Crown Problems

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by Lynnwood Song Dental

If you have a crown, it may occasionally give you problems. This can come from an improper fitting, decay, or simple wear and tear on the cement that holds your crown in place. Most crown problems are reasonably easy to remedy, but you will want to bring them to our Lynnwood dentistry clinic as quickly as you can in order to avoid more severe damage.

Firstly, a lot of people experience some degree of pain or sensitivity. When this happens, you may simply need to brush with a paste designed for sensitive teeth. If you experience pain when you bite down on your crown, the crown may be too high up; your dentist should be able to fix this problem for you.

Sometimes a crown will loosen or fall off. If this happens, a very vulnerable part of your tooth is exposed to decay. Be alert for a loose crown, and tell your dentist immediately if you notice anything askew. Should your crown come out, clean both the crown and the tooth and replace it with temporary dental cement until you can get it to your dentist to be refitted.

Protect Your Baby from Bottle Mouth!

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Our Lynnwood dental center wants your little ones to get a good start on their teeth, and there are few greater threats to an infant’s oral health than bottle mouth. The good news is that it’s an easy enough condition to avoid, if you’re aware of it, so simply follow these easy guidelines and you’ll save your baby from serious, catastrophic tooth decay.

The term “bottle mouth” comes from the fact that it generally arises from misuse of a bottle. Sometimes babies can fall asleep while drinking from bottles, and this causes the sugary substance within to pool in their mouths and linger for far longer than it should. As the baby sleeps, saliva production drops, so there is very little guarding his or her mouth from rampant decay.

With this in mind, never put your baby to sleep with a bottle of milk, juice, or any other sugary substance. Pacifiers are a good alternative, as is a bottle of regular water. To learn more about proper dental hygiene for infants, you can consult Song’s Lynnwood dental clinic.

Mix Up Your Brushing Routine!

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Brushing Your Teeth

When you get your routine check-up at our Lynnwood Dentistry, do you find that you’re developing plaque in the same places over and over again? Maybe you’ve even tried to pay more attention to brushing thoroughly, and you still experience the same plaque growth. If this is the case, the answer to your problem may be as simple as rotating your normal brushing routine.

Humans are creatures of habit, and it’s easy to fall into a strict pattern with your tooth brushing. You probably always start brushing in the same area every time you pick up your brush. This means that the same teeth are always getting your best attention, and you’re only getting to the other parts of your teeth after you’ve grown impatient, diluted your toothpaste, and lost focus on your routine.

To avoid doing this, pay attention to where you begin brushing and try to mix it up. Divide your mouth into four quarters, and focus on starting on a different quarter every morning and night. You may be surprised at the improvement you experience!

What is a Dental Abscess?

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by Lynnwood Song Dental

If you get a cavity, you want to get it fixed by our Lynnwood dentistry clinic as soon as possible. Otherwise, you are at risk of developing a debilitating infection that will cause you a lot of pain and grief. This infection is known as a dental abscess.

Cavities and Dental Abscess

The cause of an abscess is the same bacteria that causes cavities. When the cavity penetrates deep enough, the bacteria begins to flourish in the soft tissues and the bones of your face and neck. It manifests itself as a pain in your mouth, face, jaw, or throat region, and can include any of the following symptoms:

  • Redness or swelling in the mouth or face
  • Nausea and vomiting
  • Fever
  • Chills
  • Diarrhea
  • Tenderness
  • Pus drainage
  • Difficulty opening your mouth
  • Difficulty swallowing

Should you experience these symptoms, it is time to visit our dentist right away.

Do You Need to Remove Your Wisdom Teeth?

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Wisdom Teeth

Wisdom teeth are frequently the last teeth to erupt in your mouth, generally appearing as you enter adulthood. Our Lynnwood dental clinic offers wisdom tooth extractions, which are common and simple procedures that many adults have to go through. However, the idea that wisdom teeth must necessarily be removed is a common misconception.

If you have wisdom teeth, consider the impact they have on your mouth. Have they come in crooked? Are they crowding your other teeth, throwing your bite out of alignment or putting strain on your jaw? Finally, how easy is it for you to care for these teeth?

If their position makes brushing and flossing an ordeal, they could quickly turn into a hotbed of bacteria that could ruin your entire mouth. Any of these conditions can make you a candidate for a wisdom tooth removal. If you think you could live comfortably with your wisdom teeth, however, then you may very well be one of the lucky ones.

Call our office to schedule your wisdom tooth extraction, or to explore your options with your wisdom teeth.

Where is the Sugar Hiding?

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Hidden Sugars

You probably have a pretty good idea of what causes tooth decay. We don’t need to tell you that candy, bubblegum, and soda are among your mouth’s biggest enemies. Unfortunately, this isn’t the end of the story. Our Lynnwood Dentistry advises that you keep an eye out for some of the more unknown sources of sugar in your diet.

Sugar in Fruits

Some people assume that food that is healthy for your body is also okay on your teeth, but this is not always the case. Fruit, though highly nutritious, is one of the sneaker sources of sugar. They represent a great source of important vitamins and fiber, but even all-natural, organic fruit can be just as sugary as certain candies. This is especially true in the case of dried fruit and real fruit juices.

Other unlikely tooth rotters can show up in your medicine cabinet. Many medicinal items, particularly cough drops or gummy vitamins, are packed with sugar. A minute or two of sucking on a cough drop can be pretty rough on your mouth. Try to remember to rinse out with water.

What is Fluoride?

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You’ve probably heard the word “fluoride” before. It’s found in a lot of dental products, including many used at our Lynnwood Dentistry. But what is fluoride? Where does it come from, how does it help your teeth, and how do you know if you’re getting enough of it?

Tooth Enamel

Fluoride is a naturally-occurring mineral, found throughout the Earth’s crust and dispersed widely across nature. It’s important to your teeth because it reinforces your tooth enamel, keeping agents of tooth decay from penetrating into the more vulnerable reaches within and causing cavities. This enamel is routinely compromised by acids in the food you eat and other similar forces, so a proper application of fluoride is necessary to keep it healthy and strong.

It is for this reason that fluoride is popular in toothpaste, mouthwash, and even some varieties of floss. US cities even took on the practice of fluoridating their drinking water after discovering that cities with naturally fluoridated water had up to two thirds fewer cavities.

If your drinking water is fluoridated, a common fluoride toothpaste is probably all you need to give you your recommended level of fluoride. If you’re in doubt as to whether you live in an area with fluoridated water, try calling your local water district.

Clean Teeth for a Clean Body

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You may not be thinking about more than your teeth and gums when you make a visit to our Lynnwood Dentistry, but a properly maintained set of teeth has a greater effect on your overall health than you may realize. Your teeth are, after all, the gateway to your metabolism and most of your body’s fragile inner workings, so it should come as little surprise that good dental care is the first step to a sound body.

Consider how much harmful bacteria dwell in your mouth. Under normal circumstances, these microbes are easily held in check by your saliva and digestive system. If your oral health suffers, however, the bacteria can cause infections that can overwhelm your defenses and spread throughout your body.

What Poor Oral Hygiene May Cause

Poor oral hygiene has also been linked to cardiovascular disease. Excessive plaque in your mouth can be absorbed into the bloodstream, where it is at least as much of a menace as it is on your teeth. This can translate to poor circulation, high blood pressure, and heart disorders.

With this in mind, go the extra mile for your teeth. There’s a good reason that a healthy-looking smile is such a powerful reflection of your general well-being.