public water supplies, a study published in the January/February 2010 issue of General Dentistry says that this is a cost-effective way to fight tooth decay and prevent cavities. Indeed, drinking tap water may help at the dentist.

Fluoride and Your Teeth

Fluoride will make your entire tooth surface more resistant to decay. Also, it promotes remineralization, which is crucial for repairing early decay. Water fluoridation is considered to be the best source of fluoride.

Tap water has been treated with fluoride in order to prevent cavities. Water fluoridation can prevent at least 25% of tooth decay both in children and adults. While teeth are erupting under the gums, the fluoride will strengthen tooth enamel. This way, it becomes stronger and more resistant to cavities. And when the teeth erupt, fluoride will rebuild weakened tooth enamel.

Also, it can reverse early signs of tooth decay. Whenever you use fluoride dental products, you are giving your mouth a topical benefit since the fluoride is directly applied to your teeth’s surface.

In the US, more than 144 million residents in over 10,000 communities are drinking fluoridated tap water. And this can provide an automatic defense against the unsafe ingredients causing preventable oral health disease.

Rather than drilling holes in order to fix cavities, dentists prefer educating the public about tips for preventing tooth decay. A Sterling Heights dentist further emphasized that drinking tap water is safe; it is the most effective way of receiving fluoride. Also, this is more affordable than going to your dentist for a filling.

Varnish is also an effective source of fluoride. Applied by your dentist, varnish is among the most concentrated products today. This product has sodium fluoride that will adhere to your tooth surfaces when there is saliva, thus giving an excellent fluoride treatment.

By keeping fluoride in your mouth, its ability to prevent demineralization will be enhanced. Varnishes are better choices for this purpose as opposed to fluoridated toothpaste or drinking water. Typically, fluoridated varnishes are for those who do not receive sufficient fluoride from tap water, toothpaste, and other sources.

Fluoride can be found in salt products, specialty milk, gum, mouthwash, and toothpaste. However, the fluoride that the fluoridated water and varnish methods have can help reduce cavities by over 30%. If you suspect that you have a cavity, you need to visit your dentist now to prevent further damage to your teeth and mouth.

How Preventative Dental Care for Seniors Can Lead to Savings

May 12, 2017 by Sterling Heights Dentist Leave a Comment

Dental issues can cost a small fortune to remedy. But according to a trusted Sterling Heights dentist, Dr. Farhat, this should not always be the case, especially for dental problems which can be easily prevented.

In fact, preventative dental care for seniors can lead to bigger savings for retirees who can use the extra money for other important matters like their medication for other health issues or even for travel.

How, exactly, can seniors save more money through preventative dental care?

It may sound counter intuitive, but regular dental cleaning with your dentist can actually save you more money over the long term. The main reason behind this is that a dentist can identify and rectify smaller problems which are less expensive to treat before these spiral out of control and lead to larger costs.

For instance, regular visits to a dentist can help prevent periodontal disease which affects not just a person’s oral health but also his or her overall health. The disease has been linked to other medical problems, including diabetes, stroke and heart disease.

Schedule now, save long term

And on the converse side of the coin, if you delay getting proper dental treatment, minor dental issues can eventually get out of hand, requiring treatments which cost a fortune.

But for some seniors, a visit to the dentist does not usually rank high in their order of priorities. Seniors who live on a fixed income often find the cost of dental care prohibitive.

It also does not help that much attention to preventative care has been traditionally marketed to younger people. This narrow focus across the industry may have helped increase the number of senior citizens who require expensive dental treatments like dentures, or dental implants.

The addition to preventative dental care, dental insurance can help greatly, in terms of taking care of the bulk of the expenses. More importantly, this can improve the oral health of seniors.

But apart from preventative dental care, there are a few other things that people from different demographics can do to keep both dental problems and the steep cost of some treatments at bay.

For one, you should practice good oral hygiene habits like brushing and flossing your teeth regularly. We recommend twice daily.

Second (and finally), you can make various diet and lifestyle modifications. For instance, you can quit your smoking habit. You can also make smarter food choices which improve not only your oral health but your overall health and wellness as well. Consider limiting your intake of sweets and starchy foods and add more fruits and vegetables to your diet. This will benefit you in many ways not just your oral health.

If you are a Senior in the Sterling Heights, MI area looking for a Dentist near you, give us a call, we will be happy to get you in for an initial consultation.

Celebrate Children’s Dental Health Month with These Tips

February 20, 2017 by Lauren Edvalson Leave a Comment

Celebrate Children’s Dental Health Month with These Tips

February marks the celebration of the National Children’s Dental Health Month. During this month, dental professionals, along with other healthcare providers and teachers, come together to teach parents and their children about the importance of good oral hygiene.

And in observance of the National Children’s Dental Health Month, a dentist in Sterling Heights has put together a list of 10 oral health tips for both parents and their young ones.

Start early

It is never too early for your child to begin practicing good oral hygiene. In fact, parents should start cleaning their baby’s gums and first set of teeth at the earliest time possible. Babies should get their teeth and gums cleaned after each feeding using a gauze or cloth soaked in water.

Be careful when brushing baby teeth

Parents should be careful when brushing baby’s first set of teeth. A Sterling Heights dentist recommends the use of a soft-bristled toothbrush and a small amount of toothpaste with fluoride.

When is best time to teach a child good oral hygiene habits?

By the time your child reaches the age of three, you can begin to teach him how to properly brush his teeth. Parents should emphasize proper technique above everything else. Once your child reaches the age of six, he should be able to properly brush his teeth even without your assistance. At the time, you can teach him how to floss his teeth.

Check your water supply

Specifically, determine whether your water supply is fluorinated. Studies indicate the fluoride in the water can substantially reduce the risk of cavities and can even heal some of the signs of tooth decay. Otherwise, you can ask your dentist about ways to provide your children with fluoride.

Don’t let your child go to bed with his baby bottle

Prolonged exposure to fluids containing sugar has been linked to tooth decay in young children. These liquids include breast milk and formula, and the only exception is water.

Limit your kid’s sugar intake

If you cannot totally avoid giving food and drinks with sugar, try to minimize your child’s consumption. Sugar can make your child’s mouth acidic which makes him more vulnerable to tooth decay.

Schedule regular visits to the dentist

Around the time your child celebrates his first birthday, he should have visited his dentist for the first time. Like adults, children need to see the dentist on a regular basis. For one, it helps build their confidence inside the clinic. Second, potential problems can be solved and prevented from worsening. Third, parents can learn invaluable lessons regarding good oral health.

Fortify your kid’s teeth against cavities

During your next trip to the dentist, ask him about dental sealants and fluoride applications. Both treatments can provide your child’s teeth with a high degree of protection against cavities.

Be positive

Children can pick up on the vibe projected by their parents. If your child is anxious during his visits to the dentist, do not feed his anxiety by projecting negative thoughts. Remain calm and cool while talking to your child.

Make your home safer

More than half of dental injuries can be attributed to accidents involving home furniture. Survey your home for potential risks or accidents and make the necessary adjustments.

If you are looking for more oral health tips, contact your local dentist in Sterling Heights today. The Dental1Care team is ready to provide you with helpful information.

Signs You May Have a Cavity

October 24, 2016 by Lauren Edvalson Leave a Comment

What Are the Symptoms of a Cavity?

What are cavities? They are permanently damaged areas on the surface of your teeth manifesting as holes. Also referred to as caries or tooth decay, cavities are caused by different factors, such as frequent snacking and drinking sugary beverages, which both encourage the breeding of bacteria in the mouth.

Cavities are common health problems all over the world and are especially prevalent among children, teenagers, and mature adults. All the same, anyone who has teeth, including babies, can get them.

When left untreated, cavities simply get larger. Their effects reach deeper into the layers of the teeth. When untreated, they can lead to immense pain, infection, and even tooth loss. The best way to protect yourself from cavities is to establish good brushing and flossing habits. Regular visits to your Sterling Heights Dentist are also necessary.

There are different signs and symptoms of cavities, depending on their location and the extent of their presence and damage. In the early stages of tooth decay, you may not even detect it at all.

What are the symptoms of cavities you should look out for?

Tooth sensitivity.
Toothache.
Varying degrees of pain when eating or drinking something hot, cold, or sweet.
Pain when biting down.
White, brown, or black staining on the surface of a tooth.
Visible holes or pits in a tooth.

When should you see a dentist?

As mentioned, you may not notice that a cavity is forming, so you really have to visit your Sterling Heights Dentist regularly for checkups and cleanings. Go even if your teeth seem okay. Of course, when you experience toothache or any mouth pain, arrange to see your dentist right away.

How do cavities develop?

Decay involves a process that occurs over time. It usually involves the following:

Plaque forms

Bacteria in your mouth form a sticky film coating the teeth. This is plaque. It feels a little rough and is more pronounced on the dorsal side of the teeth, edging along your gums. It’s best to have this removed while soft because it will harden and become more difficult to remove, giving bacteria a great hiding place.

Plaque attacks

Plaque has acids that erode the enamel of the tooth, causing holes in them, which count as the first stage of cavity. Through these holes, bacteria and acid reach the next layer, dentin, which is softer and not as resistant to acid.

Basically, once decay starts, bacteria and acid continue the destruction they wreak on the teeth until they get to the pulp of the tooth, which has nerves and blood vessels. Bacteria cause the pulp to swell and get irritated, which lead to aches, pains, and sensitivity. Your body may try to fight the infection by sending white blood cells, which may result in a pocket of pus called an abscess.

Tooth decay is obviously very unpleasant. You should regularly see your Sterling Heights dentist to stop its development and to prevent the onset of cavity.

What Are The Leading Causes of Tooth Decay?

May 27, 2016 by Lauren Edvalson 1 Comment

Leading Causes of Tooth Decay

Tooth decay is the most dreaded dental problem — nobody wants rotted teeth. This problem occurs when bacteria in the mouth (from food, mostly) make and release acids that eat away at the teeth. When teeth become decayed, you can feel persistent pains, and these pains may be accompanied by obvious inflammation or swelling, indicating infection. If not treated immediately, you can lose your teeth.

Another issue with tooth decay is it causes bad breath. No matter how often you brush your teeth, your breath will easily become malodorous — there’s just no masking the stink of rot.

To avoid tooth decay, it’s imperative to know what may cause it.

Listed below are the leading causes of tooth decay, as well as the best solutions for them.

Poor oral hygiene – Neglecting to brush and floss your teeth regularly will create more build-up of bacteria from food particles. It’s vital to oral health to be really thorough with oral hygiene, and to not just brush and floss your teeth — make sure to brush your tongue as well because this is the breeding ground for bacteria. Also, use a mouthwash to kill even more bacteria in the mouth that lead to cavities.
Poor diet – High consumption of foods rich in acids, carbohydrates and sugars can promote tooth decay. These foods corrode the teeth’s enamel, making teeth weak and prone to damage. Dentists say, do away with these foods and replace them with vitamin-packed green leafy vegetables along with calcium-rich foods to prevent tooth decay.
Genetics – Some people simply have weak teeth, and even with proper oral hygiene, they are easily prone to developing cavities.
Bruxism – This is also known as involuntary or habitual teeth grinding. People normally grind their teeth when they’re under stress and this can strip away the outer layer of the tooth’s enamel, causing cavities to develop more easily. Using mouth guards is the best solution for people who grind their teeth.
Aging – As people age, their body’s immune system weakens because they are not able to absorb essential nutrients as efficiently as before. Teeth suffer because of this, and that’s why special oral hygiene products are recommended and dental visits should be more frequent.
Crooked bite – If your teeth are not aligned properly, they are prone to developing cavities as well as getting food debris stuck on them more easily; this makes it much more difficult to thoroughly brush them out. Fixing teeth through orthodontic treatment and using special dental cleaning tools are the best solutions for crooked bites.
Dry mouth – Saliva production is an important component of oral hygiene because saliva helps inhibit the growth of plaque, which usually leads to tooth decay. People with dry mouth are advised to drink more water and use special toothpastes to prevent all sorts of oral issues, which include cavities.

The best way to ensure proper dental care is to set up regular dentist visits with yourlocal Sterling Heights dentist. Your dentist will give you the best advice for proper dental care and ways to prevent tooth decay.