We all know that an apple a day keeps doctor away. Eating apples is considered very healthy, but it is not covered by being good and useful for our dental health. According to the experts at King’s College London Dental Institute, eating certain varieties of apples can be as much as four times more dangerous to our dental health than drinking carbonated drinks. The findings of new researches have shown that eating an apple a day could be linked to more dental damage than consuming such foods as grapefruits or pickled onions. However, as the scientists confirm, it is important to how much but how we eat it. Such beverages as wine and light bear were also found quite harmful.

Professor David Bartlett, a head of prosthodontics department and a leader of the study, comments on it as the following: ‘Doctors quite rightly say that eating apples is good, but if you eat them slowly the high acidity levels can damage your teeth. The drinks most often associated with dietary erosion, particularly cola, showed no increased risk.’

During the tests, specialists looked at the links between tooth enamel wear and certain food consumption. About one thousand men and women aged between 18 and 30 were invited to participate in the study. It turned out that those who like eating 1-2 apples a day are actually 3.7 more times to suffer from dental damage compared to those who drink various fuzzy drinks on a daily basis. In addition to raised acid levels, some varieties of apples contain also increased amounts of sugars, which are also very harmful to our dental health. Fruit juices were also considered increasing the chances to have dental problems.

In order to lower the mentioned negative effects of consuming fruit, specialists recommend supporting eating apples or drinking fruit juices with a small slice of cheese or a sip of milk. These products contain calcium which have a great property to neutralize the activities of acidic components. Rinsing your mouth with a mouthwash or just drinking water can also be a great and effective decision. Dr Glenys Jones, nutritionist at the Medical Research Council’s Human Nutrition Research unit, offers more solutions for this problems: ‘Drinking fruit juice and smoothies with a straw is a way of protecting your teeth. Brushing your teeth before eating acidic foods can also help because it provides a barrier between the food and the teeth.’

Tags: apples, dental health

Posted: October 17th, 2011 under Miscellaneous.
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All of us know so well that preventive dental care is one of the most effective tools and factors to lower the risks of very serious dental problems and diseases. However, more and more experts are point on modern tendency to neglect easy rules of dental care. Certainly, people with good jobs and proper insurance in the economically strong countries of the world observe the rules more or less regularly. We brush our teeth twice a day, floss and follow the routine of biannual dental check-ups. We teach out children and grand children to do the same. However, there are many nations with extremely high risks of dental problems. For those, regular dental check-ups and even daily dental care is something luxury.  Moreover, there’s no access for them to good or high quality dental care.

There is some worrying statistics even about today’s citizens of the US.

For adults:

• Every year, 164 million working hours are lost due to dental problems and emergency situations with adult working people.
• Every year, about 30,000 Americans are being diagnosed with pharyngeal and other types of oral cancer, and every year about 3,000 Americans die from these cancers. At that, five-year survival rate for people with such type of cancers is 56 percent for white Americans, and 34 percent for African Americans.
• For a great deal of modern Americans, whose parents did not pay attention much on regular dental care of their children, periodontal diseases, cavities and other dental problems contributed greatly in the development of diabetes, stroke, heart disease and other serious health conditions.
• About 23 percent of today’s Americans aged over 65 have severe periodontal disease.

For children:

• Every one of four children from low-income families never see a dentist prior entering kindergarten.
• Every year, about 51 million school hours are lost due to various dental problems of children.
• Currently, tooth decay is the leading chronic disease of children aged between 7 and 17. It is 7 times more common than hay fever and 5 times more common than asthma.

It is very important for everyone of us to pay proper attention on dental care issue. And it is very important to remember that for those who can not afford dental check-ups or dental care services, there are numerous government and charity programs to support nation’s dental health. To name just one: recently, the Delta Dental of New Jersey Foundation $11.7 million to local universities for free dental care services, for education programs and dental researches. The main purpose of these grants is to decrease the effects of overwhelming lack of dental care in modern society.

Tags: dental care, dental health, dental problems

Posted: August 13th, 2011 under Miscellaneous.
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In hot summer days we all enjoy getting involved in various summer activities like outdoor sports and playing games, cycling, swimming and many more. However, sometimes these bright and long days get darkened by sudden dental emergencies. For all of us who want to avoid such dejecting situations and spend the whole summer away from dental clinics and dental offices, dental specialists from the Connecticut State Dental Association (CSDA) created a small list of special tips which can help everyone to take a proper care about their teeth and keep their mouths safe.

• Summer is the best time for swimming, and if swimming in natural water reserves like seas, lakes or rivers is linked to less possibilities of dental damage, swimming in public pools is connected with increased risks of having tooth damage. First of all, it can be accompanied with possible physical damage like a broken tooth or a broken jaw which can be caused by falling down on a slippery surface, hitting the edge of the pool and other awkward movements. In addition, the studies have shown that water in the pools is usually rich in various chemicals used for cleaning and disinfecting, however, very harmful to our dental health. Therefore, try to rinse your mouth with a mouthwash or at least clean drinking water after swimming in a public pool.

• Playing games and getting involved in other various outdoor activities can also cause traumas and dental damage. It is especially valid for children, who like playing baseball, basketball and other team games. Dental specialists recommend protecting children’s dental health and making the youngsters wear a mouth guard, a special protection system which can be purchased and goes in a variety of sizes and colors. If your child’s tooth is broken, make him rinse the mouth, clean the area around the tooth, place cooling compress if necessary and call your dentist immediately.

• Summer is also a time for BBQs, and it is very easy to receive a cracked tooth or other tooth damage as a result of chewing or biting some hard foods like meat, popcorn,candies, nuts, ice and so on. Besides, a serious danger to our dental health is imposed by drinking various sugary carbonated drinks, eating sweets, chocolates and so on. A cracked tooth sometimes does not reveal itself at once, but further on such symptoms as toothache, sensitivity to hot or cold foods and others will start showing up. It is very important to call your dentist immediately after you discovered that you have a cracked tooth. Also, in case of cracked tooth it is recommended not to use aspirin or other types of painkiller (if it is possible) prior to seeing your dentist.

Tags: dental care, dental health

Posted: June 18th, 2011 under Dental Care for Every Day.
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