Diet is Important to Good Oral Hygiene

At Alta Loma Dental Care, we advise our patients to eat as healthy as possible. To prevent cavities and maintain good oral health, it is important to understand how certain foods can damage your teeth.

When possible, we encourage our patients to avoid eating foods that are high in carbohydrates and sugar. Bacteria in your mouth turns sugars and carbohydrates into acids that break down your tooth enamel and cause tooth decay.

Foods that are healthy for your body and your teeth include lean meats, cheese, nuts, fruits, and green vegetables. The calcium and phosphorus in these foods help to protect your tooth enamel and gives your teeth minerals that are removed by acidic foods.

Along with following a healthy diet, we encourage you to floss and brush your teeth twice a day to prevent tooth decay. Don’t forget to make an appointment with us for cleaning and a check-up twice a year.

To learn more about all of the services we provide at our practice, visit www.altalomadental.comfor more information. To schedule in our Alta Loma, CA office, call Alta Loma Dental Care at 909-987-6268. 

Electronic verses Traditional Toothbrushes

There are a lot of options to choose when getting a new toothbrush. We advise our patients to change toothbrushes every 3-4 months or when their bristles are worn down. If the bristles begin to get splayed and distorted, means you are no longer effectively brushing your teeth.

You have two options when choosing a toothbrush: you can use a traditional toothbrush or an electric one. We encourage our patients who have trouble brushing for a full two minutes to get an electric toothbrush. Electric bristles rotate to help you remove plaque from your teeth and gums more effectively. If you are thorough with brushing your teeth for two minutes, a traditional toothbrush works perfectly fine.

It doesn’t matter what kind of toothbrush you use as long as you are brushing twice a day with fluoride toothpaste. We advise our patients to schedule an appointment for cleaning twice a year with us. We want you to have your best smile!

To learn more about all of the services we provide at our practice, visit www.altalomadental.comfor more information. To schedule in our Alta Loma, CA office, call Alta Loma Dental Care at 909-987-6268. 

Avoiding Tooth Decay during the Holidays

It’s the time of year for feasting, toasting, and sugary treats, so oral hygiene is especially important. We at Alta Loma Dental Care want our patients to be able to enjoy the holidays without getting a toothache later, so we thought it would be a good idea to point out some common sources of decay and how better choices can make for a better holiday season.

Oral bacteria produces acid was a waste product, which is what causes tooth decay. But tooth decay rates are more closely correlated with the amount of time sugar is left on teeth than the amount or type of sugar in food. When people snack on starchy foods such as crackers during family visits, the debris gets lodged in indentations or between teeth and it’s often several hours until they brush it away. The same is true of drinks such as apple cider, hot chocolate, lattes, and spirits, which leave a sugary residue on the teeth and are often drunk slowly. Sugary drinks such as sodas also dry out the mouth, preventing saliva from washing residue away.

People produce the most saliva when they are eating meals, so it’s best to limit sugar to those times. It’s also a good idea to carry sugar-free gum, which can dislodge some food debris in between meals, and to stick to hard candies that have been flavored with xylitol. If you’re traveling somewhere without fluoridated water, try taking some bottles with you. In between sipping sugary drinks, you can also take sips of water, which will rinse a little sugar away.

Alta Loma Dental Care is at 7283 Carnelian St, Alta Loma, California, 91701. To schedule an appointment, call 909-987-6268 or visit Alta Loma Dental Care and fill out a contact sheet.

 

How Diabetes and Gum Disease Interact

Bleeding gums are common, but they’re not healthy. We can provide deep cleanings of the gum pockets at Alta Loma Dental Care, but we need our patients to recognize when it’s time to get help. That’s especially important for people with diabetes, who have higher rates of gum disease. It’s not just their oral health that depends on good dental care.

People with diabetes are predisposed to chronic inflammation. When the body detects an infection, such as one in the gum pockets, inflammation is the immune system’s initial response. It helps to isolate pathogens and direct white blood cells to where they need to go. But inflammation is uncomfortable and has damaging effects if it persists long-term, and people with uncontrolled high blood sugar have difficulty fighting infections. So while gingivitis, or gum inflammation, is high in the general population, it’s even more common among people with diabetes. If it progresses, it can cause gum tissue to recede, leaving the teeth less supported. There is also evidence that gum disease makes it harder for the body to regulate blood sugar, resulting in a feedback loop.

Fortunately, gum disease treatments are effective interventions. But to stop gum disease before it starts, people with diabetes need to keep proper protocol when brushing and flossing and to keep regular appointments so we can provide below-the-gum cleanings.

Alta Loma Dental Care is at 7283 Carnelian St, Alta Loma, California, 91701. To schedule an appointment, call 909-987-6268 or visit Alta Loma Dental Care and fill out a contact sheet.

 

Why Do White Spots Form on My Teeth?

As a provider of the Six Month Smiles orthodontic treatment, we at Alta Loma Dental Care are particularly interested in our patients’ oral hygiene. Many patients understand that wearing braces presents new challenges to brushing and flossing, but they may not be aware of the specifics of an incipient, or white spot, lesion.

White spots are the first sign of tooth decay. When teeth are exposed to acid, they take on an unnaturally white, glazed appearance as the enamel begins losing minerals. The acid is secreted by bacteria when they metabolize food debris. It gets stuck in tartar, particularly in areas that patients often skip over while brushing, such as near the gum line and around orthodontic brackets.

Removing the bacteria’s food source by brushing more thoroughly usually is enough to prevent white spots from becoming permanent, but they can form in as few as thirty days. During monthly orthodontic appointments, we’ll assess whether patients are experiencing decay. Should the worst happen and a white spot becomes permanent, it can be covered with a veneer once the infection is killed. But we would rather patients ask to be shown how to improve their brushing technique before it’s too late.

Alta Loma Dental Care is at 7283 Carnelian St, Alta Loma, California, 91701. To schedule an appointment, call 909-987-6268 or visit Alta Loma Dental Care and fill out a contact sheet.

 

February is National Children's Dental Health Month

Alta Loma Dental Care is a family practice, and we’re proud to be observing National Children’s Dental Health Month. Each year, the American Dental Association sets aside this month to educate children on an important theme. This year’s focus is on how to properly use fluoride toothpaste.

Fluoride helps provide teeth with more protection against the acid caused by bacteria. It is commonly delivered through water and children’s teeth are treated with it during their check-ups. Although baby teeth are not permanent, it is still painful when they have decay. The pain may disrupt a child’s sleep, eating habits, and speech development, and cause them to perform poorly in school. Additionally, poor oral hygiene could become a habit, but if a child learns to brush properly, they will have taken their first step toward managing their own health.

When brushing, people should always use soft-bristled toothbrushes and brush for a full two-minute session. They should brush on every tooth surface and on their tongues. Fluoridated toothpaste should be spat out after use so that it doesn’t cause the teeth to develop white spots. It should also only be used on natural teeth, not on things like mouthguards.

Alta Loma Dental Care is at 7283 Carnelian St, Alta Loma, California, 91701. To schedule an appointment, call 909-987-6268 or visit Alta Loma Dental Care and fill out a contact sheet.

 

Tooth Decay in Seniors

We of Alta Loma Dental Care want patients of all ages to be able to enjoy healthy, comfortable teeth. A study conducted by the Centers for Disease Control found that the rate of untreated tooth decay in adults is surprisingly high and that as many as one in five seniors have untreated caries.  We don’t want our patients to ever resign themselves to bad oral health, so we need to examine why caries in seniors are common.

The survey indicated that there’s a lot of tooth decay in general, but seniors face some particular challenges. Some of them change their diets to include food that is softer, but higher in sugar. Forgetfulness is a problem with oral hygiene, but so is limited dexterity.  Dry mouth, which is a common medication side effect, damages the body’s ability to fight off oral infections, allowing decay-causing bacteria to flourish. Compounding all of this is the fact that seniors often did not benefit from water fluoridation when their teeth were forming, which leaves them more vulnerable to decay.

Regular dental hygiene appointments are crucial opportunities to spot and treat decay in seniors. They’re also opportunities to identify problems and recommend products which can provide solutions. Some toothbrushes come with specialized grips that are easier for people with manual problems to use. There are also products which make flossing easier and moisturizers to combat dry mouth.

Alta Loma Dental Care is at 7283 Carnelian St, Alta Loma, California, 91701. To schedule an appointment, call 909-987-6268 or visit Alta Loma Dental Care and fill out a contact sheet.