Federal Way Dentistry

Stress can have a serious impact on your health in general including your oral health. This is why our Federal Way dentistry clinic advises that you take appropriate steps to manage the stress that may exist in your life, for the sake of your teeth and gums. The possible dental ramifications of stress include all of the following:

• Bruxism, or tooth grinding, which breaks down tooth structure
• Canker sores, cold sores, and similar sores
• Gum disease, which can be aggravated by stress
• Overeating, particularly of comfort foods that contain a lot of sugar
• Depression, which causes people to neglect their dental care routine
• Nervous chewing habits, like chewing your nails or chewing ice, which is not good for your teeth

If you notice any signs or changes in your mouth or jaws such as pain, cold sores, etc., please contact our dental office today for a checkup.

Which toothpaste to use?

There are a lot of options when it comes to toothpaste. One of these is known as “tartar control”. What does this mean for a toothpaste, and is it a good option for you and your family? Our Federal Way dentistry clinic has the information you need.

The purpose of tartar control toothpaste is to grant greater protection against the growth of tartar. It achieves this with chemical compounds like zinc citrate and pyrophosphates, which have been demonstrated to be effective against tartar. Additionally, some tartar control toothpastes also contain antibiotics to help control the bacteria in your mouth.

Tartar control toothpaste can be a good option for many households. However, it is important to remember that such toothpaste is only good for preventing new tartar from forming, and not for the removal of tartar that has already hardened on your teeth. The only way to safely get rid of existing tartar is to have it scaled away by a trained dental professional, so never forget your regular cleanings with Bella Dental every six months.

Preventive Care

There is an unfortunately common idea out there that you don’t need to go to the dentist if you’re not feeling any pain. If there is one thing that our Federal Way Dentistry clinic wishes to impress on you, it’s that there is really no way of knowing whether or not you are suffering tooth decay unless you maintain a proper dental check-up schedule. Putting it off until your teeth actually start to hurt is a dangerous practice that can lead to serious, costly damage.

What you need to realize about tooth decay is that it can get pretty far into your teeth before it hits anything that can feel pain. You have a cavity the moment your oral bacteria manages to make a tiny hole in the razor-thin enamel at the surface of your tooth. Once this happens, it’s still free to dig through the tough, rigid dentin of your tooth before it reaches the soft pulp at the middle. This is the first time it interacts with one of your nerves and, once it reaches this point, you’re looking at a root canal.

Only by catching a cavity before it gets this far can you spare the tooth with a simple filling. And so, armed with this knowledge, be sure to come into Bella Dental in Federal Way every six months to give your teeth the proper check-up they need.

If you need to have a wisdom tooth extracted, our Federal Way dentistry clinic can make the experience quick and convenient for you. After your extraction, though, you will need to take certain measures to maximize your comfort and minimize your recovery time. Here are some tips regarding what to expect and what to do in the days following the removal of your tooth:

• Under normal circumstances, your recovery period shouldn’t last more than a few days. During this time, you will probably want to take painkillers or apply an ice pack to the outside of your mouth to reduce your pain and swelling.
• Avoid smokeable products of any kind. Your sensitive gum tissues are easily aggravated by the smoke.
• Favor softer foods, like soup and pudding. Reintroduce yourself to solid foods gradually as your condition improves.
• As you sleep, prop your head up with pillows. Laying flat on your back can encourage bleeding.
• Avoid using a straw, or any other activity that involves sucking. This can loosen your blood clot.
• Relax. An increased heart rate can encourage bleeding.
• After the first twenty-four hours, try rinsing your mouth a few times a day with salt water. You can make an appropriate salt solution by mixing one teaspoon of salt with eight ounces of warm water.

Patients suffering from chronic kidney disease should take even more care of their teeth than they otherwise might. According to a study coming out of the University of Birmingham in the UK, people struggling with both kidney disease and periodontitis have a greater risk of death, compared to those who have chronic kidney disease and healthy gums.

In this study, 861 chronic kidney disease patients were examined over the course of ten years. The team determined the cause of death for any who expired during this period, finding that the mortality rate of those who exhibited periodontitis was 41%, opposed to the 32% observed in the group with healthy gums.

It’s no mystery that your oral health has a close relationship to the rest of your health. The bacteria that thrives in your gums when you suffer from periodontitis enters your bloodstream and can aggravate your kidney disease. Since you may even have gum disease without realizing it, be sure to keep your regular check-ups with our Federal Way dentistry clinic.

According to the American Dental Association, the average 160-pound person should ingest about four milligrams of fluoride every day. This is why cities across the US fortify their drinking water with fluoride. In general, you can expect the water coming out of your faucet to give you about 0.7 to 1.2 milligrams per liter which, when paired with the fluoride content of a typical toothpaste, should be enough to give you the fluoride you need to maintain strong and healthy teeth.

Unfortunately, some people turn to bottled water for much of their hydration. They are attracted to the superior purity that such water allegedly has. Though some are indeed purer than others, this purity is not necessarily doing you many favors. The average bottle of water gives you only 0.3 milligrams of fluoride per liter, making it far more difficult to remineralize your teeth and prevent cavities.

For more information on how to maintain good oral health, contact our Federal Way dentistry clinic for a cleaning and consultation.

Bioactive glass is a special material made from crushed glass that doctors have been using for many years now. This glass is known to be able to interact with organic material; the cells in your body react to its presence as it might react to a natural part of your body. When used to repair broken bones, the bones are able to remain stronger for longer periods of time.

Recently, a research team has been exploring the potential for bioactive glass to be used in the dentistry field. Its bioactive properties, combined with its antibacterial properties, have a lot to offer as a dental filling. According to their study, fillings made with such glass can last longer and slow secondary tooth decay.

In the future, it could be a simple matter to incorporate this glass into existing dental filling compounds. Patients may be able to benefit from bioactive fillings within the next few years. Until such a time, you can count on our Federal Way dentistry clinic to give you the best in restorative dental care.

Everybody knows that whole grains are good for your body. They can help to reduce your cholesterol, manage your blood sugar, and more. Further, they may also help you to facilitate good oral health.

According to the American Journal of Clinical Nutrition, a study demonstrated that a diet rich in whole grains serves to prevent periodontitis. People who get at least three servings of such grains every day are roughly 23% less likely to suffer from this disease, compared to those who eat less than one serving. The theory is that, as whole grains facilitate your ability to metabolize glucose, eating them results in a lower blood glucose level. Since the sugar in your blood can reach your mouth, lower blood sugar means less food for your oral bacteria.

You can enjoy these benefits with just three or four slices of whole wheat bread a day. Brown rice, oats, and even popcorn can also help. For more help on maintaining proper oral health, talk to our Federal Way dentistry clinic.

When you fail to brush and floss, you’re putting yourself at risk of worse things than tooth decay and gum disease. If you’re a man, you may actually be hazarding prostate disease if you let your oral health slip.

Researchers took a look at the potential relationship between prostate cancer and gum disease. To do so, they examined a group of twenty-seven participants who suffered from both moderate to severe gum disease and some form of inflammation in the prostate gland, along with an elevated prostate specific antigen level. These participants spent four to eight weeks getting treatment for their gum disease, but no treatment for their prostate inflammation. After this period, it was found that fully twenty-one of these participants exhibited an improvement in their prostate specific antigen levels. The more severe the inflammation was initially, the better the improvement.

If you, too, have some sort of inflammation in your prostate gland, it can’t hurt to take a look at your gums. Make an appointment with our Federal Way dentistry clinic to help manage any gum disease you may be experiencing.

If you’ve ever perused your toothpaste options in the supermarket aisles, you’re familiar with the concept of anti-cavity pastes. Such toothpastes are rich in fluoride, helping you to prevent the formation of dental caries by plugging up the holes that form in your enamel when your oral bacteria secretes acid. It’s a good choice for when you want to keep your teeth healthy. However, if you’ve already developed a cavity, anti-cavity toothpaste is not going to reverse the damage.

Once a cavity begins to form, no amount of fluoride is going to stop it. There is a tiny crack digging deep into your dentin, where bacteria can hide and thrive. At this point, your only solution is to have a dentist drill and sanitize the crack, then plug it with a filling. If you fail to do this, the cavity will only get worse until it penetrates your dentin and infects your pulp, which calls for a root canal.

Should you ever think that you are suffering from a cavity, don’t try to fix your problem with toothpaste. Call our Federal Way dentistry clinic for all your oral care needs.