Dry Mouth or Xerostomia

Millions of people suffer with complaints of a dry mouth or Xerostomia. This problem can be temporary or permanent depending on the cause. The leading cause is a side effect of medication use. The 2000 report of the United States Surgeon General states that more than 400 drugs can cause dry mouth. Cancer patients may experience dry mouth with radiation and chemotherapy treatments. Systemic and Autoimmune diseases and conditions like diabetes, cystic fibrosis, parkinson's disease, alcoholic cirrhosis, renal disease, HIV/AIDS are examples of patients that may experience dry mouth. Also, eating disorders like anorexia and bulimia along with any malnutrition can cause dehydration and dry mouth. People who sleep with their mouth open at night commonly wake up with a dry mouth.
Depending on the cause of a person's dry mouth the treatment will change but, the following recommendations for dry mouth can help: 1.Discuss with your Medical Doctor changing your medication regimen. 2.Discuss with your doctor the pros and cons of a prescription to help salivary glands work better (pilocaine and cevimeline). 3.Use artificial saliva substitutes. 4.Sip on water and avoid drinks with caffeine like coffee, tea, and soda. 5.Chew sugarless gum and hard candy. 6.Suck on ice chips. 7.Don't use tobacco and alcohol products because they dry out the mouth. 8.Limit salty snacks. 9.Use a humidifier at night. 10.Xylitol sugar substitutes increase saliva flow and inhibit tooth decay. 11. Use Mouth rinses, oral sprays, and toothpastes designed to treat dry mouth. Biotene has a variety of over the counter products that we recommend to our clients.

Maternal Smoking and Cleft Lip Study

Findings reported in the July 2008 issue of Epidemiology and August 2008 Ohio Dental Association Magazine site a four year study led by Dr.Rolv T. Lie at the University of Bergen,Norway that clearly associated first trimrster smoking with the risk of cleft lip. The study found that Woman who regularly smoked 10 or more cigarettes per day during the first trimester were almost twice as likely to have a baby with clept lip than non-smiokers. Also, woman that regularly breathe second-hand smoke for at least 2 hours a day, but are non-smokers had a 60% greater risk of having a cleft lip baby than woman not exposed to smoke. It is beleived variations of certain detxification genes may make people more or less vulnerable to the toxic effects of tobacco smoke. Studies in the past have linked pregnant mother's smoking to cleft lip and less consistently to cleft palate.

Soda Pop, Sports drinks and Your Teeth

Hot summer days, exercise and the overall good health benefits of being well hydrated requires us to drink more fluids! Soda Pop and Sports Drinks can cause very serious damage to your teeth. One 12-ounce can of Soda Pop has 10 to 12 teaspoons of sugar (sucrose). Consuming sugar creates acids in saliva and increased plaque growth. Plaque is a sticky film of bacteria that grows on the teeth and gums. Tooth decay and gum disease is caused by plaque. The acids can begin to dissolve tooth enamel in only 20 minutes! "Sugar Free" or diet pops also contain acid that can damage your teeth. Sports Drinks contain more sugar than many soda pop products and can cause greater damage to the teeth's enamel and gums. What you really have to be careful about is the frequency that you have soda pop, soft drinks and ALSO drinks like coffee and tea with sugar because continuous sipping throughout the day continually bathes teeth in sugar, a perfect breeding ground for sugar. These drinks often have caffeine in the ingredients to act as a stimulant, but caffeine also causes dehydration. Please be cautious and take care of your teeth and your health. These drinks have no nutritional value. 100% Fruit juices have simple or less complex sugars that the body breaks down and uses quickly. They have nutritional values including vitamins and antioxidants which are good for us! I am not saying you can't enjoy a soda pop or sport drink, but limit your daily use to a minimum. The best drink to keep yourself well hydrated is water.

Oral Cancer - What You Need To Know

The causes of oral cancer are not all known. It's hard to believe, but 25% of oral cancer patients don't have any risk factors. They are under 40 years old and don't chew, smoke tobacco or drink alcohol. Because of this oral cancer exams need to be done on every patient! Oral Cancer used to affect 6 men to every 1 woman, but now 2 men to every 1 woman is diagnosed! The current statistics are 1 American an hour dies from oral cancer yearly equalling about 8,000 deaths a year.
The good news is Dental Professionals now have oral cancer screenings available. An exam is different than a screening. A exam can detect later stage cancers by finding the growth, tumor or tissue changes. A screening can detect cancer much earlier before detection on exam.
Examples of Exams for other cancers are a physical exam for breast cancer, but the screening is a mammogram. To examine for prostrate cancer a physical exam is done, but the screening is a blood test. Screenings save lives because cancer can be diagnosed early and early treatment has better survival rates.
Our practice continually looks for advances that better serve and protect our client's health.
We are concerned about oral cancer and offer the ViziLite Plus Oral Cancer Screenings and recommend them annually.

Health Benefits of Smiling & Laughing

Have you ever heard the saying, Laughter Is The Best Medicine? Science now has found that Smiling and Laughing has many positive effects on your body! When we laugh are bodies increase the amount of natural cells that kill tumors. Other chemicals released help digestion and increase the bodies natural pain killers. Arteries relax improving blood flow and blood pressure. Laughter increases the metabolisim and decreases Cortisol, a chemical that surpresses the body's immune system. Studies show that people who are happy, smile and laugh are less likely to get sick. Humor decreases stress and causes us to be more social.

It is not uncommon for people not to laugh, smile or appear unhappy when they are bothered by the appearance of their teeth. The importance of a beautiful smile is often under estimated!

People tend to hold back their smile by putting their hand over their mouth when speaking or conceal it by not showing their teeth when smiling. We can help! Dental health is an important part of our well being. We wish you happiness and good health!

Children's Dental Health Month

Hooray! February is Children's Dental Health Month! In celebration we are offering free fluoride treatments for children this month. It is such an honor to care for so many of our clients who we first cared for as children and now are adults with their own young families. Their smiles come in all shapes and sizes and with unique challenges, but the one thing they all have in common is a healthy dental life style because they accepted preventive dental health care at a young age. A healthy dental life style begins as a child with regular check-ups and cleanings, patient education, and having simple treatments that protect healthy teeth.

We look forward to providing your child with the very best dental health care opportunities! Their healthy and beautiful smiles will benefit them not only into adulthood, but a lifetime.

Happy New Year!

We at Dr. Schodowski's wish you all a healthy, happy, and very blessed New Year!

Make this year your best. Take charge of your dreams and goals. Ask yourself, what if.........? Our goals are to make many new friends in the people we care for, serving their dental needs. We have the answers to your dental dreams. Ask yourself, what if my teeth were........? Yes, the possibilities are endless! We are very excited to include you in our dental family!

All Smiles, Dr. Schodowski and Staff