Besides trick-or-treat candy, Halloween also entails costume parties where tasty food is served. More often, this entails sweet confections, baked goods, and sugar-laden beverages. Whether you’re hosting a party or putting together a dish for your child’s classroom potluck, there are healthy Halloween party treats every bit as tasty as they are good for the teeth.

Halloween Party Treats Healthy for the Body and Teeth

1. Sugar-Free Punch

Most parties have the typical fruit punch bowl. Ordinary fruit punch is bad on so many levels. For one, it’s loaded with high fructose corn syrup. The fruit flavoring is also artificial, which means it has zero nutritional value. Finally, it often contains food dye, which according to our cosmetic dentists, stains the teeth. Instead, opt for punch flavored with a sugar-free substitute like Stevia.

2. Crackers and Cheese

In place of brownies or cupcakes, serve ham and low-fat cheese served on a cracker. The cheese is especially beneficial because it creates a film in your mouth that temporarily protects the teeth from acid erosion caused by sugar. Our family dentists commonly recommend eating a small serving of dairy before indulging in sweets. Continue Reading →

Brushing your teeth seems like a straightforward process. You just run the brush over your teeth a few times and that’s all there is to it, right? That’s how 90% of people brush. If you’re among this majority, then you’re not following the correct brushing technique. Here’s the right way to brush that our oral surgeons recommend.

The Correct Tooth Brushing Technique

Go at a 45 Degree Angle – Most people instinctively brush side to side because it feels natural. However, try using short, 45-degree angle strokes. Also, instead of moving the brush in a straight line, move it in an elliptical motion.

Brush for Two Minutes – You live a busy life; we get it. However, it’s in your best interest to spare two minutes twice a day to brush. Divide your teeth into four quadrants and spend 30 seconds on each using the technique described above. Going way longer than two minutes, though, is counterproductive and can lead to sore gums and enamel erosion.

Storing Your Toothbrush

Yes, there is also a technique for storing your toothbrush. After using and rinsing the brush, remove excess water. Store the brush upright and not flat on the counter. Continue Reading →

Some people are under the impression that a crown is indestructible. Just about any endodontist will tell you that this is wishful thinking. A crown can decay much like regular teeth. It’s also susceptible to cavities and tartar buildup. Read on to learn how to care for your dental crowns.

How Crowns Decay

Plaque tends to collect at the margin. This is the area where the crown and tooth meet. Decay can weaken the crown’s foundation, thus requiring the fitting of a new one. In other words, it’s not the crown itself that is vulnerable to plaque, but rather the tooth structure that supports it.

Click here to see a photo of decay taking place where the tooth and crown come together.

The crown itself will also eventually wear out. With proper care, though, they can last upwards of 25 to 30 years and even beyond that. Continue Reading →

Home teeth whitening kits are quite popular among teens and young adults. Why wouldn’t they be? They are an over-the-counter product that supposedly makes your teeth milky white with a single application. Is it as effective as an in-office procedure from a dentist, though? More importantly, are they safe?

Safety of Home Teeth Whitening Kits

For the most part, as long as you follow instructions, teeth whitening kits are relatively safe. There are no known side effects or links to heath issues. If used in excess, however, they may erode enamel and leave the dentin layer beneath exposed and vulnerable. Parents especially need to caution their teens against overuse. During childhood, kids lose their primary teeth and develop their permanent teeth. Since the latter is still maturing in adolescents, the surface isn’t as resilient as fully developed enamel.

Effectiveness of Teeth Whitening at Home

Whitening kits, for the most part, should achieve the level of whiteness advertised on the label. It should be noted, though, that the kits often contain about 10% less bleaching agent than formulations used by cosmetic dentists. Brightness and shading can also be more precisely adjusted to achieve a more natural appearance at a clinic. Furthermore, the presence of implants or restorations may require professional treatment since their coloration cannot be altered through bleaching alone. Continue Reading →

Americans love coffee, and for good reason. The caffeine is an effective pick-me-upper that fires up the senses. While a cup of Joe certainly has its benefits, it’s not exactly the most dental-friendly beverage. There’s a link between coffee and dental health that goes beyond staining teeth.

Coffee Is Acidic

It’s not just lemonade and OJ that is acidic. Coffee can also be quite acidic and erode tooth enamel over time. Consider drinking through a straw and avoid swishing the liquid in your mouth. Most family dentists also advise rinsing your mouth, or better yet, drink a full glass of water afterwards. H2O dilutes the acid. It also keeps you hydrated – a big plus since caffeine is known to dehydrate the body.

It Causes Bad Breath

Drinking too much coffee may give you horse breath. Caffeine dries out saliva; without saliva, bacteria can build up and cause your mouth to smell like a landfill. Fortunately, foul breath can be remedied by popping in a mint or sugarless gum. Continue Reading →

Like Thanksgiving, Christmas is also a time of delightful treats and hearty food on the table. Some of these foods, while satisfying for the taste buds, are everything your oral surgeon warns you against. There are healthy Christmas treat alternatives, though, that are every bit as yummy.

Eat This, Not That

No: Candy Canes

Schools and mall Santa Clauses are handing out candy canes. Any form of hard candy is bad for the teeth due to the extended period it remains in the mouth.

Yes: crunchy vegetables

Yeah, we’re recommending that you and your kids suck on crunchy vegetable sticks instead of a candy cane. If that’s too bland, then add peanut butter, hummus, or cream cheese to kick it up a notch.

No: White Wine

White wine contains sugar and is much more acidic than most other wine varieties. If you must have white wine, consume it with a meal. Continue Reading →

Thanksgiving is usually one of the few days out of the year where “clean” eating goes out the window. While it’s certainly a day for enjoying your favorite foods in greater quantities, keep in mind that some of the food on the table harms your oral health as much as it does your general health. You don’t have to completely eschew your favorite dishes, but we do advise that you make a few modifications for healthy teeth this Thanksgiving.

Eat Dessert During Instead of After Meals

Surly, there will be an assortment of pies, gingerbread cookies, and other sweets. Obviously, the best solution would be to avoid dessert altogether. Of course, we know most people aren’t going to do that. The next best solution then is to eat the sweets with the main meal as opposed to after. The extra chewing from the other foods stimulates saliva flow that prevents sugar from clinging to the teeth.

Watch Out for Teeth-Staining Foods

Red wine and cranberry sauce are other Thanksgiving favorites. Drink and eat too much of these, and you’ll be visiting your cosmetic dentist to have the stain removed from your teeth. The good news is that you don’t have to avoid these foods entirely to maintain your pearly whites. Consume the foods in conjunction with a serving of cheese, which forms a protective barrier between the enamel and food. Cheese and other dairy products also help lower pH levels in your mouth, thus creating a less acidic environment.

Consider Alternatives

If you’re preparing the dessert from scratch, then limit the sugar. Table sugar is the root cause of root canals; any reputable endodontist will tell you that. In place of sugar, try Manuka honey. It contains Hydrogen peroxide and chlorhexidine gluconate. These natural chemicals have antibacterial properties and are used in some mouthwashes for fighting gingivitis.

Get a Dental Checkup

The holiday isn’t a reason to take time off from seeing your family dentist in Mukilteo. In fact, there’s even more reason to get a checkup considering you’ll probably be eating more foods that don’t exactly contribute to oral longevity. These oral health tips outlined by Mukilteo Dental Arts will help ensure that you maintain healthy teeth this Thanksgiving.

Maintain Your Bright Smile this Thanksgiving

General family dentistry for Mukilteo, Everett, Lynnwood, Edmonds & Mill Creek

Edited by Justin Vorhees

It’s that time of year for ghostly decorations, horror movie marathons, and Monster Mash playing repeatedly on the radio. Halloween is the one day of the year where you lighten the limit on the amount of sugary treats you allow your children to enjoy. Nevertheless, you should still set some rules; otherwise, it won’t be long before your kids need an oral surgeon because their teeth rotted from all those sweets. Follow these Halloween dental tips for healthy children’s oral habits.

1. Create a Candy bank

Establish a candy bank and allow your children to make a limited daily withdrawal. Give them five or so tickets a day, which they have to give you before they can take a candy from their trick-or-treat bag.

2. Offer Healthier Alternatives

All candy with sugar is bad for your teeth, but hard, sticky, or nougat-filled candies are the worst offenders. Since they remain longer in the mouth, the sugar lingers as food for bacteria, which converts the sugar molecules into acid. Acid causes enamel erosion, which ultimately results in cavities that require treatment by an endodontist.

Offer your kids a trade-off where you swap out the hard and sticky candy for miniature solid chocolate bars or candy sweetened with a sugar substitute. Continue Reading →

It’s that time of year again for children to begin school. If you pack your children’s lunch, is the meal you’re preparing healthy from a dental standpoint? A healthy-looking lunch may be lacking in nutrients vital to the development of your child’s teeth and gums. Before you prepare another meal for your kid’s school lunch, read about what you should include and avoid for a balanced and healthy school lunch.

The Ideal School Lunch

The basic, homemade school lunch includes a sandwich, fruit, a bag of chips and a juice box. This is a fairly nutritious meal, but how might each of these be improved?

Sandwich – Whatever sandwich you prepare – whether it be PB&J or ham and cheese – use whole wheat bread. White bread is made from refined flour that breaks down into sugar. Essentially, it’s just as bad for your teeth as a sugary treat. Like sugar, refined flour converts into lactic acid when it mixes with saliva. Lactic acid is the culprit responsible for tooth enamel erosion. Continue Reading →