As they mature, your child's teeth, gums and jaws develop—if all goes well, they'll all be healthy and functioning normally when they enter adulthood. But tooth decay and other problems could derail that development and cause lingering oral health issues later in life.

Following these 4 guidelines now during your child's early years will help ensure their teeth and gums have a healthy future.

Start oral hygiene early. There's no need to wait for their first teeth to come in to begin your child's regular oral hygiene. Start with wiping their gums right after feeding with a clean wet cloth to minimize bacterial development. Then, start brushing as soon as teeth appear—to begin with, use a slight smear of toothpaste on the brush. As they mature, teach them to brush and later floss for themselves.

Check your water. Most utilities add tiny traces of fluoride to their drinking water supply. If your water supplier does, it can make a big difference (along with fluoride toothpaste) in helping your child avoid tooth decay. If your system doesn't, then speak to your dentist about whether your child could benefit from topical fluoride applied directly to their teeth.

Keep a check on sugar. Decay-causing bacteria thrive on the sugar added to processed foods, candies and many beverages. Even milder forms of sugar like lactose found in milk or formula can stimulate bacterial growth. So, in addition to daily brushing and flossing, do your best to minimize sugar in your child's diet. And don't put infants or toddlers to bed with a bottle filled with any liquid other than water.

See the dentist. Starting around their first birthday, regular dental visits can help keep your child's dental development on track. Dental visits are also an opportunity for preventive treatments against decay like sealants or topical fluoride. Your dentist may also detect the early signs of bite problems that if addressed now, could lessen their impact later in life.

Your child's dental health could get off course before you even realize it. But partnering with your dentist, you can help make sure your child's teeth and gums have a bright and healthy future.

If you would like more information on how best to care for your child's oral health, please contact us or schedule an appointment for a consultation. You can also learn more about this topic by reading the Dear Doctor magazine article “Top 10 Oral Health Tips for Children.”

Ashley Graham has a beautiful and valuable smile—an important asset to her bustling career as a plus-size model and television host. But she recently revealed on Instagram a “confrontation” between one of her teeth and a frozen oatmeal cookie. The cookie won.

Holding her hand over her mouth during the video until the last moment, Graham explained how she sneaked a cookie from her mom's freezer and took a bite of the frozen treat. Taking her hand from her mouth, she revealed her broken tooth.

Okay, maybe it wasn't an actual tooth that was broken: the denticle in question appeared to have been previously altered to accommodate a porcelain veneer or crown. But whatever was once there wasn't there anymore.

Although her smile was restored without too much fuss, Graham's experience is still a cautionary tale for anyone with dental work (and kudos to her for being a good sport and sharing it). Although dental work in general is quite durable, it is not immune to damage. Biting down on something hard, even as delicious as one of mom's frozen oatmeal cookies, could run you the risk of popping off a veneer or loosening a crown.

To paraphrase an old saying: Take care of your dental work, and it will take care of you. Don't use your teeth in ways that put your dental work at risk, tempting as it may be given your mouth's mechanical capabilities.

 Even so, it's unwise—both for dental work and for natural teeth—to use your teeth and jaws for tasks like cracking nuts or prying open containers. You should also avoid biting into foods or substances with hard textures like ice or a rock-hard cookie from the freezer, especially if you have veneers or other cosmetic improvements.

It's equally important to clean your mouth daily, and undergo professional cleanings at least twice a year. That might not seem so important at first since disease-causing organisms won't infect your dental work's nonliving materials. But infection can wreak havoc on natural tissues like gums, remaining teeth or underlying bone that together often support dental enhancements. Losing that support could lead to losing your dental work.

And it's always a good idea to have dental work, particularly dentures, checked regularly. Conditions in the mouth can change, sometimes without you noticing them, so periodic examinations by a trained dental provider could prevent or treat a problem before it adversely affects your dental work.

We're glad Ashley Graham's trademark smile wasn't permanently harmed by that frozen cookie, and yours probably wouldn't be either in a similar situation. But don't take any chances, and follow these common sense tips for protecting your dental work.

If you would like more information on care and maintenance of cosmetic dental work, please contact us or schedule a consultation. To learn more, read the Dear Doctor magazine articles “Porcelain Veneers: Strength & Beauty as Never Before” and “Dental Implant Maintenance.”

As part of the fight against COVID-19, many of us have been wearing some form of face mask in public for most of 2020. While it's intended for good, mask wear has had some unintended consequences. For one, it's inhibited the expression of one of our most important social abilities—smiling.

We're all hoping, though, that 2021 will be different—that our smiles will once more shine out from behind our masks. If and when that happens, you'll want to be ready: Here are a few things you can do in the new year to give your smile a nice upgrade.

Teeth whitening. Fighting teeth yellowing is an ongoing battle. Certain foods, staining beverages and habits like smoking can take the gleam from your smile in no time. But you can brighten up dull teeth with a professional whitening treatment. And because our bleaching solutions are stronger than you'll find in your local retail store, the shine could last for years with only an occasional touchup.

Orthodontics. Straightening teeth orthodontically not only can improve your dental health and function, it could revamp your smile (you might call it the original “smile makeover”). Even if you're well past your teens, an orthodontic correction may still be a viable option. And if you're concerned about your appearance during treatment, you might be able to take advantage of nearly invisible clear aligners.

Bonding. A chipped tooth can certainly detract from an otherwise attractive smile, but it may not take extensive means to repair it. Many chipped or disfigured teeth can be made whole through dental bonding. This technique bonds a color-matched dental material called composite resin directly to the tooth. Best of all, the treatment may only take one visit.

Veneers and crowns. For more extensive chipping or staining, you can step up to a custom-made porcelain veneer or crown. Veneers are thin layers of porcelain that are bonded to the face of teeth to mask imperfections. Crowns cover a damaged but otherwise viable tooth to protect it and give it a more attractive appearance.

Dental Implants. If you have a missing tooth—or one that's simply past saving—consider replacing it with a dental implant. A dental implant attached to a crown is the closest thing we have to a natural tooth in both appearance and function. In fact, most people with implant-supported replacement teeth forget they have dental implants. We can also merge implants with other restorations like dentures or bridges for a more secure, comfortable hold and a more natural smile.

These and other cosmetic enhancements could make a big difference in your smile. To find out how, see us for a complete dental examination and consultation. We want you to be ready for what we hope will soon be a “mask-free” 2021.

If you would like more information about improving the look of your smile, please contact us or schedule a consultation. To learn more, read the Dear Doctor magazine article “Cosmetic Dentistry.”