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Part of every dental checkup is making sure all of your teeth are strong and healthy. Drs. Don and Mindy will have you open wide to look at your teeth, use special little mirrors to get a good look around each tooth, and take X-rays to make sure your teeth are healthy both inside and out.

Why does your dentist want to check each tooth so carefully? One big reason is to look for cavities. What are cavities, and why don’t you want them? We have some questions and answers if you’re cavity-curious!

Just What Is a Cavity?

A cavity is a little hole in your tooth caused by tooth decay.

A Hole in My Tooth? How Did It Get There?

Most of the time, we get cavities because of plaque buildup.

Plaque is a sticky film that builds up on our teeth all through the day. It’s mostly made up of saliva (or spit), tiny bits of the food we chew, and germs called bacteria.

The bacteria in plaque use these food particles from our meals for their own food. Part of the way they use that food is to create acids.

Even though our teeth are very strong, acids can make them weaker as they break down the hard enamel on the outside of the tooth. This is the start of tooth decay. As time goes by, and more acids attack our tooth, a weak spot can grow larger and deeper, making a hole in the tooth.

Why Are Cavities Bad for My Teeth?

If a cavity gets too big, it can reach the inside of your tooth. Inside each tooth, we have pulp. Healthy pulp keeps our tooth alive, and it contains nerves which can feel pain. This is why a deep cavity gives you a toothache. If the pulp is damaged, your tooth is in danger.

How Can My Dentist Help?

When you have regular checkups, Drs. Don and Mindy can find small cavities and treat them before they become big ones. This helps keep your smile healthy and toothache-free!

To start, your dentist will give you medicine to make the area around your tooth numb if you need it. When your tooth is numb, your dentist will clean away all of the decay with special small drills. They can be noisy, but they won’t hurt.

Once all of the decay is gone, your dentist will fill the hole with—a filling! A filling can be made of metal or a material which matches your tooth color.

When your appointment is finished, your tooth will be free from all the bacteria that were hurting it, the hole in your tooth will be filled, and you’ll be able to eat and bite and chew just like you could before. But what’s even better than treating a cavity? Preventing one!

How Can I Prevent Cavities?

There are lots of ways to get a cavity. Sometimes it’s caused by what people do, like eating lots of the foods which cavity-causing bacteria love. Sometimes, a cavity is caused by what people don’t do, like not brushing and flossing enough. And some people get cavities even with careful brushing and a healthy diet, so they might need extra help to protect their teeth.

Here are three very good ways to help stop cavities before they ever start:

• Don’t Feed the Bacteria!

The bacteria in plaque like sugars and starches because these foods are the easiest for them to use. And when they get more food, they make more acids. Desserts and sodas, soft breads and chips, and sugary cereals—these foods make tasty meals for bacteria and they stick to your teeth. Eating a balanced diet without too many sugary and starchy treats means fewer acids—and fewer cavities!

• Brush and Floss

Brushing at least twice a day helps get rid of the sticky plaque holding those cavity-causing bacteria. Flossing helps remove plaque where your brush has a hard time reaching, like the spaces between your teeth. Your dentist and hygienist can show you the very best ways to brush and floss to get rid of the most plaque.

• Cavity-Fighting Treatments

Your dentist can also treat your teeth to help keep cavities from ever starting, especially if you’re someone who gets cavities more easily. Professional cleanings at our Charleston dental office and dental sealants are two ways to protect teeth from plaque and bacteria. Your dentist will have some ideas just for you.

Together, you and your dentist make a powerful cavity-fighting team. If you have any questions about keeping your teeth their healthiest, your dentist has the answers!

As more people turn to bottled water and away from the tap, they may be missing out on one important ingredient that most brands of bottled water fail to include: fluoride! Because fluoride helps strengthen teeth, it is an important component of maintaining good oral health. Our friends at the American Dental Association have endorsed both community water fluoridation and the use of fluoride-containing products as a safe means of preventing tooth decay.

In fact, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention has also warned that “bottled water may not have a sufficient amount of fluoride, which is important for preventing tooth decay and promoting oral health.” If you are avoiding fluoridated tap water in favor of ever-more-popular bottled water, you could be missing out on the levels of fluoride necessary to make a difference in your oral health. One 2012 study in the Journal of Pediatric Dentistry found that more than 65 percent of parents using bottled water did not know what levels of fluoride it contained.

If bottled water happens to be your or your children’s beverage of choice, check the label to make sure your brand contains fluoride. Of course, simply drinking fluoridated water is not a magic ticket to perfect teeth. To keep your pearly whites in tip-top shape, it’s important to brush and floss daily and avoid sugary sweets, in addition to maintaining your fluoride intake.

Questions about fluoride? Give us a call at our convenient Charleston office! We look forward to hearing from you!

Did you know that the most common oral health diseases are tooth decay and gum disease? Not so coincidentally, they are also the easiest to prevent. As much as we would like for the brushing and flossing to do all the work for us, in reality, we really are what we eat — and a healthy diet is just as important for dental health as it is for the rest of the body.

Eating well boosts your immune system, and makes you less susceptible to gum disease and tooth decay. When you maintain a balanced diet, you provide your body with all the nutrients it needs to succeed. So what does a healthy, balanced diet entail? It’s really quite simple. Here are some tips:

1. Focus on lean meats, veggies, whole grains, and healthy fats.
2. Limit your intake of sugary drinks like energy drinks and soda.
3. Keep your sweet tooth in check.
4. Beware of acidic meals and snacks that are high in salt and sodium.
5. Drink lots of water.

Unfortunately, there’s no “one size fits all,” magic diet that will automatically improve your oral health, but following the five guidelines above as best you can is a great way to start. Food and drinks that are high in sugar or acidity weaken your enamel, stain your teeth, and make you more likely to develop a cavity or gum disease.

At Kanawha City Pediatric Dentistry, we like to encourage our patients to drink a lot of water during the day. Doing so not only keeps you hydrated, but also helps rinse out the sugar and acid from various things you’ve consumed during the day.

If you think your diet might be affecting your smile, come pay Drs. Don and Mindy a visit or give our Charleston office a call! We’re always happy to answer your questions.

Our grandmothers and grandfathers, our moms and dads—we’ve known them our whole lives. So, why are they so hard to shop for?

If your older family members have all the sweaters, socks, and scents they need, consider a gift that can make life a bit easier and perhaps a lot healthier—an electric toothbrush!

• Easy Efficiency

The most important reason to choose an electric toothbrush is its effectiveness. Several studies have shown that regular use of an electric toothbrush leads to a marked reduction in plaque, that bacteria-filled film which sticks to the teeth and leads to cavities and gingivitis. And it’s really no surprise that an electric brush can out-perform a manual brush.

Using a manual brush is not just a matter of applying toothpaste and scrubbing. Proper technique means short brush strokes at a 45-degree angle for the outer and inner surfaces of the tooth, thoroughly cleaning the uneven chewing surfaces of the molars, and brushing the inside of the front teeth with gentle vertical strokes. Meticulous cleaning of all these surfaces can be difficult, especially for people with dexterity issues.

Electric toothbrushes offer several options, from oscillating/rotating brushes to oscillating/rotating/pulsating models to brushes using sonic vibration technology. What they all have in common is the ability to remove plaque far more effectively than we can on our own, because they provide the equivalent of thousands and even tens of thousands of brushstrokes per minute, as opposed to the hundreds we can achieve by hand.

• Comfortable Control

An electric toothbrush can be not only more efficient, but also more comfortable for older brushers. For those with arthritis, limited mobility, injuries, or other health conditions, the larger handles can be easier to control and much more grip-friendly. And, with the work being done by the brush head, users avoid repetitive hand and wrist motion.

Also, the pressure applied to teeth and gums with an electric brush is designed to clean thoroughly while protecting the mouth. Heavy-handed manual brushing can irritate delicate gum tissue and even damage enamel over time. With an electric brush, users only need to guide it along teeth and gums as it supplies all the power needed. There are even pressure sensors available to warn users that their brushing is too vigorous.

• Apps, Anyone?

If your grandfather likes to keep things old school, a basic model with a convenient two-minute timer and several cleaning modes will offer all the bells and whistles he needs. But if your nana has more Instagram followers than you do, consider a more tech-savvy option.

Several of today’s electric brushes come with features designed to make brushing even more effective. They can let her know if she’s brushing long enough, alert her if she’s brushing too hard, and remind her that it’s time to replace the brush head. Some models link to handy apps that will map out just where she’s brushed, in case there are a few spots that get overlooked. Or choose a model which comes with a travel case that can recharge while she’s busy seeing the world.

Okay, all that being said, we’ll admit it—a toothbrush might not be the most glamorous gift your grandparent unwraps on that special day. But helping a favorite family member brush more effectively and comfortably while improving dental health? That’s a gift that keeps on giving!