Do you want spaces between your front teeth?
What type of smiles do you like?
Who do you want to look like?
Do you want big teeth, little teeth, long teeth,wide teeth?
Do you want personalization, such as little character flaws built into your teeth?
Do you want perfect alignment?

According to the Center for Disease Control, 1 out of every 4 adults over 60 have lost all of their natural teeth due to gum disease and tooth decay. Another CDC report says 1 out of every 5 adults over 65 have lost all of their teeth. Once that occurs, your choices are dentures or implants. 

Although dental implants are an excellent alternative to dentures, not everyone can get them. This doesn’t mean you have to dread dentures. The biggest reason denture wearers switch to implants is: 

Their dentures are ill-fitting and uncomfortable; or
They don’t like how their dentures look. 

You can dread dentures or view them as an opportunity to design your smile. If you want to pay $99 and get “teeth-on-a-plate” then the old adage “you get what you pay for” applies.  

On the other hand, if you want someone to craft an appliance that feels and looks natural, you can spend the money and get something that will make you feel confident.

 I minored in Art Minor and I view dentistry as both an art and a science. Although an appliance needs to be engineered perfectly, there’s no reason it can’t also be an aesthetic expression of the smile you’ve always wanted.

Trend #2: Teeth straightening will increasingly become the first step in a cosmetic makeover. It’s been a common practice to place porcelain veneers on crooked teeth. While this gives the appearance of straight teeth, it does nothing to address the health conditions caused by uneven teeth. These create uneven bite pressure which can lead to health problems, including headaches and migraines. With more dentists understanding the connection between the bite and jaw joints and head, neck and back pain, concern for health will lead to correcting the uneven bite rather than covering it up with veneers. 

Trend #3: Gum Contouring bill Become more popular. Just like lip plumping or botox improve appearance without surgery, contouring gum lines will become popular as more dentists investing in acquiring and learning how to use laser dental equipment. With laser technology being used in everything from skin care to knee replacement surgery, it was only a matter of time before it would be more routinely employed in your dental care. In addition to gum contouring which, by the way, is also great for men, lasers can disinfect diseased gum tissue. They can also cut into the teeth, making it faster and more comfortable to get fillings.  

Trend #4: 3D x-rays will enable more precise dental treatment. Technology called “cone beam” takes two dimensional x-rays and makes them 3D. This allows your dentist to provide more precise dental treatment. For example, with a 3d picture, your dentist can see the nerve tissue surrounding impacted wisdom teeth. This allows for a better surgery. With implants, we’re able to determine more exactly their correct placement.  

Trend #5: Teeth whitening will become part of a daily makeup routine for women. Whitening pens like Liquid Smile will make a professional in-office whitening last a lot longer. Instead of bulky whitening trays sitting in your mouth for an hour with saliva coming out the side of your mouth, pens allow you to touch up the teeth that are visible. Ask about these in our office.

Secret #1: Your dentist may not have the latest technology.

Digital x-ray: Dentists who do not have digital x-ray equipment are practicing in
the dark ages. Digital x-rays use less radiation than film. They are easier to read
and make diagnosis more accurate.

Ultrasonic Cleaning: Ultrasonic instruments vibrate plaque and calculus off your
teeth, even in areas below your gums. It is much more comfortable than oldfashioned
hand scraping.

Doc comment: I agree. Thats’ why our office has had this technology for years.

Secret #2: Your dentist may be using mercury.
Mercury is toxic. Norway and Sweden have banned the use of mercury fillings..
But mercury fillings are less expensive and easier for the dentist to use. If your
dentist does not use composite fillings, don’t go to that dentist any more. In the
US, the FDA is way behind the ball and not actively warning patients about this
like they have been mandated by the courts to do.

Doc’s comment: Very accurate. I haven’t used mercury in my office for years.

Secret #3: The lab may be more important than your dentist.

Dental labs create dentures, crowns, bridges, orthodontic appliances, and other
dental restorations like implant crowns. There is a huge difference in the quality
of these labs. You should be particularly wary if your dentist is using a lab in
China or Mexico. Some of the top labs in the U.S. are Aurum Ceramics,
MicroDental Laboratories, da Vinci Dental Studio, and Williams Dental Lab.

Doc’s comment: True. Aurum Ceramics is one of the labs we use a Artistic Dentistry.

Secret #4: There’s more to good dentistry than filling cavities.

A competent dentist screens for more than tooth decay. He or she should be
concerned about sleep apnea, jaw-related pain known as TMJ, oral cancer,
diabetes and hypertension.

Doc’s comment: All good points. I cover some of this in my free downloadable
electronic ebook found at http://stlouisdentistdrpete.com

If just a simple filling requires such precision, imagine the precision required in placing veneers or implants while ensuring they not only look great but are completely natural in their feel and fit.

Like a perfectly balanced bridge constructed to withstand the elements of weather and carry immense weight, your teeth and jaw are designed with a similar precision.

I coined the term “orthopedic dentistry” to describe this approach which I learned over twenty-five years ago, studying under pioneers in dental health and working with physical therapists and chiropractors. Unfortunately, it’s not common among dentists and for this reason, I often get patients in my office with cosmetic dental work that has failed them.

So, I was heartened to see that this approach to cosmetic dentistry will be discussed an upcoming cosmetic dental symposium I’m attending in July in San Francisco. This, by the way, is the subject of my ebook, to be posted on my site by mid June and included in my “real” book, due in October. You can read more on this at my website: http://www.artisticsmiledoc.com/orthopedic-cosmetic/.

Try this remedy: stop trying so hard. That probably sounds odd, but bear with me here. I noticed a phenomenon when I back off of trying to figure something out: the solution came to me later. I then compared my remedy with others and found that itworked for them too. It’s pretty simple and goes like this:

Walk away from the problem. Sleep on it. Clean the house. Do another project. Just stop directing energy or attention at solving whatever it is that’s stumping you. Put your attention on something else. Maybe for a day or a few days.

To your amazement a solution will pop into your head when you least expect it. Maybe you’ll wake up with the answer, find some old notes or magazine article or stumble upon it in the middle of the night.

The point is, take the path of least resistance and allow your mind to ease.

Try it and let me know how it works for you.

A 15 oz cup of coffee spikes your adrenaline level by 200%. Adrenaline is what enables the body to go into overdrive. An example is the mother who suddenly has the strength to lift the front of a car when her child is underneath. It’s also what gives someone instant “courage” to fight when confronted by an attacker.
It’s the “adrenaline rush,” which is technically a mechanism in your body called “fight or flight.”

This fight or flight mechanism is activated by caffeine. When you drink a large cup of coffee, your adrenaline levels skyrocket. Adrenaline pumps out stress hormones, among them one called cortisol. Cortisol, according to lots of research, leads to deposits of excess fat in the abdomen when there’s too much of it circulating in the body, because there’s more receptors there than in other areas of the body.

As you can imagine, keeping cortisol levels high all day with the consumption of caffeinated drinks puts your body into a constant state of fight or flight, and keeps cortisol levels higher than normal.

Aside from belly fat, we also know that caffeine is associated with symptoms youmight not have associated with your coffee or soda, such as anxiety, nervousness, mood swings, depression, panic attacks, energy swings, poor concentration, ulcers, bloating, irritable bowel syndrome, high blood pressure, headaches, candida, PMS, difficulty falling or staying asleep. More can be found in the book Caffeine Blues by Stephen Cherniske.

Beyond Just Belly Fat

If the only unwanted side effect of drinking caffeinated drinks was an increase of cortisol that led to belly fat, then maybe you could live with that. However, there’s more to the story. According to Dr. Perricone, author of multiple bestselling books on aging, cortisol also accelerates aging. He says, “It is not surprising that we in the anti-aging field call cortisol ‘the death hormone’ because it is truly associated with old age and disease.”

Ouch. This cup of coffee is starting to take on a bad aftertaste.

You see, it’s not just the cosmetic appearance of belly fat that’s the problem. The belly fat itself has been linked to some serious diseases including:
*heart disease
*gall bladder disease
*certain cancers
*osteoarthritis
*diabetes
*asthma

So, What Can You Do To Reduce That Fat Belly?

You need to reduce your cortisol levels. How?

Avoid:
*Foods you have allergies to;
*Foods that impact your blood sugar, such as fruit juices, breads, pastas and desserts.
*Foods containing Caffeine and other stimulants – such as coffee, tea, soft drinks or chocolate. As your caffeine intake goes up, so does your cortisol.

Increase:

*Vitamin C intake to 1-2000 mgs a day – this vitamin has been shown to reduce cortisol levels. (Don’t drink orange or other juices to increase your vitamin C as they are high glycemic foods.)
*Omega 3 Fatty Acids – Take Cod Liver Oil (1 Tablespoon Daily) to combat insulin resistance and reduce cortisol levels. The omega 3’s in Cod Liver Oil will help your cells absorb insulin and other nutrient your body needs.
*Exercise – which will help to use the glucose in your bloodstream and lower your blood sugar.
*Sleep – When your body doesn’t get adequate sleep, it depends on cortisol to provide the energy it needs. Remember, we’re trying to reduce cortisol, so getting enough rest will help your body to get along without the additional cortisol.

Implement these recommendations and watch your belly fat start to melt and your health improve.

No matter someone’s age, weight, height…no matter if they’re not particularly pretty or handsome…a person’s unfavorable features seem to become less significant as soon as they display a beautiful, warm smile.

Per actual survey, a smile is what people remember most about others.