Dental Fillings May Fight Bacteria and Regenerate Tooth Structure

May 16, 2012 By Leave a Comment
Huakun Xu

Huakun Xu, lead researcher

Remember when it was such a huge technological advance to have porcelain dental fillings over the metal fillings? It was so nice to be able to explain to patients that if they got fillings, no one would be able to tell due to the porcelain composite. New research suggests that future dental fillings will not only fight the cavity-causing bacteria, but they will also stimulate growth of tooth tissue.

“Tooth decay means that the mineral content in the tooth has been dissolved by the organic acids secreted by bacteria residing in biofilms or plaques on the tooth surface,” says Huakun Xu, PhD, MS, director of the Division of Biomaterials and Tissue Engineering in the University of Maryland School of Dentistry’s Department of Endodontics, Prosthodontics and Operative Dentistry. “These organisms convert carbohydrates to acids that decrease the minerals in the tooth structure.”

When a dentist drills out a cavity, the main purpose is to remove all of the harmful bacteria that caused the decay, but drilling isn’t able to tackle it all. Xu’s nanotech fillings, however, will be able to do just that. [..Read More]

Filed Under: Dental Technology

People Considered Healthier and Smarter with Straight Teeth

May 9, 2012 By Leave a Comment

Everyone wants to live up to the mantra of not judging a book by its cover, but no one can deny that they do plenty of cover judging. According to a new study from the makers of Invisalign and Kelton research, straight teeth is a huge factor in first impression assumptions.

Kelton presented images of people with varying smiles and teeth to a sample of 1,047 Americans, and then asked the participants to give their honest opinions about the people in the images. The research participants were completely unaware that they were asked to compare straight and crooked teeth. The results were loud and clear: Americans typically assume that people with straight teeth are happier, healthier, and more successful professionally than those with crooked teeth.

Nearly one-third of the participants said that one’s teeth is the first feature they notice with new people. Twenty-four percent said that one’s teeth is the feature they remember the most after meeting someone.[..Read More]

Filed Under: Cosmetic Dentistry, Invisalign Braces, Porcelain Veneers

Is Breakfast the Cause of Your Dental Problems?

May 3, 2012 By Leave a Comment

Sugary breakfast cerealWe’ve all heard that breakfast is the most important meal of the day, but do you know how important what you eat for breakfast is?

It’s very important to start off your day with breakfast in order to help kickstart your metabolism and feed your brain for the inevitable upcoming stresses before lunch. However, this never means eat whatever is labeled as a breakfast food. Most breakfast cereals have an alarming amount of sugar, even those that are not as obvious as Lucky Charms. What’s even scarier is the high levels of salt in breakfast cereals, even those labeled as healthy and heart conscious.

Not even fruit juices are safe from the high-sugar analysis. In particular, apple juice (even pure apple juice) and pomegranate sugar have higher levels of sugar than commonly believed. Drinking one glass of either by itself is fine, but coupled with a sugary cereal, and you may as well eat chocolate cake for breakfast.[..Read More]

Filed Under: Dental Health, Nutrition and Dental Health

More Evidence Linking Oral Health to Cardiac Health

April 25, 2012 By Leave a Comment

Heart HealthRecent research has found yet another link between dental health and your overall health, specifically cardiac health. The study discovered that a common bacterial resident of the mouth that contributes to plaque buildup can cause significant health problems if it enters the blood stream.

These bateria, Streptococcus gordonii, can pose as a human protein that signals blood clotting. Once they reach the bloodstream, they can activate platelets to form clots in the blood vessels. The clots successfully envelope the bacteria in a protective barrier, warding off any antibodies or antibiotics that could treat the infection. The clots can then create growths on the heart valves–called endocarditis–or inflammation of the blood vessels that can prevent blood flow to the heart or brain. If a clot prevents blood from reaching the heart, the result is a heart attack.

So, how can S. gordonii invade the bloodstream? [..Read More]

Filed Under: Dental Health, Dental Hygiene

10 Tips to Encourage Your Children to Brush

April 19, 2012 By Leave a Comment

Boy brushing his teethNannypro.com has a great blog post on ways to help teach your children how to brush as well as encourage them to brush on their own. All ten of these tips are simple and very easy to implement with your children’s routines.

  1. Lead by example – Kids love to emulate their parents, so leading by example is a must. Let your children watch you brush and floss and explain to them what you’re doing and why. They’ll love to feel like they’re able to something just like the grown-ups do.
  2. Start early – Children won’t be able to brush their teeth by themselves until the ages of 3 or 4, so you’ll have to do it for them until then. This will give them time to get used to the idea that this is a part of a normal daily routine and they’ll look forward to when they can do it on their own.[..Read More]
Filed Under: Dental Hygiene, Pediatric Dentistry
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