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Posts for: August, 2016

By Edward Joseph, D.D.S.
August 24, 2016
Category: Oral Health
Tags: teething  
EaseYourChildsDiscomfortDuringTeething

Your sweet, happy baby has suddenly become a gnawing, drooling bundle of irritation. Don't worry, though, no one has switched babies on you. Your child is teething.

For most children, their first teeth begin breaking through the gums around six to nine months. Usually by age three all twenty primary (“baby”) teeth have erupted. While the duration and intensity of teething differs among children, there are some common symptoms to expect.

Top of the list, of course, is irritability from pain, discomfort and disrupted sleep. You'll also notice increased gnawing, ear rubbing, decreased appetite, gum swelling or facial rash brought on by increased saliva (drooling). Teething symptoms seem to increase about four days before a tooth begins to break through the gums and taper off about three days after.

You may occasionally see bluish swellings along the gums known as eruption cysts. These typically aren't cause for concern:  the cyst usually “pops” and disappears as the tooth breaks through it. On the other hand, diarrhea, body rashes or fever are causes for concern — if these occur you should call us or your pediatrician for an examination.

While teething must run its course, there are some things you can do to minimize your child's discomfort:

Provide them a clean, soft teething ring or pacifier to gnaw or chew — a wet washcloth (or a cold treat for older children) may also work. Chill it first to provide a pain-reducing effect, but don't freeze it — that could burn the gums.

Use a clean finger to massage swollen gums — gently rubbing the gums helps counteract the pressure caused by an erupting tooth.

Alleviate persistent pain with medication — With your doctor's recommendation, you can give them a child's dosage of acetaminophen or ibuprofen (not aspirin), to take the edge off teething pain.

There are also things you should not do, like applying rubbing alcohol to the gums or using products with Benzocaine®, a numbing agent, with children younger than two years of age. Be sure you consult us or a physician before administering any drugs.

While it isn't pleasant at the time, teething is part of your child's dental development. With your help, you can ease their discomfort for the relatively short time it lasts.

If you would like more information on relieving discomfort during teething, please contact us or schedule an appointment for a consultation. You can also learn more about this topic by reading the Dear Doctor magazine article “Teething Troubles.”


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By Edward Joseph, D.D.S.
August 16, 2016
Category: Oral Health
Tags: oral health   fluoride  
DontForgetHiddenFluorideSourcesYourFamilyCouldbeIngesting

In the last half century, fluoride has become an effective weapon against tooth decay. The naturally occurring mineral helps strengthen enamel, the teeth's hard, protective cover.

Although it's safe for consumption overall, too much during early tooth development can lead to fluorosis, a brownish, mottled staining in enamel. To avoid it, a child's daily consumption of fluoride should optimally be kept at around 0.05-0.07 milligrams per kilogram of body weight, or an amount equal to one-tenth of a grain of salt per two pounds of weight.

The two main therapeutic fluoride sources have limits to help maintain this balance: utilities that fluoridate drinking water are required to add no more than 4 parts fluoride per million (ppm) of water; toothpaste manufacturers likewise only add a small amount of fluoride compared to clinical gels and pastes dentists apply to teeth for added decay protection.

But drinking water and toothpaste aren't the only sources of fluoride your child may encounter. Even if you have a non-fluoridated water supply, you should still keep a close watch on the following items that could contain fluoride, and discuss with us if you should take any action in regard to them.

Infant formula. The powdered form especially if mixed with fluoridated water can result in fluoride concentrations 100 to 200 times higher than breast or cow's milk. If there's a concern, use fluoride-free distilled or bottled spring water to mix formula.

Beverages. Many manufacturers use fluoridated water preparing a number of packaged beverages including sodas (two-thirds of those manufactured exceed .6 ppm), soft drinks and reconstituted fruit juices. You may need to limit your family's consumption of these kinds of beverages.

Certain foods. Processed foods like cereals, soups or containing fish or mechanically separated chicken can have high fluoride concentrations, especially if fluoridated water was used in their processing. When combined with other fluoride sources, their consumption could put children at higher risk for fluorosis.

Toothpaste. Although mentioned previously as a moderate fluoride source, you should still pay attention to how much your child uses. It doesn't take much: in fact, a full brush of toothpaste is too much, even for an adult. For an infant, you only need a smear on the end of the brush; as they grow older you can increase it but to no more than a pea-sized amount.

If you would like more information on fluoride and how it strengthens teeth, please contact us or schedule an appointment for a consultation. You can also learn more about this topic by reading the Dear Doctor magazine article “Fluoride & Fluoridation in Dentistry.”


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By Edward Joseph, D.D.S.
August 08, 2016
Category: Dental Procedures
SeeYournewLookBeforeDentalWorkwithaTrialSmile

Digital computer technology has made a big impact on cosmetic dentistry. We can now simulate on a monitor display of your face how your new smile will appear after dental work, thanks to a graphics program specifically designed for cosmetic dentistry.

While that's an amazing development, we can also take it a step further by creating the look of a new smile on your actual teeth during an office visit. We call it a “trial smile.”

To create a trial smile, we begin with composite resin, a tooth-colored bonding material, and fashion it into temporary veneers or crowns that we then temporarily place over your teeth. This gives us the chance to see what your new smile will look like in all three spatial dimensions (rather than the two-dimensional view on a computer monitor) and while your face is in motion as you talk and smile. This can give us a great deal more detail to help better evaluate your proposed look.

A trial smile also helps us in planning your new look. Like you, we want the best result possible: a trial smile allows us to see how your jaw movement interacts with your updated look and if everything works together as it should. It will also give us a better idea how much tooth structure we'll need to remove to accommodate your permanent veneers or crowns — the less, of course, the better.

Although you won't be able to take your trial smile with you when you leave, we can take a photograph you can review later, as well as show friends and family for their opinion. Trial smiles do add some cost to treatment, but the proportion of expense to the benefit of actually viewing your smile in this fashion is well worth it. It's one more way we can ensure your final new smile meets your expectations.

If you would like more information on “trial smiles,” please contact us or schedule an appointment for a consultation. You can also learn more about this topic by reading the Dear Doctor magazine article “Testing Your Smile Makeover.”


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By Edward Joseph, D.D.S.
August 07, 2016
Category: Oral Health
ArtificialSweetenerscanBoostyourDentalHealth

The market for sugar alternatives has grown exponentially since saccharin was accidentally discovered in 1878. Today, saccharin has been joined by other FDA-approved zero-calorie artificial sweeteners, including aspartame (“Equal®” or “NutraSweet®”), sucralose (“Splenda®”) and rebaudioside A, derived from the stevia plant. You can also choose low-calorie alcohol sugars like erythritol or xylitol.

With rare exceptions, all these choices are widely considered safe substitutes for table sugar, high fructose corn syrup or other versions of this plentiful carbohydrate. Finding substitutes for sugar is a worthy health goal: besides its role in obesity, sugar is considered a contributing factor in cardiovascular disease and diabetes.

It's also a prime food for oral bacteria that cause dental disease. As bacteria consume sugar they produce acid as a byproduct. Acid softens and dissolves the mineral content in enamel, leading to erosion and the formation of cavities. While saliva normally neutralizes acid after we eat, constant snacking and higher quantities of sugar in our food make it difficult for it to control or neutralize acid in the oral environment.

Because most of us are hard-wired with a “sweet tooth,” it's difficult for many to cut back on sugar. Artificial sweeteners help reduce the amount of sugar in the diet with obvious benefits for general health. It can also make a big difference in your dental health by helping you prevent tooth decay.

One alcohol sugar may even go a step further. In addition to reducing the presence of sugar in the mouth, xylitol (found in chewing gums, candy and breath mints) also seems to reduce bacterial growth by interfering with their ability to ferment the sugar.

If you're considering using an artificial sweetener, get to know them first: some like aspartame aren't suitable for baked goods or cooking, while saccharine or sucralose are. People with a rare genetic condition called phenylketonuria also can't properly process aspartame in the body.

Be sure you also talk to us about artificial sweeteners' impact on oral health, especially the benefits of xylitol for dental care. Used in a wise and informed way, these sugar alternatives can improve both your oral and general health.

If you would like more information on artificial sweeteners impact on dental health, please contact us or schedule an appointment for a consultation. You can also learn more about this topic by reading the Dear Doctor magazine article “Artificial Sweeteners: Satisfying and Protecting your Sweet Tooth.”


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Burbank, CA Dentist
Edward C. Joseph, D.D.S.
2701 West Alameda Ave, Suite #403
Burbank, CA 91505
(818) 842-7628

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