Smoking: The Dental Connection!

Although smoking increases the risk of lung cancer and emphysema, it also impacts your smile! Chronic smokers suffer from increased dental problems that make their smiles unsightly.  Understanding how smoking affects your oral health may be the momentum you need to kick the habit for good.

Cigarettes contain more than 600 ingredients that, when lit, create in excess of 4,000 chemicals. Of these chemicals, many are know carcinogens while others have been shown to have serious negative effects on health. The nicotine and tar in tobacco products are absorbed by the enamel of your teeth.  The result is yellowed teeth that look unsightly; with heavy smoking, your teeth may eventually turn nearly brown in color.

The chemicals in cigarettes and cigars also cause your teeth to become less clean.  Smoking is associated with a build-up of tartar and plaque on the surface of your teeth.  Over time, this increases your risk of developing cavities and other oral health problems.  Furthermore, pursing your lips while smoking leads to wrinkles around your mouth, which detracts from your smile.

In addition to having unsightly teeth, smoking can cause serious health conditions. Because of the carcinogens in cigarettes, smoking is associated with an increased risk of oral cancer, which can be deadly.  Smokers are also more likely to develop gum disease, which can lead to tooth loss.  You may experience an increased loss of bone within your jaw, which will cause significant problems later in life.

By decreasing the amount of nicotine and other chemicals that you consume, you can decrease your risk of oral cancer and gum disease.  If you have any other questions or are in need of a dental appointment, call our office at 918-455-0123!

God Bless,
DRT

Headaches: The Dental Connection!

Many people suffer from headaches for years without really ever getting to the root cause of their problem.  If you find yourself feeling like you're part of one of the "headache" commercials commonly seen on TV these days, it might be worth a trip to see a medical professional. However, it might not be the person that first comes to your mind!

Chronic headaches can frequently be associated with dental issues.  In fact, the American Academy of Craniofacial Pain estimates that 80% of headaches are caused by muscle tension, which often originates in the jaws.

COMMON DENTAL TENSION HEADACHE SYMPTOMS 

• Feeling as though your head or scalp is painful to the slightest touch
• Experiencing a dull throbbing pain behind your eyes
• Clicking or popping sounds in your jaw joints
• Grinding or clenching the jaws, particularly in times of anxiety or at night
• Feeling as though your jaw muscles are sore upon waking from sleep

Several dozen muscles control your facial expressions, jaw movements, and motions such as swallowing.  When these muscles are contracted for long periods of time, tension builds up within the muscles and can lead to headaches.  This may happen if you clench or grind your teeth at night, your bite is maligned, or you have muscle imbalances in your jaw or neck.

COMMON TREATMENTS

• Bite.  In many cases, correcting your bite through orthodontics releases the stress on your jaw muscles, and reduces the frequency of headaches.
• Nightguard.  A nightguard, which resembles a sports mouthguard, may also be helpful if you frequently grind or clench your jaws during sleep.  Nightguards distribute the tension from your clenched jaws and reduce the possibility of dental damage.
• Physical Therapy.  Correcting the posture of your shoulders, neck, and head may alleviate muscle tension associated with headaches.

If you have any questions or are in need of a dental appointment, call our office at 918-455-0123!

God Bless,

DRT

Procrastination: The Dental Connection!

Procrastination, prəˌkrastəˈnāSH(ə)n/,
the action of delaying or postponing 
something.  When you have dental issues or just need routine care, you may try to put off an appointment. Common reasons for procrastination are not having the time or fear of pain. However, avoiding necessary dental treatment usually allows relatively small problems to develop into much larger ones that can lead to more dental work and overall expense.

Take a look at what can develop from waiting on dental treatment.  

• Surface restorations deepen into larger weaker fillings
• Larger weaker fillings can develop fracture lines requiring crowns
• Crowns restoring deeper fracture lines can develop into root canals
• Lack of routine cleanings can develop into gum disease
• Gum disease can develop into tooth loss

Unfortunately, avoiding dental appointments due to a lack of time may mean that you will have to give up substantially more time later on.  As the saying goes, "if you neglect your teeth, your teeth will neglect you."

If you are in need of a dental appointment, call our office at 918-455-0123.

God Bless,

DRT