by Richland Group | May 3, 2023 | Blog, Healthy Smile
The month of May is National Show Your Smile Month and we want to promote the benefits of smiling, including improving one’s mood, reducing stress, and making others feel happy. During the next few weeks Dr. Drew & Crew would love to see your smiles. When posting on social media tag us so we can see your smiles.
Along with a campaign to smile more, this also aims to raise awareness about the importance of good oral hygiene and the benefits of regular dental check-ups. It encourages people to take care of their teeth and gums to maintain a healthy smile. Overall, “National Show Your Smile Month” is a fun and positive campaign that promotes happiness and good oral health.
by Richland Group | Apr 15, 2020 | Beautiful Smile, Blog, Healthy Smile
There’s been a lot of changes in the past couple of weeks, but one thing isn’t changing the way it works: our old nemesis, tooth decay. With adjustments to routines and finding new ways to organize our days, we must continue to maintain good oral hygiene. Dental offices might be postponing non-emergency appointments, but that doesn’t mean your oral care has to stop altogether! Here are our main tips for taking care of those pearly whites and help fight tooth decay during this time:
- Wash your hands – wash for 20 seconds before and after any personal dental care
- Brush twice a day for at least 2 minutes – be sure to get those hard-to-reach areas!
- Floss once a day – this helps remove bacteria and build up in places that a brush can’t reach
- Limit sugary drinks and snacks – too many sugars can harm the surface of teeth and lead to cavities
- Keep your dental tools clean – place your toothbrush, floss, and any other items that go into your mouth in places that don’t touch other items
With a well-kept oral routine, you can help protect your teeth against decay during this time!
Although we are closed for routine cleanings and appointments, please note that we are open for dental emergencies. If you are experiencing extreme pain or swelling in the mouth, please contact our office and we will help provide the care that you need.
Our office wishes the best for our patients now and always. We look forward to seeing you all in our office again!
Dr. Drew and Crew
by Richland Group | Feb 3, 2020 | Blog, Healthy Smile
February is National Children’s Dental Health Month and we are excited to help promote the benefits of good oral health to children, caregivers, teachers, and those around them! This year’s NCDHM campaign slogan is “Fluoride in water prevents cavities! Get it from the tap!”
Did you know that tooth decay (i.e. cavities) is the most common chronic condition of childhood in the U.S. According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC)? Roughly 1 in 5 children ages 5-11 have at least one untreated decayed tooth. That’s 1 in 5 too many! Dr. Drew and Crew wants to help children beat this statistic and have a healthy, strong smile.
The good news is that tooth decay is preventable! For more than 60 years, water fluoridation has proved to be a safe and cost-effective way to reduce dental caries. Today, water fluoridation is estimated to reduce tooth decay by 20%-40%! By choosing to drink from the tap and having children brush their teeth using tap water, you’re greatly reducing the chances of decay!
Some other healthy-smile tips to keep in mind are:
- Brush your teeth twice a day with a fluoride toothpaste
- Clean between your teeth daily
- Eat a healthy diet that limits sugary beverages and snacks
- See your dentist regularly for prevention and treatment of oral disease
Creating healthy oral habits at a young age helps protect teeth against the potential damage of disease and decay. Contact Dr. Drew and Crew today to schedule your child’s appointment!
https://drdrewandcrew.com/contact
520 S. 14th St.
Fort Smith, Arkansas 72901
479-242-373
by Richland Group | Oct 17, 2019 | Blog, Healthy Smile
It’s almost time for elaborate costumes, festive decorations, and pillowcases full of sweet treats. Trick-or-Treating can be one of the most fun activities for kids of all ages. I mean, think about it. Traveling about in a costume and getting candy, it’s a child’s dream! But it takes special care and consideration to ensure that a sweet-tooth dream doesn’t become a dental nightmare. Yikes.
Below are suggestions on how to maintain healthy teeth amid all the sugar.
Go Trick-or-Treating on a Full Stomach
This is one of the biggest tips on how to prevent sugar overload the first night of receiving candy. Kids will inevitably want to have a few pieces of their favorite treat while walking around neighborhoods, but going out on an empty stomach can lead to overeating on sweets. This leads to a two-fold consequence: gooey teeth and an upset stomach. Eating a full meal before beginning trick-or-treating can help eliminate the amount of candy consumed along with the door-to-door festivities.
Out of Sight, Out of Mind
Keeping all the Halloween candy out in an open area may seem like a great decor option, but it could lead to over consumption of sugary snacks throughout the day. Passing by a festive bowl can lead to grabbing one, two… maybe five pieces of candy at a time and forgetting to clean teeth afterward. Keeping the candy bowl out of sight allows for a more controlled “sweet treat” time.
Brush, Brush, Brush!
Just like any other time of the year, it’s important to maintain routine brushing in the morning and evening. When it comes to consuming an increase in sugar, increasing the number of times you brush your teeth isn’t a bad idea either. Remember, quality brushing takes a minimum of two minutes. O, yeah.
Worried the extra sweets have caused extra cavities? Contact Dr. Drew and Crew to set up an appointment today.
https://drdrewandcrew.com/contact/
520 S. 14th St.
Fort Smith, Arkansas 72901
479-242-3739
by Richland Group | Jul 1, 2019 | Beautiful Smile, Blog, Healthy Smile
Trying to find creative ways to get your children excited about brushing their teeth can sometimes feel like… well, like pulling eye teeth. But we have some great tips to make the twice-a-day routine enjoyable for everyone.
Set a Good Example
First and foremost, helping your children develop good oral hygiene starts with you, the parent. By making a point to brush and floss – that’s right, floss – around your kids, then they’ll do what you do. This lays a strong foundation for teaching them how long to brush (two minutes!), how to brush, and how to floss.
Make Brushing a Household Event
Did you ever think that morning and evening routines can be more than just an individual task? Getting everyone together, especially with raising young tots, to brush teeth helps continue to set a good example as well as pull everyone together at the beginning and end of the day. A win-win!
Select the Toothbrush
Making brushing fun can start before you even brush. Allowing your child to choose his or her toothbrush gives them the opportunity to get excited about the routine. Music-playing brushes, Disney characters, superheroes, bright colors, lights, animals, sounds, and more: The possibilities are endless! If kids are excited about their toothbrush, they’ll be even more excited to put it to good use.
Keep a Routine
Practice makes perfect, right? Practicing the same routine morning and night can help your young ones get used to when they have to start brushing on their own. By going to bed after the same series of events, kids learn how to not only have good oral hygiene habits but also an calming nightly routine.
Need a little extra help in perfecting that brushing and flossing routine? Dr. Drew and Crew is here to help!
https://drdrewandcrew.com/contact/
520 S. 14th St.
Fort Smith, Arkansas 72901
479-242-3739
by Richland Group | Apr 30, 2018 | Blog, Healthy Smile, Prevention
Enjoying a long run with rave reviews is The Tooth.
Taken together, teeth constitute an engineering marvel. Individually, each tooth is an elegant design of function and beauty in three parts. Let’s look behind the scenes.
Cue the overture, bring up the curtain. Presenting: The Tooth.
Act I: Enamel
The spotlight is on the brilliant enamel!
The hardest tissue in the body is enamel. Enamel consist of parallel, near-translucent rods of calcium and other minerals. This crystalline structure can take on most foods. However, chomping on other crystals – such as ice or hard candy – can fracture the enamel. Let’s not cut the enamel from the show.
Enamel does not like acid. Acids eat away at the enamel structure. Acidic foods, such as lemons, over time can damage enamel. Moderate your intake of acids.
The acid most likely to beat up enamel is from bacterial plaque. The bacteria take up the sugar in your diet, break the sugars apart for the energy, and spit out the waste, which is acid. This is where cavities come from: Germ poop.
Toothbrushing mechanically takes off the bacteria and their acids. Saliva buffers the acids and has antibodies that attack the bacteria. Fluoride binds the minerals in the enamel, thus making the structure more resistant to bacterial onslaught.
But the defense you have most control over is your diet. The American diet is terribly high in sugars. Watch what you eat and drink. Read labels. Pare down sugars. It won’t kill you to skip the colas and candy. Eat some veggies and proteins.
Your enamel will applaud you.
Act II: Dentin
The plot takes a twist at the dentin.
Beneath the enamel is another hard tissue called dentin. Dentin is not as hard as enamel and contains more organic material than enamel. Due to these two facts, dentin is more susceptible to decay. A cavity slowly eats away the enamel, but once in the dentin, the cavity balloons out and feasts on your tooth. Poor dentin. See the above advice on brushing, using fluoride, and avoiding sugar.
Exposed dentin can be frightfully sensitive, especially at the root. Let us know if you’re having sensitivity issues. We, the backstage crew, can help.
A short intermission, then the finale.
Act III: Pulp
Enter the dark, mysterious setting of the pulp.
The most interior layer of the tooth is the pulp. Pulp is soft tissue, where the supporting cells of the tooth reside. The pulp is lodged in the hard casing of the dentin, so if the pulp is damaged due to decay or trauma, it’s trapped and dies. This would lead to extraction or root canal treatment.
How can you avoid these villians? For one, wear a mouthguard during contact sports.
Oh, and another, stay away from that dratted sugar! Brush and floss. These things help all three parts of your tooth.
One last encore: To head off potential problems, get your regular dental check-ups.
We’re here to help you keep the amazing performance of your teeth.
