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You are probably aware that guzzling soda and drinking those sugary Starbucks Frappuccinos aren’t particularly good for your dental health. But how much thought do you give to the effects of your diet on your teeth? Practicing healthy eating habits isn’t just helpful for your waistline, it also ensures that your teeth stay strong and cavity-free.

How diet affects dental health

Our team at Cataraqui Dental Centre will tell you that your mouth is a complicated place on a microbiological level. Harmful bacteria form dental plaques which convert the sugars in food to acids that wear away at tooth enamel. Meanwhile, saliva washes away some of the detrimental acids, while minerals work to rebuild where teeth are damaged. The foods you eat are important for managing this balancing act between harmful bacteria and helpful rebuilding agents.

Rethinking your diet to prevent cavities

Carefully considering your dietary choices is a smart way to become mindful of the foods you eat and how they affect oral health.

Foods to eat

• Calcium- and phosphorus-rich foods. We’ve all heard that milk builds strong bones, and your teeth are included in that. Milk, cheese, nuts, and chicken are strong sources of calcium and phosphorus. These minerals are used to repair damage to the teeth’s enamel.
• Crunchy fruits and vegetables. Biting into an apple stimulates saliva flow, which washes harmful acids from the surface of your teeth. Turn to other crunchy fruits and vegetables, including carrots, celery, pears, and lettuce, to increase saliva production.
• Sugar substitutes. If you have a sweet tooth but want to decrease tooth decay, sugar substitutes such as Stevia or Equal provide a sugary kick without harming your teeth.

Foods to avoid

• Sugary snacks. Cookies, cakes, candies, and other sugary treats provide a feast for the acid-producing bacteria in your mouth. Furthermore, these foods often get stuck in the ridges of your teeth, and provide a breeding ground for new bacteria.
• Acidic fruits and vegetables. Foods high in acidity, such as tomatoes, citrus fruits, berries, peaches, and lemons, wear away the enamel of your teeth. Because these foods can be part of a healthy diet, remember to brush after eating them or swish with a mouth rinse to protect your teeth.

Eating well is an essential part of keeping your teeth healthy. Consult Drs. Tom Holmes, Gordon Lansdown, Karen Nesbitt, Nick Cosman, Brett Empringham, and Patrick McDonough about your diet for tips on food habits that keep your teeth strong and cavity-free. For more information about the link between your diet and your oral health, or to schedule an appointment with Drs. Tom Holmes, Gordon Lansdown, Karen Nesbitt, Nick Cosman, Brett Empringham, and Patrick McDonough, please give us a call at our convenient Kingston, ON office!

In a perfectly predictable world, your child’s teeth would come in—and fall out—right on schedule, right in place. But life isn’t perfectly predictable, and teeth can erupt—or fail to erupt—in their own time and in unexpected places. Let’s look at a few of the ways your child’s teething development can differ from “typical” schedules.

• Leaving So Soon?

Sometimes a baby tooth is lost early because of injury or decay. And baby teeth are important for more than creating an adorable smile. These little teeth help your child with eating, speech, and jaw development. And they serve another purpose as well—they are essential place holders for your child’s adult teeth.

When a baby tooth is lost too early, the neighboring teeth can drift into the open space. Adult teeth waiting to arrive will tend to erupt in any space left available, whether it’s the right space or not. This can lead to bite problems and misaligned and/or crooked teeth. Depending on your child’s age, and which and how many teeth are affected, your dentist might recommend a space maintainer.

Fixed space maintainers are attached to the lost tooth’s neighboring teeth to keep them in place. Removeable space maintainers resemble retainers, and are usually recommended for older children. Both fixed and removable appliances serve to keep the baby teeth spaced apart just as they should be, preventing neighboring teeth from shifting to fill the empty spot, and making sure there’s enough room for the adult tooth to arrive right on schedule and right where it belongs.

• Hangers-On

Losing baby teeth too early isn’t the only punctuality problem that can arise with little teeth—sometimes baby teeth don’t seem to realize when they’ve worn out their welcome.

The roots of baby teeth are much smaller than those of adult teeth. When a permanent tooth starts to erupt, it pushes against the root of the baby tooth above it. This pressure breaks down the root of the primary tooth, leaving the tooth loose and just waiting to fall out.

Sometimes primary roots don’t dissolve, though, which means the permanent teeth will erupt beside those lingering baby teeth. The result is a double row of teeth. Because all these teeth in one small jaw can cause crowding and misalignment, it’s a good idea to schedule a visit with Drs. Tom Holmes, Gordon Lansdown, Karen Nesbitt, Nick Cosman, Brett Empringham, and Patrick McDonough when you see two sets of teeth where only one is welcome! This is especially true for older children, when the molars start erupting.

• No-Shows

When a tooth fails to erupt at all, it’s called an embedded tooth. When a tooth is blocked from erupting, it’s called an impacted tooth. Factors like the jaw size, tooth size, genetics, trauma, and medical conditions can affect eruption.

There’s no perfect eruption schedule for every child. Even typical eruption charts provide a range of several months to several years during which baby teeth arrive, baby teeth are lost, and adult teeth appear.  But any time you have any concerns about your child’s tooth development, talk to Drs. Tom Holmes, Gordon Lansdown, Karen Nesbitt, Nick Cosman, Brett Empringham, and Patrick McDonough to see whether the situation will correct itself in time or whether treatment is recommended.

If the unpredictable occurs in your child’s teething schedule, working proactively with our Kingston, ON  dental team is the best way to create a lifetime of predictably happy, healthy smiles.

Nobody can predict a dental emergency. That’s what makes them so terribly inconvenient. The good news is that our office is always available to assist you, so there’s no reason you should minimize an emergency.

Among the most common emergencies we see are lost fillings, lost crowns, and broken dentures. Lost fillings and lost crowns are very similar. A key difference, however, is that fillings are used to repair cavities but crowns are used to cover broken or damaged teeth.

Over time, it’s not uncommon for fillings and crowns to grow loose and fall out. If you lose a crown or a filling, hot or cold temperatures will likely begin to trigger pain because of the exposed tissue. The discomfort might seem manageable, but it’s better to get these situations fixed as soon as possible so you can avoid getting food stuck or developing an infection.

Unlike a busted filling or crown, a broken denture is more likely to make itself known constantly, every day. It can make chewing, swallowing, and eating properly difficult. Depending on the damage, you may require a new denture altogether.

If you’re experiencing any problems with your dentures, or suspect that they might be broken, it’s best to contact our Kingston, ON office immediately to avoid further damage. Drs. Tom Holmes, Gordon Lansdown, Karen Nesbitt, Nick Cosman, Brett Empringham, and Patrick McDonough and our team are always here to help, especially when your dental health is at risk.

These things happen, so don’t feel embarrassed and please don’t hesitate to give us a call as soon as you notice or suspect something’s wrong! Get in touch with us … the sooner the better.

April showers bring May flowers, and May flowers bring . . . allergies. If you’re one of the millions of people who suffer from seasonal allergies, you might be suffering some dental side effects as well.

When you have pollen allergies, pollen triggers your body’s immune system to release histamines. Histamines are part of the body’s defense system. They cause the tissues in the nose and sinuses to become inflamed and swollen as they increase blood supply to these areas. They also cause your body to produce more mucus.

Normally, mucus from the sinus cavities drains into the nasal cavity and then down the back of the throat, where it mixes with saliva and is swallowed. We never even notice it. Until it’s allergy season. Unfortunately, our defense mechanisms can have some offensively unpleasant consequences.

• Headache & Facial Pain

Our sinus cavities are small hollow spaces in the bones of the head which are filled with air and, like our nasal cavities, are lined with mucous membranes. It’s these membranes, not surprisingly, which produce mucus. And though we might turn up our noses at this slippery topic, mucus is actually quite helpful for trapping and filtering out unwanted hitchhikers like bacteria, viruses, dust, pollens, and other pollutants in the air we breathe before they reach our lungs.

When histamines are released, normal mucus production increases to filter out those tiny pollen invaders. At the same time, tissue around the nose and sinuses swells up, which can trap mucus inside the sinus cavities. This, in turn, causes increased pressure within the sinuses, and this pressure brings on allergy-related headaches and facial pain.  

• Nasal Congestion & Postnasal Drip

With the occasional runny nose or sneeze, you can blow your nose once or twice and that’s that. During allergy season, greatly increased mucus production might see you spending all day within reaching distance of your box of tissues. But when the tissue in your nose is swollen as well, you now find yourself with nasal congestion.

A stuffy nose means excess mucus has to exit somewhere else, which means this extra, often thicker, mucus all drains into the back of your throat. This is postnasal drip, and it can make you miserable in several different ways. Hoarseness. Coughing during the day. Worse coughing at night. Sore throat. Nausea. Difficulty swallowing.

All these allergy symptoms are uncomfortable enough! But, to add to our discomfort, allergies can lead to uncomfortable oral symptoms as well.

• Tooth Pain

A common result of allergies is tooth pain. How does this happen? It’s because of the way our bodies are designed. The maxillary sinus cavities are directly above the roots of our upper molars.

When sinus cavities are congested and sinus pressure builds up, it also puts pressure on these roots. The result is tooth pain, usually affecting several upper molars at once.

• Dry Mouth

One of the natural responses to a stuffy nose is mouth-breathing—we can’t go without air, after all! But exposing the inside of the mouth to all that air dries out delicate gum and mouth tissues. It also reduces normal saliva flow. This can cause xerostomia, more commonly known as dry mouth.

Because saliva neutralizes acidity in the mouth and washes away bacteria and other germs, lower saliva production means greater risk of cavities, infections, and bad breath. Dry mouth can also cause gum irritation and gingivitis, because less saliva means more harmful bacteria build-up between the gums and the teeth.

• Antihistamines & Your Oral Health

If histamines are the problem, are antihistamines the obvious solution? This is a good question for Drs. Tom Holmes, Gordon Lansdown, Karen Nesbitt, Nick Cosman, Brett Empringham, and Patrick McDonough or your physician. Antihistamines can be very drying—so you might find you’re experiencing dry mouth even when all those other pesky allergy symptoms have disappeared. And, if you already suffer from xerostomia, it’s especially important to get your doctor’s advice before buying over the counter antihistamines.

In allergy season, just like any other time of the year, be sure to hydrate and keep up with brushing and flossing for fresh breath and healthy teeth and gums. Talk to Drs. Tom Holmes, Gordon Lansdown, Karen Nesbitt, Nick Cosman, Brett Empringham, and Patrick McDonough if you have persistent tooth pain, dry mouth, or irritated gums—it’s always best to rule out other causes like infection or decay.

But, if your problems are caused by allergies, you don’t have to wait until the next snowfall to get relief. Talk to your doctor or allergist for ways to reduce or eliminate your symptoms before allergy problems start blooming into dental problems. You’ll breathe easier!