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Teeth Whitening Tooth Bleaching & Cosmetic Dentistry Procedures Tooth whitening is a common practice in general dentistry. Many people believe that white teeth are the greatest contribution to a perfect smile. As a person ages, teeth often become darker and stained. This is due to many factors including a change in the mineral structure of the tooth or stains such as coffee and tobacco. White teeth are now becoming more desirable with the spread of American culture worldwide. White teeth are often associated with ‘Hollywood smiles’. There are two popular methods of bleaching teeth. One is called the ‘office bleach’ which applies a high concentration of oxidizing agents for a short period of time. This procedure generally yields fast results, but can sometimes risk chemical burns. To prevent the risk of burns, the office generally uses a light-cured protective lawyer painted on the gums. Another popular method of teeth bleaching requires the patient to use a mouthguard or strip to hold the oxidizing agent along the teeth for several hours a day. This can range from a period of 4 - 15 days and can be performed in the courtesy of your own home. This process is slower, but can still have the same risk to the gums. Discover how a healthy smile can improve your lifestyle by whitening your teeth. Many people never realize how simple and affordable it really is.

Tooth Whitening is the process of lightening the color of your teeth. The methods employed to whiten teeth have been used in the world of dentistry for years. The process of whitening teeth has been found most on teeth that are mildly discolored. Teeth that have extensive staining will require a great deal of bleaching in order to remove the stains. Teeth that have been damaged and stained due to medication such as antibiotics take longer to respond to treatment and in some cases the treatment is ineffective. The degree to which the teeth whiten will vary from patient to patient. The degree to which the teeth whiten depends greatly on the structure of the teeth and the duration of the treatment. Tooth whitening can be done a variety of ways. Most people today are opting for what is known as home bleaching. This is where you whiten your teeth by using a mild whitening solution that is retained in custom filled appliance that is worn over the teeth for a period of time during the day. Tooth discoloration is caused by many factors. One of the leading causes of tooth discoloration and the need for tooth whitening is smoking, and coffee consumption. Coffee and smoking combined can make the teeth appear brownish in color. Tooth Whitening works for almost everyone but there are some cases in which the treatment appears to be ineffective. If a person has dark intense stains then it has been found that the treatment of tooth whitening is not as effective as if the stains were minimal. If there is a congenital discoloration that has been present from birth then there is a chance that any tooth whitening treatment will not work. If a person has crowns, dentures and even veneers then they should seek other treatments for having nice, whiter teeth, as tooth whitening is usually not effective in these cases. If you are interested in the tooth whitening process then you can consult your dentist and see what options are available to you. You can your teeth professionally bleached by the dentist or you can try some methods at home such as whitening strips and toothpastes both of which have been proven to white teeth effectively. There are other ways of whitening teeth. You can look on the Internet and see what you can find.

“Tooth decay, also known as dental cavities, or dental caries, is a disease that is five times more common than asthma and seven times more common than hay fever.” — Michael C. Alfano, Dean of the New York University College of Dentistry. As warned by the World Health Organization, tooth decay is one of the world’s most prevalent health problems in industrialized and especially in developing countries. An estimate of 90% people in the United States has at least one cavity. Children and senior citizens are the two groups of people at highest risk. In children, it usually happens when sugar-laden foods such as candies are frequently left on the teeth. In the mouth, there are bacteria that live in plaque (a sticky, whitish film produced by our saliva) that convert the sugar into acids. These acids eat away the tooth’s protective coating also known as the enamel. Excessive destruction of this outer surface of the tooth results in tooth decay. What makes adults also prone to being afflicted with tooth decay is when aging causes gums to move back from the teeth. Combined with gum disease, this gum recession exposes the tooth root to plaque. This will cause the breakdown of the tooth root. People who already have a number of dental restorations (fillings and crowns) may also suffer from tooth decay, especially around the teeth’s edges, or margins. The cost of spoiling your sweet tooth. Tooth decay, particularly in the front teeth, may become an impediment towards achieving a pleasing appearance, thus affecting self-esteem. Cavities can also impact an individual’s emotional and social well being by causing pain and discomfort from toothache. In addition to this, it can also cause some serious health problem like malnutrition by interfering with an individual’s ability to eat certain foods. If tooth decay is not treated early, complication from infection could cause swelling of the face and neck, fever and blood poisoning. Prevention is a lot less expensive AND less painful than treatment. Although tooth decay remains as one of the most common chronic disease, today many people are in better oral health than before. The consolidated effort of dental associations and many other health organizations in raising oral health consciousness, the support of the government, and cooperation from the public made this improvement attainable. Several community-based programs aimed at solving oral health dilemmas are carried out. These include extending fluoridated water and schools having sealant projects for children. However, these programs cannot reach many remote areas where ethnic minorities are and where many people are living in poverty. Their access to formal education and dental care is very limited. This shows the need for more community-based dental programs to help people take care of their teeth. The American Association for Dental Research and International Association for Dental Research have long been collaborating to disseminate ways of preventing tooth decay. They educate people of how proper oral hygiene methods of brushing twice a day with fluoride toothpaste, regular dental checkup, sealant treatment, flossing, eating nutritious meals, and limiting in-between meals will always be indispensable. Dental researchers have recently discovered how the bacteria which attack teeth, stick themselves to the enamel. This new information could bring significant benefits to increase the public’s knowledge on eliminating the harmful effects of the tooth decay-causing bacteria (Streptococcus mutans). Aside from this, they are also in the process of developing vaccines against tooth decay and discovering other new methods on targeting and killing the decay-causing bacteria. Other tooth decay treatments, i.e., dental implants, Healozone gas blast (blast that triggers the saliva to fix the teeth naturally), and squirting genetically modified bacteria that will not produce the decay acid, are also being developed. The use of fiber optics and fluorescence methodologies is also being considered to possibly detect tooth decay much sooner than x-rays and visual inspections can. These advancements in treating dental cavities are evidences of the increasing attention to oral care. But relying mainly on these discoveries does not guarantee the complete disappearance of tooth decay from the list of the most common global health problems. Further improvements on tooth decay treatment entails expanded dental care education, early interception of poor oral hygiene habits, greater parental involvement in children’s dental health and appreciating how priceless a confident smile is. ————————- Note: This article may be freely reproduced as long as the AUTHOR’S resource box at the bottom of this article is included and and all links must be Active/Linkable with no syntax changes. ————————-

1. Some �Pros� of removing a wisdom tooth.

* Wisdom teeth may be hard to access with your toothbrush or floss. Over time, the accumulation of bacteria, sugars and acids may cause a cavity to form in the tooth. If it is not restored with a filling, the cavity may spread and destroy more tooth structure causing severe consequences to the tooth and surrounding supportive structures.

* Due to the difficulty of keeping these teeth clean with your daily brushing and flossing, bacteria and food debris remaining on the wisdom teeth may present a foul smell causing bad breath.

* A wisdom tooth that is still under the gums in a horizontal position rather than a vertical position may exert pressure on surrounding teeth causing crowding and crooked teeth. This also may occur if there is not enough space in the mouth for the wisdom tooth. This may warrant braces to repair the damage.

* A wisdom tooth that is still under the gums may become irritated. The gum tissue that lay over the tooth may harbor food debris and bacteria that gets trapped under the gum resulting in an infection in the gums.

* There is the potential for more problems to occur the longer you wait and the older you get. This is because as you get older, the bone surrounding the tooth becomes increasingly dense making the tooth more difficult to remove. The healing process may also be slower.

2. Some �Cons� of removing a wisdom tooth.

* Depending on the size shape and position of the tooth, removal can vary from a simple extraction to a more complex extraction. With a simple extraction, there is usually little swelling, bruising and bleeding. More complex extraction will require special treatment which may result in more bruising, swelling and bleeding. However, your dentist will provide you with post treatment instructions to minimize these side effects.

* Following an extraction, a condition called “dry socket” may occur. If the blood clot that formed in the extraction area becomes dislodged, it exposes the underlying bone. This condition is very painful but resolves after a few days. It is preventable by following the post treatment instructions provided by your dentist.

Wisdom Teeth Part IV looks at the operation, healing, and post operative care.

By Dion Kramer

Dion Kramer is co-founder and managing director of NobleHealth. NobleHealth is a dental plan for the people of Brisbane, Australia. Dion Kramer collaborates with a NobleHealth Brisbane dentist so that his writings are topical and up-to-date. You can visit the website to learn more about NobleHealth and each NobleHealth Brisbane dentist http://www.noblehealth.com.au

Teeth whitening kits can cause a variety of problems. Problems can occur in accidentally swallowing the bleaching product, faster decay and damaging gums. The peroxide used in teeth whitening can cause damage to the nerves and the fleshy tissue in your gums. When the nerves are damaged, you will have an increased sensitivity to hot and cold sensations. Laser teeth whitening is not much better; the peroxide is still applied to the teeth, only this time the laser causes it to penetrate more deeply into the tooth. Laser teeth whitening can cause even more damage than just applying a tooth-whitening product to the surface. These problems, if left untreated can lead to tooth decay and in rare cases sometimes loss of the tooth altogether. The mouth is a very sensitive area of the body. The harsh chemicals involved in teeth whitening should be a last resort after you have tried over the counter treatments such as toothpastes. However, there are a few precautions you can follow to ensure that the whitening process goes smoothly. First, if you have any current problems with your teeth, wait until they are taken care of by a dental professional before whitening your teeth. Never start the process with open wounds in your mouth, such as stitches or ulcers. This can lead to worse problems than you started with, and the chemicals can eat away at the tissue and cause a great deal of pain. An alternative to chemical teeth whitening is having veneers put on your teeth. Many patients have opted to go this route, despite its cost, and have been very pleased with the results they have achieved. In addition, many celebrities achieve their seemingly perfect smile through veneers rather than chemical teeth whitening. These will remain white and are not porous like your regular teeth. They come in a variety of materials and while they do tend to cost more than teeth whitening treatments, the upside is they last a great deal longer than the results you achieve from a chemical tooth whitening process.