A survey of university students in 2006 found slightly more than one in 10 have a tongue piercing. If
your son, daughter or grandkid wants to join the growing number of young adults with pierced tongues, they should be aware that piercings can cause tooth chipping and breakage and lead gums to recede due to rubbing and irritation.
The practice of replacing silver fillings with white, tooth-colored material for health reasons has been promoted by “biological” dentists who believe silver fillings are detrimental to your health. You may have heard these referred to as “silver”, “mercury”, or “amalgam.” These three terms are used to refer to the silver material which contains more mercury than silver, along with other metals.
If you’re confused about whether mercury fillings are safe or not, you’re not alone: even the FDA has seemingly changed their opinion. On June 4, 2008, the agency issued this statement on their website:
“Dental amalgams contain mercury, which may have neurotoxic effects on the nervous systems of developing children and fetuses.” And: “When amalgam fillings are placed in teeth or removed from teeth, they release mercury vapor. Mercury vapor is also released during chewing.”
The FDA also agreed to release a new ruling in July 2009, and alert consumers about potential related hazards.
Instead, on July 28, 2009 the FDA issued the following statement, as reported by Reuter’s:
“While elemental mercury has been associated with adverse health effects at high exposures, the levels released by dental amalgam fillings are not high enough to cause harm in patients,’’ the FDA said, citing an agency review of roughly 200 scientific studies.
The American Dental Association stands behind mercury filling safety, stating:
“Dental amalgam has been studied and reviewed extensively, and has established a record of safety and effectiveness.”
For cosmetic reasons 90% of our patients prefer the white, tooth-colored material. If you’re among those of us who grew up when mercury fillings were the only option and you haven’t had these replaced, you can whiten and update your smile by replacing these with this new tooth-colored material.
I don’t see enough hard science confirming claims that mercury fillings are linked to such conditions as Chronic Fatigue Syndrome or Alzheimer’s. However, I’ve been using the white, tooth-colored non-metallic filling material since 1987, thereby eliminating the issue for my patients. That said, some people are allergic to this non-metal material.
A “biological dentist” would recommend you remove these fillings for health reasons, believing that the longer you leave these in your mouth, the longer you are exposing yourself to metal toxicity.
I recommend replacing decades-old mercury fillings for two reasons: one is cosmetic and the second is tooth preservation. You see, as a dentist, my primary role is to enable you to chew. Since mercury expands and contracts with temperature changes, over time the teeth underneath can crack, which has been the case with some patients. Sometimes, the tooth can crack so deeply it must be removed and replaced with an implant and crown.
Ok, let’s address some common questions.
1. Are white fillings weaker than amalgams?
Yes, however, if you take the total result—the filling plus the tooth—the composites are stronger
because they bond to the tooth, making the tooth more resistant to fracture.
2. Why don’t all dentists offer white fillings?
Many dentists don’t feel comfortable using white filling material on back teeth—it requires special
training to do so. The experience and training ensures the filling isn’t vulnerable to leakage and
new decay. The material has been around since the 70’s, but it wasn’t until the mid-80’s that technology was developed to bond it to your tooth.
“Orthopedic Cosmetic Dentistry” is not a recognized specialty. Rather, it is a term we use in our office to describe the sequence in which your cosmetic dental work is done which results in a dazzling smile that sits in a structurally sound foundation.
Think of your teeth and gums as the inside of a house and your jaw and head bones as the structure and foundation. Once we ensure that the structure is balanced and stable – which often includes treatment that eliminates headaches, teeth grinding and other unwanted conditions – then the restorative and cosmetic treatments on your teeth and gums can be performed on a stable foundation. This results in cosmetic treatment that lasts, a bite that feels natural, and eliminates the concern of having to re-do work somewhere up the line.
One patient described her condition this way before treatment: “There was no comfortable place for my teeth to fit together. My jaw was constantly searching for a resting position. It was fatigued, making it impossible for my muscles to relax, which led to muscle tension and headaches.” Balancing her jaw joints addressed this problem.
You can read more about orthopedic dentistry in Dr. Pete’s free downloadable ebook: Lifetime Smile.
Teeth grinding is when you clench your top and bottom teeth together or grind your teeth back and forth over each other. Because it’s a subconscious muscle activity, most grinders grind without realizing it, until a fragmented tooth or facial soreness or other symptom occurs.
It is estimated that 10-15 percent of Americans moderately or severely grind their teeth. Normally, we exert about 20 to 30 pounds per square inch on our back molars when we chew. but teeth grinders, especially at night without restraint, can exert up to as much as 200 pounds per square inch on their teeth.
The relentless wear and tear at night from grinding can quickly erode enamel, fracture teeth, affect bite and damage the temporomandibular joint at the hinge of the jaw, and the masseter muscle, which controls the jaws. Jaw and face pain as well as earaches and headaches may also occur.
Having treated this condition for over thirty years, I’ve helped many night grinders eliminate their problems.
*Some information for this article was taken from NY Times article of October 2009: When Stress Takes a Toll on Your Teeth.
If you’ve been told you need a deep cleaning, also known as “scaling and root planing,” it’s important to understand what this procedure is and why it is absolutely vital to your dental and overall health to get it done — if you need it.
A type of gum puffiness, redness or bleeding means that your gums aren’t completely attached to your teeth. These areas that aren’t attached are called pockets and once they develop they provide an opening for bacteria to get under the gum line. Once it gets in there, it festers. Even if your gums reattach at the surface, if bacteria is trapped inside, it gets to work on your bone.
With a deep cleaning you get all of that trapped bacteria, plaque and calcification cleaned out. The result is your gum tissue can reattach to the bone. A deep cleaning, when necessary, is one of the most therapeutic health treatments you can get. Good gum health is a foundation of good overall health.
Here’s an example of how vital healthy gums are: a fellow in his mid forties came into the office with very puffy, swollen gums that bled when he brushed his teeth. Many of his teeth were loose and shifting. As you can imagine, his poor hygiene had led to other dental problems. He requested to have all of his teeth extracted and replaced with dental implants and crowns. Instead, I advised him to get a thorough deep cleaning. His own teeth could not thrive with unhealthy gums, and dental implants would not last either.
Robert had Eleanor intrigued ….
…until he got close enough to reveal his bad breath.
Original sketches by Suzanne Conway
A whiff of bad breath can sour a social encounter. An occasional “morning breath” doesn’t qualify as a case of chronic bad breath – also referred to as “halitosis.” When it’s from a meal of onions or garlic, chewing gum or breath mints can tide you over until you can brush your teeth. However, when bad breath is chronic, it indicates a more serious matter. Chronic foul breath usually accompanies one or more of the following common factors:
1. Plaque Buildup. Cavities and tongues with deep grooves serve as prime reservoirs for bacteria we commonly call plaque – a sticky, colorless film that constantly forms on teeth. The bacteria produces volatile sulphur compounds that give bad breath, or halitosis.
2. Periodontal Disease. Gums that are puffy or bleed when you brush indicate infection.
3. Medications. According to the most recent research 7 out of the top 10 medications used in the US during 1998 had “dry mouth, bad breath, or taste disorders” as a side effect.
4. Tooth Decay. Tooth decay is just what the name implies–dead, decayed matter. Dead stuff smells bad by itself,and since the decay is fairly soft, it absorbs juices from the foods you eat, and that decays as well. Every area of decay is a potential source of bad breath. You cannot hope to eliminate bad breath permanently without first having the decay repaired.
5. Diseases. Some diseases are directly related to chronic bad breath such as diabetes, sinus and tonsil infections and lung, kidney and liver diseases.
Since chronic bad breath can be either medical or dental in origin, the first approach is improving oral hygiene. This includes the following:
•Scrape Your Tongue.
•Brush and Floss every day
•Get regular professional cleanings
•Treat gum disease with deep cleanings that eliminate bacteria that has penetrated into gum tissue that has pulled back from the teeth – called “pockets.” This allows the gums to heal and reattach to the teeth.
If the above treatments don’t address the situation, seek medical treatment for any chronic infections that are contributing to the condition.
Julia Roberts Movie Star Smile
Julia looks like one of those lucky ones with a naturally gorgeous smile. But consider if she’d be as successful if that smile weren’t stunning.
You can transform your appearance from ordinary to extraordinary with the use of porcelain crowns (caps) and veneers. These dental procedures are called “cosmetic dentistry.”
Before you invest in this treatment, let me point out that you’re not just interior decorating. There’s two major areas of outcome you need to be concerned with: Do your teeth look natural? and do they chew comfortably?
Often when someone has extensive work done in their mouth, it’s noticeable. Sometimes the teeth seem to be out-of-proportion to the mouth. Or, they don’t look natural. With the technology available today, there’s no reason crowns and veneers can’t look like your own teeth and not like dental work, even to the most discerning eye.
An experienced dentist utilizing the latest technological advancements can give you a complete cosmetic makeover that is dazzling, and yet entirely natural looking and feels comfortable.
The hallmark of good dental work is it enhances your smile without being obvious. It’s beautiful, but natural looking and natural feeling. Let me give you some examples of what I consider dental work that is far too obvious. Dick Van Dyke and Carol Burnett had smiles that looked fake – their bite planes are off and their teeth don’t look natural.
For those of you too young to remember those famous TV stars, just start looking at the smiles of stars in the magazines you see at the supermarket checkout counters. You’ll notice there are those that simply don’t look right to you. The teeth can seem out of proportion to the mouth or seem fake looking. Once you start looking, you’ll see what I mean.
When someone has had good dental work, you’d never guess they’ve had any work at all.
The three keys to a successful cosmetic makeover:
1. Correct the Structure First. You don’t want to do interior decorating of the teeth until the foundation tissues of the mouth and teeth are stable and balanced. The foundation of your mouth includes balanced jaw joints and healthy bone and ligaments surrounding the teeth.
2. Function Must Go Hand in Hand With Appearance.No matter how good the dental work looks, it has to be able to function in a way that facilitates chewing. If it impedes chewing or restricts jaw movements a person makes, the treatment will not hold up. Improper chewing can lead to muscle spasms, jaw joint dislocations, with mild to severe muscle pain, creating headaches, neck aches and back pain.
3. A natural look is not necessarily the whitest look. A tooth’s shade varies from the area at the gum line through the biting edge of the tooth. That’s why monochromatic tooth colors appear very unnatural.
Also know that if you’re just getting a single crown or veneer, the hardest thing to do is match that tooth color to its neighboring teeth. Therefore, if you’re crowning or veneering just one tooth, it’s vital your practitioner matches the shade exactly. Otherwise, that one tooth will shout to all its presence. If you’re interested in rejuvenating your smile, use the coupon above for an introductory consultation with me.
I look forward to seeing you at our St Louis office!
George Clooney Is Said to Have a Natural Smile
Magazine covers, billboards and television barrages us with images of gorgeous women and chiseled men. Seems we just can’t get away from the subject of looks. Notice that one element in common with all of these “beautiful people” is a great set of teeth.
Over 2000 people were surveyed in Great Britain on the subject of attractiveness and teeth. Overall, the study revealed that nearly 1/3 of those between the ages of 45-54 have had some cosmetic dentistry vs. 20% of 18-24 year olds.
The same study also revealed that those seeking a new smile would prefer the more natural look of a celebrity like George Clooney to the dazzling white “Hollywood” grins of the likes of Simon Cowell. The academy’s Dr James Goolnick said “People want a nice healthy smile that looks natural. They don’t want people to say, ‘Where did you get that done? ‘”
Seems women in their late 40s and early 50s are the most inclined to have cosmetic dentistry. The British survey also found that almost twenty percent of those responding are so concerned about the state of their teeth that they refuse to smile when photographed.
Another independent study conducted on behalf of the American Academy of Cosmetic Dentistry discovered that the most common answer to the question “what would you most like to improve about your smile?” was whiter teeth.
Simon Cowell's Smile is Described in Survey as More "Dazzling"
According to the same survey:
-99.7% of Americans believe a smile is an important social asset.
-96% of adults believe an attractive smile makes a person more engaging to members of the opposite sex.
-74% of adults believe an unattractive smile can lessen a person’s chances for career success.
-88% say they remember someone with an attractive smile.
Only half of Americans are satisfied with their smiles.
Your Smile. It Increases Earning Power.
Research and polls done in the last few decades repeatedly show that your smile influences how you are perceived and treated by others in every situation in life.
A survey done by the American Academy of Cosmetic Dentistry found that 74% of American adults believe an unattractive smile can harm a person’s chances of career success. Julia Roberts was at one time the highest paid actress in Hollywood. She also was voted as having the best smile in the business. Think there’s a connection?
People see your smile or teeth as the first or second thing they notice when they look at you. Some studies say it’s the eyes – others say the smile. Either way, when you come into contact with other people they will notice your teeth and smile no matter what, since the mouth and eyes are the chief vehicles for communication.
This is not a recognized specialty in dentistry. Rather, it’s a term we use in our office to describe the sequence in which your teeth, gums and structure are treated. A dazzling smile should sit on a structurally sound foundation.
What do we mean by “orthopedic cosmetic dentistry?” Think of your teeth and gums as the inside of a house and your jaw and head bones as the structure and foundation. Once Doc ensures that the structure is balanced and stable – which often includes treatment that eliminates headaches,
teeth grinding and other unwanted conditions – then the restorative and cosmetic treatments on your teeth and gums can be performed on a stable foundation. This results in cosmetic treatment that lasts, a bite that feels natural, and eliminates redoing your work.
One patient with lifelong headaches experienced complete relief. Her treatment included straightening her teeth and getting a gorgeous smile.
You can read more about orthopedic dentistry in Doc’s free downloadable ebook available on our home page.
Graphic courtesy of Humor Illustrator Suzanne Conway
