Access Dental: April 2018

Tuesday, April 24, 2018

Dangers of Whitening TOO Often

Are you dreaming of pearly whites? Whether you have a big event like a wedding or simply want to feel confident when you smile, teeth whitening is a popular service. While whitening can have a ton of benefits, there may be dangers associated with too much whitening. As your Springfield, MO dentist, we want to help you know the risks of over whitening your teeth.

Increased Tooth Sensitivity

Sensitivity to hot and cold temperatures are a risk associated with whitening. As the whitening agent works its way through your tooth surface, you may notice an increase of sensitivity to foods. If you already have tooth sensitivity, you may want to monitor your oral health as you start a whitening regimen.

Wear Down Tooth Enamel

Whitening can start to wear down the protective coating over your teeth - enamel. If this coating is damaged, you may start to notice an increase in sensitivity and the risk of more tooth damage. Cracking and chipping is also a risk of over-whitening.

Damage to Existing Dental Work

Whitening may wear down any existing dental work you have had done. Contact your dental professional to ensure it is safe for you to use a whitening agent. A safe whitening treatment option can be recommended by a professional if you have had dental work in the past.

Teeth Whitening at Access Dental:

We will provide you a custom whitening tray, made from your own dental impressions. Once at home, you can choose how often and long to use the supplied whitening agent to customize the brightness of your smile.

Now that you know some of the potential dangers of whitening your teeth too often, you are ready to visit Access Dental & Dentures. As our southern Missouri dental office, we take your dental health seriously. In addition to our whitening service, we want to stress the importance of proper oral care. Be sure to brush your teeth at least twice each day. Flossing once a day can also help to keep your teeth and gums clean and healthy. Call an office nearest you to make an appointment today!

We want to be your dentist because your family deserves a great smile!

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Springfield Office Rolla Office Osage Beach Office Mountain Grove Office
(417) 501-1048 (573) 426-5447 (573) 348-1466 (417) 926-1160
1701 West Sunshine 416 S. Bishop Ave. 4320 Osage Beach Pkwy 921 N. Main St.

Springfield, MO 65807 Rolla, MO 65401 Osage Beach, MO. 65065 Mountain Grove

Friday, April 20, 2018

Perks of a Tooth Sealant for Your Child

Your child's oral care is important for lifelong oral health. Your dentist may suggest a dental sealant to be placed over your little one's teeth. If you are curious about this procedure and the benefits, you are in the right place. As your trusted dentist in Southern Missouri, we are all about preventative care for your child. Fron regular oral check-ups to a protective sealant, there are a number of ways you can help protect your child's teeth. Take a look below to learn all about our sealant services!

What is a Sealant?

A sealant is a protective barrier placed on the chewing surface of a child's teeth. This coating helps protect the grooves of molars where food is ground up. It can help reduce the risk of tooth damage by food particles being mashed against the tooth over and over. These grooves can hold bacteria, as well as food.

Perks of a Tooth Sealant:

Prevent Cavities

The grooves on your child's molars are hard to reach. Brushing alone may not be able to completely clean out this space. Food and bacteria that may get into these grooves may start to wear away your tooth enamel. Once the bacteria has worked its way through the protective enamel layer, it is inside your tooth. This is known as a cavity. Cavities can be painful and cause severe damage to your tooth.

Effective Protection

A sealant can greatly reduce the risk of your child developing a cavity. The procedure is very effective in protecting your tooth. Sealants are placed in high-risk areas for cavities and give an additional layer of protection for the tooth.

Non-Invasive Procedure

Sealants can be placed and cured in a short amount of time. Many times a sealant will be placed during a routine check-up. It's a fast and effective way to protect your child's teeth. A sealant is much less invasive than filling a cavity!

Inexpensive Treatment

Many dental insurance companies will cover a protective sealant for your child's teeth. Even if you don't have insurance or it is not covered, the out of pocket expense is fairly affordable. It's an inexpensive way to help protect your child's teeth and reduce the chance of on-going dental work.

Getting a sealant at Access Dental And Dentures is an easy way to help protect your child's teeth for years to come. Helping to protect their teeth from a young age can create a happy, healthy smile throughout their life. Contact our Springfield, MO dentist to schedule an appointment today! We look forward to helping your family protect and care for their teeth!

We want to be your dentist because your family deserves a great smile!

Springfield, MO 65807 Rolla, MO 65401 Osage Beach, MO. 65065 Mountain Grove

Friday, April 13, 2018

Why You Should Fill Your Cavities

A cavity is a hole in the tooth where bacteria has worked its way into the tooth. After penetrating the tooth enamel, this bacteria starts to wear down the tooth itself. This can be very painful and make your tooth sensitive to hot and cold. The best way to stop the bacteria and plaque from continuing to wear down your tooth is to have the cavity filled. As your trusted dentist in Springfield, MO, it's important that you know how to handle a cavity. While we encourage proper oral care routines to avoid cavities and tooth damage in the first place, we understand that cavities do form. Learn more about how a filling can help protect your tooth from further damage below.

Fillings at Access Dental:

We use composite (tooth-colored) fillings that are light cured to match your teeth. They are a mixture of glass or quartz filler in a resin medium. They are sometimes referred to as composites or filled resins. Composite fillings provide good durability and resistance to fracture in small-to-mid size restorations that need to withstand moderate chewing pressure. Less tooth structure is removed when the dentist prepares the tooth, and this may result in a smaller filling than that of an amalgam.

Composites can also be “bonded” or adhesively held in a cavity, often allowing the dentist to make a more conservative repair to the tooth. Direct dental composites are placed by the dentist in a clinical setting. Polymerization is accomplished typically with a hand-held curing light that emits specific wavelengths keyed to the initiator and catalyst packages involved. When using a curing light, the light should be held as close to the resin surface as possible, a shield should be placed between the light tip and the operator’s eyes. Curing time should be increased for darker resin shades. Light cured resins provide denser restorations than self-cured resins because no mixing is required that might introduce air bubble porosity.

Direct dental composites can be used for filling cavity preparations, filling gaps between teeth using a shell-like veneer, minor reshaping of teeth and partial crowns on single teeth.

Cavity Prevention Tips:

Although you know who to visit if you do have a cavity, we want to give you some oral care tips to help you avoid this tooth damage and possible pain.

It's vital to your oral health that you brush for at least two minutes, twice each day. It's best to brush before bed and first thing in the morning. This can help to clean your teeth of the bacteria that naturally builds up over time. It can also be helpful to brush after each meal you eat. Food particles react with the bacteria in your mouth to wear away at your tooth enamel.

Floss at least once a day, every day. Flossing between your teeth can help to remove food particles and bacteria that gets trapped between your teeth. It's a hard to reach spot for brushing alone to reach. If you don't floss, you are missing about 40% of your tooth's surface! That's a lot of space for bacteria to form and start wearing down into your tooth, forming a cavity.

Now that you know all about the benefits of a filling and how the procedure is done at Access Dental & Dentures, you know who to call when you have a cavity. For professional and timely help with your cavity, contact our southern Missouri dental office today. We look forward to helping relieve you from the oral pain you may be experiencing due to a cavity. A quick visit and you will be on your way to a happy, healthy smile!

We want to be your dentist because your family deserves a great smile!

Springfield, MO 65807 Rolla, MO 65401 Osage Beach, MO. 65065 Mountain Grove

Friday, April 6, 2018

Foods to Add to your Diet Today

Eating the right kinds of food is one of the factors that can impact your oral health. While it's important to care for your teeth, the food you put into your mouth has an impact on your oral health, as well. As the best dentist in Springfield, MO, we want to provide some helpful insight as to what foods are actually GOOD for your teeth!

Apples

High in fiber and water, apples are another great item to add to your diet. The texture of the fruit can help to stimulate gums as you bite and chew it up. It can also help to wash away food particles from your mouth.

Yogurt

Since yogurt is high in calcium, it makes for healthy teeth. Along with the calcium, yogurt is filled with probiotics, which are good bacteria. These good bacteria can help to crowd out the bad bacteria found in your mouth.

Celery

While many people attribute celery to be bland and stringy, it can actually help to scrape the surface of your teeth. Filled with water, celery is great for your overall health, which has a huge impact on your oral health.

Leafy Greens

Vitamins and minerals are packed into leafy greens, as well as calcium. These benefits of the greens can help to create a healthy environment in your mouth. Spinach can easily be added to a fruit smoothie if you struggle to get enough leafy greens into your diet.

Carrots

To increase saliva production in the mouth, carrots can help to rinse the mouth of food particles and other bacteria that builds up. Gum stimulation is good for your teeth as well. This crunchy food can help to scrape excess food particles from your teeth too.

Cheese

Eating cheese actually raises the pH levels in the mouth which helps to reduce the chance of tooth decay. Not only does cheese benefit the pH levels, it adds calcium into your diet too. This can help to gain strong teeth and bones.

It's time to start thinking about what you eat and how it can affect your oral health. If you are looking for ways to improve your health, consider eating more of these beneficial foods. Changing up your diet can have an impact on your oral health, as well as the health of your entire body! Here at Access Dental And Dentures, we want to help you improve your diet for a healthy, happy smile.

We want to be your dentist because your family deserves a great smile!

Springfield, MO 65807 Rolla, MO 65401 Osage Beach, MO. 65065 Mountain Grove