plaque

Flossing is one of the more overlooked (and frequently skipped) steps to good dental hygiene. Dentists agree it’s an essential part of dental care. But if it seems like your floss is getting stuck between your teeth more often than your food does, it’s tempting just to brush your teeth and skip flossing. Don’t do it!

The Academy of General Dentistry cites flossing as the most important line of defense in fighting plaque. Flossing removes plaque and food particles that a toothbrush can’t reach, which leads to fresher breath and a reduced risk of gum disease and tooth decay.

The American Dental Association recommends brushing teeth for two minutes twice a day as well as flossing (or using another interdental tool) to clean between the teeth once a day. If your floss keeps getting stuck, there are solutions to help you floss with ease.

Reasons why floss may be getting stuck between your teeth  

Dental floss is thin, but it can still get wedged in between teeth. This happens more often when you are experiencing one or more of the following:

• Your teeth are set too close together.
• There is plaque build-up between teeth.
• Tooth enamel or restorative dental work has started to break down and creates uneven surfaces between the teeth.
• You use an improper flossing technique. Are you making one of these common flossing mistakes?

How to prevent floss from getting stuck

Not all dental floss is created equal. Sometimes, switching types of floss can aid in preventing it from getting stuck in between your teeth.

Unwaxed dental floss, made of nylon fibers, is more likely to get stuck, shred, or break while flossing. Waxed dental floss is sometimes thicker because of the wax coating, but the wax also enables it to glide more smoothly between teeth.

Polytetrafluorethylene floss is another synthetic floss that is stronger than most conventional waxed or unwaxed varieties. It is also slick, which allows it to slide easily through the tight spaces in between your teeth.

Proper flossing technique 

If your dental floss routinely gets stuck between your teeth, you might need to adjust your flossing technique to make flossing easier and more effective.

No matter what type of dental floss you choose, start with a strand about 18 inches long. Wind most of the length around your two middle fingers, leaving just a couple inches between your hands. Pull the floss tight, holding it taut with your index fingers and thumbs.

Use a gentle sawing motion to guide the floss between your teeth, moving it up and down. When the floss reaches the gum line, bend the floss into a C-shape around the tooth, allowing the floss to reach all the way to the base of the tooth.

Still working gently, scrape the floss against the base of the tooth, working on one side of one tooth and then moving to the side of the adjacent tooth.

Continue to use the up and down sawing motion, as you move, and be gentle! Keep the floss taut against the surface of your teeth to remove plaque, and avoid letting the floss dig into the gums, which can cause irritation, redness, and bruising.

After each tooth, unwind a clean section of floss from your fingers. Make sure to get into each crevice between the teeth, including the hard-to-reach teeth in the back of your mouth! When you're finished flossing your entire mouth, remember to rinse well to remove any leftover bits of plaque or debris.

If you're going to make an effort to floss, follow proper flossing technique to prevent your floss from getting stuck in the tight spaces in your mouth. Your teeth will thank you!

If you continue to experience problems flossing, visit Water Tower Dental Care! We can take a look at your teeth to see if there are any serious issues causing flossing to be difficult for you and teach you the proper way to floss in person.

Flossing has been making headlines recently thanks to the U.S. departments of Health and Human Services Agriculture’s Dietary Guidelines for Americans. The most recently released guidelines did not include flossing, which was once a recommended activity for daily health. But does this mean you shouldn’t floss every day? No, not at all. Not flossing can lead to serious dental problems. Trust us - we’ve seen how skipping the string can damage your oral health over and over again.

Though the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services didn’t include flossing in its 2015 dietary guidelines due to a lack of evidence, the department stated that this does not imply that flossing is not an important oral hygiene practice. In fact, the department stated that cleaning between teeth with floss is an important oral hygiene practice, and, along with professional cleanings and tooth brushing, has been shown to disrupt and remove plaque, according to the American Dental Association (ADA).
When it comes down to it, the U.S. Department of Health and Services didn’t include flossing this year because of a lack of documented research that flossing benefits you, not because it doesn’t actually provide any benefits. Flossing research is notoriously known for being high in costs and taking a long time, which explains why there isn’t a substantial amount of research showing its benefits. After all, it can take years to develop gum disease or tooth decay due to not flossing.
Here are four reasons why flossing every day is extremely important, and why you definitely shouldn’t stop now.

Clears Out Plaque in Tight Spaces

Sure, brushing can take care of plaque. But brush bristles can’t effectively clean out the tight spaces in between your teeth. And mouthwash typically isn’t powerful enough to move plaque that’s stuck between teeth. This is where floss comes in. Floss and interdental cleaners can clean out plaque that builds up between your teeth better than any other tools. Getting rid of that plaque will help to prevent cavities from forming in between your teeth and lower your risk of developing gum disease.

Fights Off Gum Disease and Tooth Decay

Scraps of food and bacteria can easily get stuck in the areas where your teeth and gums meet. These particles and bacteria can eventually transform from plaque into tartar, a hard deposit that can lead to tooth decay and gum disease.
If you don’t get rid of hard-to-reach plaque with floss, you may notice that your gums become red and swollen and bleed easily. This is a sign that you have gingivitis, a mild form of gum disease. Left untreated, the plaque and tartar can spread deeper into your gum line, causing more severe gum disease (periodontitis), which can lead to tooth and bone loss. Bacteria can also eat away at your enamel and teeth, causing tooth decay.

Gets Your Teeth Looking as Good as New

Nobody wants to look at a smile only to find big clumps of plaque and rotting food between the teeth. Flossing your teeth can help to make your smile look beautiful by keeping it clear of the nasty stuff that can build up inside your mouth. This will result in a bolder, brighter smile.

Fresher Breath

Flossing isn’t all about oral health and appearance. It can also make your breath smell better than ever! If you don’t floss, food can sit in between your teeth and rot for weeks. As you can imagine, this doesn’t make your breath smell too great. Flossing will keep rotting food particles out of your mouth and allow saliva to effectively move through your teeth, keeping everything clean and smelling great!
Flossing every day is essential to your oral health. Without flossing, you wouldn’t be able to get rid of hard-to-reach plaque, which can lead to serious gum disease and tooth decay over time. Learn more about how often you should floss and common flossing mistakes here.

Many people substitute honey for sugar because of its supposed health benefits. But how does honey stack up to sugar when it comes to teeth? Surprising to many who use honey as an alternative sweetener, honey is mostly made up of sugar, which explains its sweet taste. Let’s take a look at whether the type of sugar that makes up honey is good or bad for your teeth.

What is Honey?

You probably already know that bees create honey. But what exactly is honey? Honey is actually made from the nectar of flowers. Looking deeper into what actually makes up honey, the United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) reports just over 82% of honey is sugar.
When it comes to sugar content, honey is about 30% glucose and less than 40% fructose, while regular sugar is made up of 50% glucose and 50% fructose, according to Keith Kantor, Ph.D., on Huffington Post. There are also about 20 other sugars in honey. So, as you can see, there isn’t a huge difference between sugar and honey.

Is Honey Good or Bad for Your Teeth?

Since honey is mostly made up of sugar, you shouldn’t consider it good for your teeth. Bacteria love sugar, whether it’s from honey or somewhere else, and will use the energy they get from sugar to multiply on your teeth. As they grow, they form more and more plaque. The bacteria in plaque excrete acids that eat away at your teeth, forming cavities and propelling tooth decay.

Is Honey Better for Your Teeth Than Sugar?

When it comes to your teeth, sugar is sugar. The BBC notes that your body does not differentiate where free sugar comes from, whether it’s honey or table sugar. However, since honey contains more complex sugars, it does take your body more time to break down honey. This means you have more time before the bacteria begins multiplying in your mouth than with sugar. Without proper oral hygiene, sugar from honey, fruit, table sugar, or anywhere else can be detrimental to your teeth.
When it comes to honey, there are much better sugar alternatives for your teeth out there. Polyols like xylitol, sorbitol, maltitol, and isomalt are great options. Learn more about the best sweetener alternatives for your teeth here!

How to Take Care of Your Teeth After Eating Honey

Now, just because honey isn’t great for your teeth doesn’t mean you have to stop eating it forever. As long as you consume a moderate amount of honey and practice proper oral hygiene, your teeth should be just fine. Here are a few tips to keep your pearly whites as healthy as possible after eating honey:

• Wash your mouth out with water or mouth washing right after eating. This will help wash away as much honey as possible so that it can’t sit on your teeth and attract bacteria.
• Since honey tends to stick to your teeth, it’s important to brush your teeth after consuming it. Make sure to use toothpaste and brush effectively using these techniques!
• If you have an addiction to honey, visit a dentist to see if your teeth have been negatively affected. We’ll let you know if it’s time to cut down or not, and provide you with ideas for honey alternatives. We can also fill in any cavities or damaged enamel with enamel remineralization.

While people usually focus on keeping their teeth pearly white, your gums should not be overlooked. Even if your teeth are as healthy as they can be, your gums may not be free from disease. As gum disease is usually painless, it often goes unnoticed. Gum disease, however, is treatable and the damage can fortunately be reversed. Learn more about gum disease and treatments at home to prevent your gums from looking like this!

Gum Disease: What is it?

Gum disease is caused by plaque buildup. Without proper oral hygiene, plaque can build up along your gum line and ravage your teeth! Gingivitis will cause your gums to become inflamed, red and swollen, making your gums prone to bleeding when you brush. Periodontitis is an advanced form of gum disease, damaging the bones that hold your teeth in place.

Signs You May Have Gum Disease!

According to the American Dental Association, signs you may have gum disease include:

• Bad breath
• Receding gums
• Swollen/red gums
• Gums that bleed easily
• Tooth loss

Home Treatments for Gum Disease

While nothing can replace visiting the dentist, if you have experienced any of the symptoms related to gum disease, there are home remedies that can help to keep your gums healthy.

1. Hydrogen Peroxide: This chemical works as an agent to kill germs and fight gum disease. Mix the 3% solution with water and wash out your mouth once a day to help treat gum disease
2. Oil pulling: In this method, oil pulls toxins right out of your mouth! Swish an organic oil such as sesame seed oil around your mouth once a day, until it turns milky, then spit it out. This should get your gums in tip top shape in no time! Learn more about oil pulling here.
3. Aloe Vera: This plant has great natural inflammatory properties. Swish some aloe vera juice around your mouth, or rub some aloe vera gel on your gums to help reduce swelling and gum disease.
4. Garlic and Turmeric Toothpaste: With both foods having natural antibacterial properties, making and using a garlic and turmeric toothpaste is a great home remedy to gum disease.
5. Drinking Green tea: Besides being good for the body, green tea has natural antioxidants that will help reduce gum inflammation.
6. Warm saltwater rinse: Saltwater can help reduce inflammation and kills deadly bacteria, Check out more of the benefits of saltwater

Along with these home treatments for keeping your gums healthy, you should visit a dentist if you experience gum disease symptoms. Let Water Tower Dental Care take care of you. Learn about some of our treatments.

Ways to Prevent Gum Disease and Keep your Gums Healthy

Gum disease can be prevented with good oral hygiene. Here are a few ways you can prevent gum disease on your own at home, before you even have to worry!

1. Floss Daily, Brush Twice a Day. Both flossing and brushing will prevent plaque and food buildup, helping to keep your gums nice and healthy.
2. Therapeutic mouthwash. Using an antibacterial mouthwash will help reduce plaque and gingivitis.
3. Fluoride toothpaste. Use fluoride toothpaste, which will keep your gums looking fresh and reduce plaque.
4. Do not smoke. Smoking is associated with the onset of gum disease as it weakens your immune system. Keep your body in grade-A shape by avoiding this habit altogether.
5. Get regular checkups and cleanings! Nothing can replace getting your teeth cleaned regularly by a professional, as well as getting a regular checkup to prevent gum disease at the beginning, before gingivitis turns into periodontitis. If you have a family history of gum disease, regular checkups are especially important and may need to be more frequent, as gum disease can be genetic. Come into Water Tower Dental Care today to get started!

Everyone hates teeth discoloration, which is why whitening strips are so popular. But what do you do when the discoloration appears in the form of white spots on your teeth? Although these spots are primarily a cosmetic concern, they can affect oral health and should be treated.

Causes

White discoloration on teeth, more common yet less discussed, are due to the demineralization and loss of enamel on the tooth. Common causes of demineralization include poor brushing habits and poor diet choices. White spots (or hypoplasia) can form in children if there is disruption in enamel formation, or if you use too much fluoride toothpaste.
When these unsightly white spots appear in adults, they are often the sign of tooth decay and plaque formation. When plaque builds up, bacteria forms that leads to demineralization, the first step in tooth decay. This can be common when braces are taken off, as plaque often builds in hard-to-reach places underneath braces (white spots are often more common in orthodontic patients).

Preventing White Discoloration

While treatments for these white spots are available (we’ll discuss these later), prevention is also possible. Here are a few easy steps you can take to prevent white spots from appearing on your teeth!

1. Brushing well! Nothing prevents demineralization and plaque buildup better than brushing thoroughly two times a day.
2. Flossing every night. Flossing can also help drastically reduce plaque buildup and therefore reduce those unappealing white spots!
3. Less soda, more water.  Soda causes acidic buildup, which demineralizes your teeth faster. Drink more water to help prevent this.
4. Eat healthy, snack less. Choosing foods that contain less sugar (and therefore less demineralizing bacteria) that break down calcium in the teeth will help prevent decalcification and the formation of white spots. Consider mineral and calcium rich foods, such as milk and cheese. Also, try to eat foods high in magnesium, as this mineral helps your body absorb and retain calcium.

Treating White Spots

Especially in orthodontic cases, white spots that form may need to be treated, despite preventive measures that were taken. Here are some of the best treatments for white spots on your teeth.

1. Bleaching your teeth. Dentists can professionally assess the damage and bleach your teeth to make these spots less visible, as well as seal enamel in order to strengthen your teeth again. At Water Tower Dental Care, we use Zoom! Teeth Whitening to bleach teeth in under an hour!
2. Composite bonding. In this procedure, resin is molded onto your teeth, helping to conceal white spots and giving you a straighter, whiter smile.
3. Air or microabrasion.  Consider techniques in which your dentist can remove spots by scuffing the area with abrasive material. These techniques should only be used for small to medium white spots, as too much abrasion can further damage your teeth.
4. Topical Remineralization Therapy. These prescription toothpaste and gel treatments help remineralize your teeth faster by treating the microscopic holes causing the white spots. The photo above and to the right shows a patient of ours before and after enamel remineralization therapy.

In all, white spots are undesirable to most. While prevention is ideal, treatment is often necessary. Luckily, Water Tower Dental Care can help with this white discoloration treatment to get your teeth sparkling white again!

When it comes to taking care of your teeth, there’s a lot more you can do than just brushing and flossing. In fact, those are just the first two steps to keeping your teeth healthy. Adding oral probiotics to your teeth-cleaning routine will help to ensure that you keep cavities away and an attractive smile going.

What Are Probiotics?

Probiotics have been growing in popularity for years because of their ability to improve digestive health. But in recent years, probiotics have also been found to improve your oral health by naturally getting rid of cavity-causing plaque. So what exactly are probiotics and how are they so helpful?
The National Center for Complementary and Integrative Health defines probiotics as live organisms that are intended to have health benefits. Typically, these live organisms are good bacteria. Yes, you read that right. Bacteria can be good for you - and even for good your teeth. Probiotics work by crowding out the bad bacteria in your mouth with good bacteria. The more good bacteria there are in your mouth, the less room there will be for bad bacteria to grow and rot your teeth, slowing down the plaque build-up process. While foods like yogurt are full of probiotics, the probiotics derived by this kind of food can’t fight bacteria in your mouth like it can in your stomach.

 How Can Probiotics Help Your Mouth and Teeth?

So now that you know that probiotics can cause less bad bacteria to grow in your mouth, you’re probably wondering how exactly that helps your teeth and mouth. Evora, a maker of oral probiotics, notes that there are three major ways that the ProBiora3 probiotics improve your oral health:

• They support gum and tooth health.
  Since less bad bacteria will be growing on your teeth and gums, probiotics will help to keep your teeth healthy. Mayo Clinic writes that high levels of bad bacteria can cause gum disease and tooth decay. 
• They make your breath smell better.
  Stinky breath is caused by bad bacteria sitting in your mouth. Since probiotics don’t allow a lot of room for the bacteria that cause bad breath to grow, your mouth should smell a lot better.
• They whiten your teeth over time.
  ProBiora3 probiotics from Evora produce low doses of hydrogen peroxide. Over time, these low doses gently whiten your teeth. Unlike other teeth whitening treatments, you won’t feel any sensitivity or gum irritation from this natural teeth whitening process.

Probiotics are an important addition to everyone’s dental health routine. Though they don’t replace brushing and flossing, probiotics do support these activities, making your teeth and gums even healthier. All you have to do is eat probiotics a few times a month to make a difference in your mouth.
If you’re interested in learning more about probiotics or purchasing them for the first time, speak to our dental experts at Water Tower Dental Care. We would love to help you pick the best type of probiotics for your teeth and gums and help you better understand how they make your smile look its best.

When it comes to taking care of our teeth, we generally hear the same kind of advice all of the time: brush and floss everyday and don’t eat too much candy. While this advice is extremely important, there are a lot of additional ways to keep your teeth healthy as well. We asked our dentists at Water Tower Dental Care to share some tips for taking care of your teeth that you probably haven’t heard before. Here are 6 unusual teeth tips straight from our dentists.

1. Eat Cheese (In Moderation)

Believe it or not, cheese is good for your teeth! Like the peroxide-based teeth-whitening solutions we described earlier, cheese helps to neutralize acids in your mouth, increasing your pH levels for about 30 minutes, according to the Academy of General Dentistry. This means less bacteria breeding in your mouth and less teeth erosion. Cheese also causes salivation, which helps get rid harmful bacteria and food particles. Finally, cheese contains casein phosphate, which keeps your teeth strong. Unfortunately, this doesn’t mean you should eat all of the cheese that you possibly can. You only need about ⅓ of a slice to get these oral benefits.

2. Whiten Your Teeth For Health & Cosmetic Reasons

While teeth whitening can make your teeth look better than ever, its benefits aren’t purely cosmetic. Teeth whitening can also help keep your teeth healthy by removing plaque and preventing tooth decay. Recent research has found that teeth whitening products that contain a peroxide-based solution can effectively get rid of plaque, reduce caries bacteria, and increase the pH level of your mouth, according to Professor Van B. Haywood.
When the pH level in your mouth becomes too low, this means that it is highly acidic. If your pH level is highly acidic, bacteria will begin to breed and your enamel will break down. Peroxide-based teeth-whitening solutions will neutralize your pH levels to a healthy 7 or 8, reducing the acidity in your mouth. This is especially helpful after you eat or drink highly acidic food, such as coffee, wine and citrus fruits. Ask us about our at-home teeth whitening kits to help your teeth look and feel healthier today!

3. Keep Your Mouth Healthy With Coconut Oil

Coconut oil has a ton of health benefits, from decreasing cholesterol levels to helping diabetes. It turns out that coconut oil is great for your oral health too. Through a method called oil pulling, coconut oil can actually help pull bacteria off of your teeth for a healthier and cleaner smile. All you have to do is swish around a teaspoon of coconut oil in your mouth for about 20 minutes. Of course, you should still keep up with your regular routine of brushing, flossing and using mouthwash.
If you’re questioning the validity of this claim, good for you. You shouldn’t believe everything you read on the Internet, especially when it comes to oral health. Thankfully, there are various studies, including the following three, that have proved that oil pulling effectively fights off bacteria: Study 1, Study 2, Study 3. You can read more about oil pulling for your teeth here.

4. Use Oral Probiotics For Your Mouth

In the past, probiotics were thought to only help digestive and immune health. But recently, probiotics designed specifically for oral health have been found to naturally support gum and tooth health, make your breath fresh and whiten your teeth. Effective probiotics trigger the production of healthy bacteria that work to keep your mouth and gums healthy. They also reduce the nutrients for bacteria that cause bad breath, and produce low doses of hydrogen peroxide to gently whiten your teeth. Learn more about oral probiotics from Evora.

5. Don’t Use Your Teeth As Tools

While it may be more convenient to open that bag of chips with your teeth rather than finding scissors, using your teeth as tools can have serious (and expensive) consequences. Many of our patients have come in with broken, cracked or chipped teeth because they tried using their teeth to cut or open something. Your teeth are meant for chewing food in your mouth - Not for anything else. It’s not worth the pain or the price to fix your teeth.

6. You Can Use A Reversal Agent for Mouth Numbing

Some patients avoid important dental procedures because of the irritating and sometimes damaging numbing sensation that they experience hours afterwards. While it’s great to be numb in the dentist’s chair, it’s not so great when you’re hungry a couple hours afterwards. At worst, some patients chew their lip and gums because they can’t feel what their teeth are doing. Many patients may drool and not be able to talk properly, smile, or eat and drink because their mouths are numb. Thankfully, at Water Tower Dental Care, we offer reversal agents for teeth numbing, so that you can return to feeling your mouth much faster, and avoid the painful and embarrassing after effects.
We hope these unusual tips from our dentists, along with your normal health routine, help you to make your teeth even healthier. If you would like any more tips, reach out to us on our Facebook page. We’re full of helpful and creative ways to keep your teeth looking and feeling as good as new!

There are a lot of conflicting opinions if apples are good for your teeth or not. Seems odd that it’s even a question. How could the fruit recommended to keep the doctor away hurt you? A few years back, the Toronto Star published some negative effects of an apple on your teeth. However, we don't believe this settles the case on if an apple is bad for your teeth or not. We think it's a tricky grey area, an apple can actually help your teeth and keep them healthy- just as long as you eat it right. These are the true food villains that are bad for your teeth.

How Is An Apple Good For Your Teeth

An apple helps both your teeth and your all-around oral hygiene. Think of it as a natural toothbrush. The fruit, that's rich in fleshy fiber, helps scrub your teeth, gums, and tongue. The skin of the apple especially, which is extremely high in fiber, can scrub against your teeth and help remove stains and fight plaque.
Furthermore, Apples are great for getting rid of bad breath. That natural fiber helps remove the traces of plaque and residue that harbor in the back of your tongue and throat that create the bad breath. The acidity of the apple helps kill any bad bacteria that may cause the bad breath as well.

How Is An Apple Bad For Your Teeth

The Toronto Star claims from a study published by UK's Journal of Dentistry, that an apple's acidic structure can be harmful to your teeth. This is true; foods high in acidity can damage the dentine in your mouth. Dentine is the layer of tooth just under the enamel. The acidity of an apple can eat away at your dentine and damage your teeth.
As well, apples have high sugar content, and we all know how bad sugar can be for your teeth. Furthermore, apple juice, along with most fruit juices, is highly acidic as well and can be harmful to that dentine.

Don't Stop Eating Apples!

However, though apples can hurt your teeth, their benefits greatly outweigh the risk. Not only can apples help our teeth, they can help regulate our blood sugar, are low in calories and are a great source of dietary fiber. The negative effects of apples are easily preventable and mostly depend on your apple eating habits. If you want the good benefits of apples without the negative impact, follow these steps:
1. Eat your apple in a single sitting. Don't graze an apple. The longer the acidic elements are in your mouth, the more harm they can do.
2. Eat apples with other snacks. Munching on a piece of cheese, milk, or some bread can help neutralize the apple's acidity. Especially if its a food high in calcium.
3. When finished with an apple, swish your mouth with water. This will help release and flush away the acidic elements that are hiding between your teeth.
4. Wait about 30 minutes before brushing your teeth after eating an apple. If you brush too soon after, the sugars from the apple will scrub off your enamel. Use water to flush as much out before brushing.
If you follow these steps, apples will never be harm to you. In most cases, no food will be of harm if you follow these steps. Proper oral hygiene by brushing and flossing everyday will especially help. And, of course, a visit to your dentist for a special cleaning every six months will keep you safe from serious oral issues. Call Water Tower Dental Care today to set up an appointment.