Category: General and Preventive Dentistry

When we’re on the go, it’s easy to grab a beverage from the nearest fast food restaurant or convenience store. My dental office in Holland wants to talk about an important, handy accessory that commonly comes with these to-go drinks – the straw.

How Can Straws Help Teeth?

It might seem strange that a bendable piece of plastic can actually help keep teeth from potential harm, but it’s actually true. One of the biggest benefits of using a straw is avoiding potential stains from dark beverages such as coffee or tea. It may seem strange to swig these drinks through a straw, but when you do, it means your drink has less contact with your teeth.

My Holland dental office also wants you to know that drinking beverages without a straw basically bathes your pearly whites in whatever it is you’re drinking. This means that your drink of choice is left lingering on your teeth’s surfaces long after your cup is empty. Choosing a straw over sipping directs liquids away from your teeth, reducing your exposure to sugar-packed, stain-inducing drinks and the risk of tooth damage.

Can Straws Help Hygiene?

When it comes to quenching your thirst, there are other things to worry about besides diverting your beverage away from teeth. Did you know dishes or your handy to-go cup can play host to germs? The truth is, bacteria and germs are always lurking in and around your home and restaurants on glasses and cups. Pretty gross, huh? But by sticking a straw in your cup, you can successfully avoid these germs and bacteria. The less bacteria you introduce to your mouth, the less likely your are to get cavities and suffer from decay. So while it may seem like a silly, easy thing, straws really can help keep your teeth healthy and reduce the need for advanced dental treatment.

Straw Power – Bonus Benefit!

By using a straw, we are able to easily adjust how much of a beverage we take in at one time. So this means the risk of choking is greatly reduced. Taking in smaller amounts at a time can also help you avoid mouth burns when drinking hot beverages.

Your dentist in Holland always wants you and your teeth to be as healthy as possible. We care about giving you the tips and tricks to always ensure your smile is free of cavity-causing bacteria. It may seem strange, but using a straw is a great way to do just that. These handy, bendable plastic beverage necessities help you and your teeth enjoy drinks both hot and cold.

Accepting new patients from Holland, Saugatuck, Zeeland.

When you have a toothache, all you want to do is make it go away. At my Holland dental office, we’re always willing to help ease your toothache pain, but what can you do if a toothache strikes when you’re on vacation or when we aren’t open?

What is a Toothache?

Toothaches can be caused by a number of issues. Most of the time, decay or a cavity is to blame. However, sometimes it’s something more. Severe tooth pain could be a sign of infection, gum disease, a tooth injury, or teeth grinding. No matter what the reason is, it’s important to realize a toothache is your mouth’s way of telling you, “Hey! Something isn’t right in here!” and to call your dentist in Holland as soon as you can. The longer a toothache is left untreated, the need for more advanced dental treatment, like a root canal, rises.

What to Do

There’s no telling when a toothache may happen, and occasionally they occur when you can’t get in to see your dentist. That doesn’t mean you have to suffer through the pain until your appointment There are some common at-home toothache remedies you can do to try and take the edge off.

• Rinse occasionally with warm salt water, but do not swallow it. The concoction can help extract fluid away from the painful area which eases pressure on the nerves. Less pressure on nerves means less pain.
• Use floss to very gently remove anything that may be lodged in between teeth.
• Take an anti-inflammatory medication if your health history allows it.  However, don’t ever place the painkiller directly on the gums as it may cause burning and damage to the tissues.

Avoiding Toothaches

The best way to never get a toothache, or at least reduce your risk of one, is to maintain dental checkups and teeth cleanings every six months. Regular dental visits help catch any problems that may be lurking early. When caught early, most dental problems can be treated easily, before they have a chance to turn into an annoying and painful toothache.

If you’ve been avoiding the dentist and it’s time for a checkup, or if you’re experiencing a toothache, call my dental office in Holland. We’ll get you scheduled for an appointment and take care of any problems you may have. Don’t let a toothache sneak up on you…. schedule an appointment today.

Accepting new patients from Holland, Saugatuck, Zeeland.

First and foremost, toothpaste should be used to brush your teeth. That’s obvious. But at my Holland dental office, we’ve been hearing of other possible ways toothpaste can be helpful around the house, besides just as a daily teeth cleanser. We thought we’d share some of the top uses for toothpaste with our patients because, after all, we’re here to help with whatever we can (except actually cleaning your house).

• Tired of that foggy mirror? After a steamy shower, the bathroom mirror clouds up, basically becoming unuseable until the fog evaporates. To avoid a fogged up mirror, wipe it down with toothpaste before hopping in the shower.

• Want a sparkling faucet? Sink faucets tend to get pretty grody, especially in the bathroom. Usually covered with splatters of toothpaste and backsplash of soapy water, bathroom faucets can take on almost a spotted look. Use toothpaste (yes, we just told you add more toothpaste to the already toothpaste-speckled faucet), and then sponge it up. Viola! Sparkling faucet.   

• Miss how white your sneakers once were? There’s something to be said about new sneakers. They’re crisp, white, and super clean. Until you wear them. The more shoes get worn, the more discolored they get. But with the help of a little toothpaste, you can take them to white again. Just gently scrub them with toothpaste.

• Did your kid Picasso the coffee table with permanent marker? It happens. Kids get ahold of a permanent maker and start doodling away on the closest surface, which just so happens to be your coffee table. Don’t panic. Internet users widely support the use of applying a dollop of toothpaste to the table, gently rubbing it in, and wiping it off for a clean, marker-free coffee table.

Of course, being a dentist and having a team full of people who are passionate about teeth, we can’t stress enough how our favorite use for toothpaste is actually using it to keep your smile healthy. Make sure you’re using it to brush twice a day, at a minimum. Besides a good at-home oral hygiene routine, maintaining regular dental cleanings and exams with your dentist in Holland is the best way to reduce the need for cavity fillings or other types of dental procedures like root canals, onlays, or crowns.

We recommend visiting us at least once every six months. If it’s been longer than that since you’ve had a dental checkup, call my dental office in Holland to schedule an appointment today.

Welcoming patients from  Holland, Saugatuck, Zeeland.