Teeth Talk

Probiotics & Oral Health

2011-09-02T06:18:00.000-07:00

Probiotics are live microorganisms that can benefit your health! Some health benefits include strengthening the immune system, fighting against disease causing organisms and aiding digestion. Although probiotics are bacterial based a few are yeast based. The Food and Drug Administration separates them into categories, dietary supplements and Foods. They can be consumed from foods, drinks, pills, lozengers, chewing gum and mouthrinses. Common foods with probiotics are yogurts, sour cream, butter, milk and cheese.
Research shows probiotics may work in the mouth by attaching to various parts of the mouth like the teeth, gums and plaque/biofilm. They alter the mouth's environment as well as produce antimicrobial substances to fight existing bacteria.
The thinking is that probiotics triggers the body's immune response to fight inflammation and or change the ph of the mouth to a healthier environment. Studies continue on the affects of probiotics and oral cancer, candidiasis (thrush), cavities, bleeding gums, loss of bone around teeth and bad breath. A New Zealand study found a decrease in sulfur production bacteria that can cause bad breath. After 2 weeks when S. salivarius K12 was used in mouthwashes, lozenges and chewing gums there was a noticeable decrease in bad breath. A product which comes in lozenger form called "PerioBalance", by Sunstar, advertises that in 28 days there is a 42% reduction in moderate to severe plaque and it fights bad breath.
Antibiotics are commonly used to treat infections. Antibiotics kill organisms. Today we understand that probiotics help replenish good bacteria that can get destroyed during antibiotic therapy. Probiotics should be taken at least 2 hours after taking an antibiotic.
People who are immunocompromised, seriously ill, taking immunosupressants or have central venous catheters should not use probiotics because of potential harmful effects. Otherwise, to date probiotics are deemed safe for use among most children and adults.

Gray Winter Days, Vitamin D & Oral Health

2011-02-25T10:14:00.000-08:00

Vitamin D is known as the "Sunshine Vitamin." It is the most easily absorbed from ultraviolet B (UVB) sun rays. Vitamin D is a very important to our health. Low vitamin D levels are related to cancer risk, pain, diabetes, osteoporosis, mild hyperparathyroidism, bone diseases like rickets in children and osteomalicia in adults. People who live farther north have less UVB exposure and people living in higher altitudes have higher UVB exposure. Clouds block UV sun rays. It is estimated that 20,000 IU (international units)of Vitamin D is absorbed during summer sun exposure of 10-15 minutes two days a week when exposing your face, back, arms and hands. Current vitamin D recommendations vary between the Food and Drug Administration, United States Department of Agriculture and Institute of Medicine.
Sunshine is good for you just don't overdue it.

Happy New Year!

2010-12-27T10:39:00.000-08:00

May the gifts that only Christ can give be yours this Christmas season. May His love, joy and peace be abundantly yours throughout each day of the New Year!

Rheumatoid Arthritis and Periodontal Disease

2010-11-23T08:33:00.000-08:00

The health of the mouth has serious systemic connections. Periodontal disease and Rheumatoid Arthritis (RA)are both chronic inflammatory conditions. Pain and swelling are common symptoms from the soft tissues next to the inflamed bones. The same species of bacteria from the mouth are found in the synovial tissues of joints in RA patients. If inflammation in the mouth and joints are untreated permanent damage can lead to bone destruction.

In the mouth the first signs of acute inflammation is found in the gums and is called gingivitis. Gingivitis is reversible. Gingivitis is often characteristic of tender, red, swollen and bleeding gums. Regular professional cleanings(dental prophylaxis)and excellent daily home care is the solution. Daily home care includes brushing with a power brush (Oral B) and dental flossing. A lifetime of preventive care is essential to maintaining optimum oral health.

Periodontal Disease is a chronic disease that affects beyond the unhealthy gums and destroys the bone supporting the teeth and contributes to other systemic health problems like RA, Diabetes, Heart disease, Lung Infections, Stroke, Cancers, Alzheimer's and more. Pain and destruction of a person's health is a late sign of chronic problems not until recent associated with the destruction or loss of bone around teeth.

Dental neglect can result in much suffering from toothaches, tooth loss and can be life threatening. Rheumatoid Arthritis can be debilitating. Lifetime treatment is needed and there is no cure. Treatment includes medications, physical therapy and surgery and may I now add taking care of your teeth and gums.

Buyer Beware! FDA V.S. Mouth Rinse Claims

2010-10-14T08:03:00.000-07:00

The Food and Drug Administration warned Listerine Total Care Anticavity Mouthwash, CVS Complete Care Anticavity Mouthwash and Walgreen Mouth Rinse Full Action for advertising their mouth rinses remove plaque (bacteria attached to teeth and gums),prevent gum disease or even promote healthy gums. The FDA agrees a mouthwash which includes the ingredient sodium fluoride is effective in preventing tooth decay, but not plaque.

Plaque is the name given to a group of bacteria found in the mouth. Plaque can cause damage to the teeth (tooth decay) and gums (gingivitis) if good daily home care is not practiced. We recommend the Oral B 5000 series power toothbrush and Glide dental floss be part of your daily home care routine. Dental check-ups and cleanings are also an essential key to maintaining excellent dental health. Studies now link poor dental health with not only tooth loss, but heart disease,stroke uncontrolled diabetes, alzheimer's disease and other related general health problems. If your mouth isn't healthy you are not healthy!

A good rule for the consumer is to look for the American Dental Association(ADA)
symbol of approval on dental health products. The ADA approves a product's claims based on rigorous scientific testing for safety and effectiveness.

More information is available at www.fda.gov/NewsEvents/Newsroom/PressAnnoucements/ucm227522.htm

What You Need to Know About Hand Disinfectants

2009-12-31T10:34:00.000-08:00

Good old fashion hand washing with a mild soap is just what our moms have told us to do to be clean and stop the spread of germs. Studies are revealing that disinfectants commonly used in homes and medical facilities can INCREASE THE RESISTANCE of some life-saving antibiotics! In laboratory experiments, researchers showed that germs can rapidly mutate, building resistance to progressively higher doses of disinfectants known as BSK, or benzalkonium chloride. BSK is used in cleaning and disinfecting products to kill bacteria, fungi and algae. In the research the germs/bacteria developed resistance up to 400 times greater than the non-mutated strain. The strain P.aeruginosa built up immunity against ciprofloxacin up to 10 times more than the baseline bacteria. The bacteria outgrew the so-called 'sensitive' strains so rapidly it was had to believe! That means that we have a problem - disinfectants may highly increase antibiotic resistance. Reconsider the casual use of hand sanitizers and other cleaning agents. Remember what our Moms said, wash your hands!

Gluten Sensitivity - Celiac Disease & Oral Health

2009-10-15T11:02:00.000-07:00

Gluten is found in wheat and similar proteins such as rye and barley as well as dental and personal care products. Gluten is a difficult protein to digest. In celiac disease the immune system attacks gluten as if it were a pathogen. The small intestines can be damaged resulting in poor absorption of important nutrients. The poor absorption of iron, calcium, folic acid and vitamins A, D E and K can have many serious health problems including oral health. Sores in the corners of the mouth (angular cheilitis) and ulcers (aphthous ulcers)in the mouth commonly appear. Tooth enamel defects may occur on the incisors and first molars of adult teeth. The teeth may have white, yellow or brown spots, pitting or banding of the teeth or they may have a translucent appearance. Bonding or Porcelain Veneers can be applied to the teeth to cover the enamel defects. Dentists and Dental Hygienists may be the first to observe early oral warning signs in children. Patients should be referred to a gastroenterologist. Dental products that are 100% free of gluten are Tom's of Maine and The Natural Dentist. Tom's of Maine offers toothpaste, deoderant, mouthwash, dental floss, and soap products. Drug labels can be misleading because the source of the inactive ingredients might be changed. Find out the gluten content of drugs at www.glutenfreedrugs.com. October is National Celiac Awareness Month.

F.Y.I. Report Links Cell Phone Use To Brain Damage

2009-09-03T11:07:00.000-07:00

The Interphone study, begun in 1999, researched the risk of brain tumors as well as other harmful health suspicions linked to cell phone use. Health concerns are: Brain Tumors, Eye Cancer, Testicular Cancer, Salivary Gland Tumors, Non-Hodgkin's Lymphoma, and Leukemia. A special warning for children younger than age 8 to not use cell phones except for emergencies because their brains can absorb more radiation. Teenagers should limit calls to less than 10 minutes. The U.K., Belgium, Germany, France and Russia have issued precautions regarding cell phone use due to potential health risks. Austria reports in the last 10 years a 21% increase in brain tumors in children. The U.K. and Europe report a 40%increase in brain tumors over the last 20 years. Go to Mercola.com and read, Approaching Epidemic: Brain Damage From Mobile Phone Radiation. To be on the safe side follow these suggestions:
1. Buy A Low-Radiation Phone - Look up your phone at ewg.org/cellphone-radiation.
2. Use A Headset Or Use the Speaker - Headsets emit continuous low-leveal radiation.
3. Listen More and Talk Less - Cell phones emit radiation when you talk or text, but not when receiving messages.
4. Hold Phone Away From Body - Don't keep it on your belt or in a pocket.
5. Choose Texting Over Talking
6. Bad Signal? Stay Off The Phone - Fewer signal bars means the cell phone will emit more radiation to get the signal to the tower.
7. Limit Children's Phone Use - Young children's brains absorb twice the cell phone radiation as an adult's.
8. Skip The Radiation Shield - antenna caps and keypad covers reduce the connection quality and force the phone to transmit at a higher power with higher radiation.
Source: ewg.org/cellphone-radiation

Dental Implants And Stem Cells

2009-06-05T09:50:00.000-07:00

Restoring missing teeth with dental implants requires the patient to have a good and dense amount of bone for the implant to be held in place. Traditional and Mini implants are availble, but when a patient has had a large amount of bone loss they are limited in having a successful implant treatment. Now your own jaw bone can be regrown from your own stem cells taken from the bone marrow in your hip! A minimally invasive and relatively painless porcedure to harvest stem cells from the bone marrow can be transplanted into the jaw to create a dense bone structure where a dental implant later can be permanently set. Dental implants are the most natural solution to replacing a missing tooth providing long term resluts.
Source April 2009 Dental Tribune

Healthy Eating Pyramid

2009-03-13T10:39:00.000-07:00

The Healthy Eating Pyramid from the Harvard School of Public Health focuses on a healthy life style. Consider what your Health Span v.s.Life Span is. Health Span being the length of time from birth until disabled and Life Span being the time from birth to death. The key target of this pyramid is Health Span as it shows how to live longer and have a longer period of life with good cognitive and physical health. Our Health Span is affected by having healthy
teeth! Not having the ability to eat does cause a disability that affects food choices and ultimately your health. Take care of your teeth and they'll take care of you.

February is Children's Dental Health Month

2009-02-05T10:36:00.000-08:00

Here are some fun facts the kids will enjoy! Every person has a tongue print. A crocidile cannot stick its tongue out. The first toothbrushes are from China in 1498
and were made from hog, horse and badger bristles. Nylon bristled brushes were made 1938. Elephants grind through 6 sets of teeth in their life. Most tooth loss happens in people under age 35 from athletic events, accidents and fights. After age 35 gum disease is the number one cause of tooth loss.
Here are a couple fun facts for the adults - A passionate kiss burns 6.4 calories per minute. By age 60, most people have lost half of their taste buds.

Stay Healthy and Save Money

2009-01-26T11:50:00.000-08:00

The importance of preventing tooth decay and dental infections is brought into focus by the latest research. Study after study has put to rest the notion that infections of the teeth and periodontium (gums and bone) does not stop in the mouth. Definitive links between oral health and adverse general health problems affecting organs, joints, increased risk of stroke, heart attack and even crossing the placenta effecting the health of developing babies in utero. Today I came across an article in the ADA News - Perio Treatment May Lower Diabetics Medical Costs. University of Michigan researchers studied 2,674 diabetics ages 18 to 64. They found the people in this group who received one or two yearly routine periodontal treatments, like dental cleanings and scaling, have significantly lowered medical costs than those who do not have regular cleanings. Their Medical care decreased by 11% PER MONTH compared to those who did not have yearly cleaning visits. Those that received 3 or 4 treatments, medical costs decreased by 12%. Even insurance companies know that by paying 100% of 2 ck-up and cleanings a year they will pay out less to fix your teeth over time because preventive care can minimize future dental costs. I recently heard a medical doctor on t.v. say that bleeding gums is a better indicator of cardiovascular disease than your cholesterol numbers! Wow! Make 2009 the year to save your teeth, health and money!

Dry Mouth or Xerostomia

2008-11-25T10:50:00.000-08:00

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

2008-08-21T06:33:00.000-07:00

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

2008-07-10T07:22:00.000-07:00

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

2008-06-23T08:20:00.000-07:00

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

2008-03-27T15:17:00.000-07:00

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

2008-02-12T09:12:00.000-08:00

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!

2008-01-04T06:32:00.000-08:00

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