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What’s the scariest thing about Halloween? Haunted houses? Ghost stories? Frightening costumes?

For dentists and orthodontists like me, it’s the candy.

Keeping braces clean at the best of times is a challenge. With mountains of candy that can potentially damage braces, Halloween doesn’t make it any easier. If your child (or you) is navigating Halloween this year with braces, here are some do’s and don’ts to get you through the holiday.

Do: Keep the “Good” Stuff

Let’s start with the positive: there are actually a lot of treats your child can safely eat with braces. So start by sorting through your child’s Halloween haul and look for the following:

• Plain chocolate
• Peanut butter cups
• Brownies
• Soft cookies
• Snack cakes (like Twinkies, Ding Dongs, etc.)
• Pixi stix

Contrary to popular belief, orthodontists don’t condemn all candy. Of course, you may want to limit how many treats your child has and ensure that they always practice proper dental hygiene after consuming sweets, but these candies don’t present any direct danger to braces.

Don’t: Eat the “Bad” Stuff

That Halloween bag is likely to come back with a lot of sweets that are decidedly not braces-friendly. Separate out the following:

• Candy corn
• Chocolate with nuts, nougat, caramel, etc.
• Nuts
• Nougat
• Caramel (and caramel apples)
• Toffee
• Taffy
• Fruit chews
• Sour and gummy candies
• Tootsie rolls
• Licorice
• Popcorn
• Jawbreakers

You’re looking for anything that’s crunchy, chewy, or sticky, as these can cause brackets to pop off or damage the wire. If you don’t want it around the house, consider donating unwanted Halloween candy instead.

Pro tip: Talk about expectations with your child before they bring the candy home. That way they’ll be prepared for you to sort through their candy and remove some items before they dig in.

Do: Make Sure Teeth Get Brushed

Beyond the danger of damage to braces, candy also contains a lot of sugar that can cause tooth decay if not cleaned away. If your child is young enough to trick or treat, then they are probably still young enough for you to supervise them brushing their teeth for a night or two (or as long as the candy lasts!). Make sure they brush for the full two minutes and then follow it up with flossing.

This is also a good opportunity to stress the importance of good oral health habits. Give them positive feedback for taking great care of their teeth and braces. Remind them how important regular brushing and flossing are and that if they keep it up, they’ll have a beautiful smile at the end of treatment.

Don’t: Avoid Halloween Because of Braces

Think back to when you were little. Halloween was probably one of your favorite days of the year. It’s so much fun to get dressed up, and it’s even more fun to get a bunch of candy. So while it’s smart to be concerned about your child’s braces and oral health, it’s totally fine for them to take part. There’s no need to ban trick-or-treating or to confiscate all the candy they collect. Just follow the tips above and have a happy Halloween!

Back to school means getting into the routine of new classes, new teachers, and nightly homework. Could it also mean a first trip to the orthodontist for your child?

If your child has just entered the second grade, it could be time for them to go to the orthodontist. I know this sounds very young, but the American Association of Orthodontists (AAO) recommends that all children have their first orthodontic appointment by the age of seven, which is usually the second grade.

Will Your Child Need Orthodontic Intervention?

First, rest assured that the majority of young children are not candidates for orthodontic treatment. Only about 20% of kids this age have an issue that could benefit from early intervention.

Treatment at this age is not primarily concerned with straightening teeth. That’s for Phase 2, which typically happens in early adolescence. Phase 1 is concerned with correcting and preventing problems such as overcrowding, jaw misalignment, or a bad bite. Early intervention doesn’t always require braces; depending on the issue, treatment may involve an expander, headgear, a functional appliance, or extraction instead.

It’s important to note that you can’t always tell if your child is a candidate for early intervention simply by looking yourself. While a severe overbite, underbite, or crossbite is easy to see, there’s a lot more going on with your child’s teeth, bite, and jaw than meets the eye. That’s why it’s always best to see the orthodontist.

What if You Don’t Take Your Child to the Orthodontist Until Adolescence?

Some parents may want to skip the early visit altogether, thinking that any existing problems can wait for correction until later on down the line. This is akin to waiting to fix that small leak in your roof until it’s a huge leak. The truth is, if there are issues from an early age, they will only get worse as your child grows.

Just as fixing a few shingles on your roof is easier than replacing the whole thing later, addressing orthodontic problems early on (if advised) is easier. The palate and the jaws are still growing around age seven which makes treatment easier. The lower jaw stops growing around the end of puberty, typically between 16-18 for boys and 13-15 for girls, and the upper jaw stops growing even earlier. If treatment commences once the palate and jaws are set in place, it won’t be as easy to get the desired results.

So what happens if you wait? For some families, it won’t matter – there are some children who wouldn’t have benefited from early intervention anyway. But for the children who could benefit, skipping an early appointment and delaying treatment could potentially result in longer, more invasive, and less effective treatment in the teen years

A New Back-to-School Activity

Since many orthodontic offices offer a free consultation (including ours!), you have nothing to lose by making an appointment at the orthodontist for your child. The odds are that they won’t need any treatment at all. And if they do, it’s best to address it early. Just consider it one more back-to-school activity.

Getting braces is a big deal and a big investment.  It changes what we can eat and how we take care of our teeth for a significant amount of time.  However, it doesn’t change everything! In fact, you’ll find you do everything you did before – just with an added level of care. Many of our patients are youth who are active and engaged in numerous extracurricular activities, including sports.

I understand how important these activities are; I grew up a sports-obsessed kid who desperately dreamed he was the Irish equivalent of local basketball hero Isiah Thomas. My daily wardrobe consisted of anything I had with Detroit Pistons on it. Sadly, my crossover dribble was not NBA caliber, and my basketball career ended with my high-school career. I went to college planning to become an athletic trainer and majored in exercise physiology. I wanted to be as close to sports as possible in my work. A friend talked me into trying out for the University of Michigan men’s volleyball team, and we were both shocked when I made the final spot on the roster without having had any organized volleyball experience. As it turns out, some basketball skills do cross over into volleyball! Over the next several seasons, I went on to become team captain and to garner all–Big Ten and all-region honors. Following college, my volleyball obsession headed me to the sand and the pro beach two-on-two sand volleyball circuit.

I personally know the importance of our passions, and I promise you there’s no reason to discontinue those activities while undergoing your orthodontic treatment!

Depending on the activity, different mouthguard options and levels of awareness may be required to protect your mouth and the appliances being used for your treatment.  Make sure you speak with us or your orthodontist about the sports you are engaged in so we can provide the kind of protection you need. Not consulting your orthodontist can result in the following:

• Cuts to your tongue, lips and cheeks
• Chipped or broken teeth – which can be a concern with or without braces!
• Broken appliance pieces
• Significant damage to teeth or the jaw
• Concussions: mouthguards provide a shock absorber for blows to the face which prevents concussions.

While these injuries are uncommon, they are possible and completely preventable.  Work with your orthodontist to see about different mouthguard options that are available for you and the kind of sport you are engaged in.  Also, it’s important to understand that there is a difference between regular mouthguards and customized orthodontic mouthguards that are created to protect braces and other orthodontic appliances.  Together you can create a solution that is both comfortable and protects the investment being made for your future smile. Contact us today with any questions you may have!

Parents are always looking for ways to make toothbrush time more fun for the little ones. Fortunately, the digital age has brought along with it a number of fun gadgets, games, and apps to do just that. Here’s some tech that parents can check out if they’re looking to boost their tots’ motivation when it comes to oral hygiene. 

 

Fun, High-Tech Toothbrushes  

Brushes have come a long way. Here’s how some companies are finding ways to get little ones to brush for the recommended full 2 minutes, twice a day.  

The GUM Crayola Timer Light Toothbrushes (here) not only look like a giant crayon (fun!) but also flash for the whole 2 minutes’ brushing time. 

Is your child in love with all things Frozen? If so, the Oral-B Pro-Health electric toothbrush line featuring Elsa, Anna, Olaf, and Sven (here) should do the trick. There are also brushes featuring other popular characters from Disney, Marvel, and Star Wars. 

These brushes in the Oral-B Pro-Health Stages or JR. line are even more effective when used along with the Disney Magic Timer App (here), which keeps kids brushing for the full two minutes by slowly “brushing away” on screen to reveal images of their favorite characters and allowing kids to collect virtual stickers. 

“The world’s first interactive smart toothbrush” is how Grush (here) describes itself. This toothbrush knows which teeth your child is brushing and encourages them to brush all four quadrants. It helps them build good habits with their “magic toothbrush” while playing games through the connected app. (Other toothbrushes with a similar idea are being developed but haven’t hit the market yet. Keep an eye out for Playbrush and Kolibree.)  

 

There’s an App for That 

Plenty of apps for phones and tablets work independently of the toothbrush. Here are just a few. 

The free Toothsavers Brushing Game (here) app brings kids along the journey with Toothy and the Toothsavers to break a wicked spell cast by an evil sorceress that has left everyone in the kingdom with a mouth full of cavities. A parents’ section allows parents to keep track of their child’s progress.  

For older kids (and adults, too), Brush DJ (here) is a free, ultra simple app that plays 2 minutes of a song from your phone to keep you brushing. It also lets you set reminders on your phone to brush your teeth and get dental check-ups. 

Animal-loving kids will also love Chomper Chums Mobile App (here), which features animal pals who help kids brush and floss. Kids earn points to buy healthy food for their character. 

 

Alexa and Google Home 

Your virtual assistants can help your kids brush, too. Of course, the simplest thing to do is set a timer for two minutes, but where’s the fun in that? Here are tailor-made apps for tooth brushing tots to consider instead.

Enable the Chompers app (here) for Alexa and when it’s time to brush, just say “Alexa, start Chompers.” Songs, stories, and jokes keep kids brushing for the full two minutes.  

Another one for Alexa, Bye Bye Cavities (here) guides children to brush their entire mouths and at the end of each session, they get a new prize. 

For Google Home, try Tayo (here). Tayo the Little Bus helps kids get into good habits and uses music to stop little ones getting bored. 

 

Parents, Keep Looking for Solutions 

There are so many new specialty toothbrushes, apps, and games out there (many of them free, too), with the same purpose: make it easier to get kids to brush their teeth twice a day, every day, for two minutes. If you’ve tried several and still haven’t found one that “clicks” with your child yet, don’t give up! Keep looking for one that does. The goal is to help your children develop a lifelong brushing habit, and that can take a while. Just keep looking. 

Photo credit: Tom’s Guide

In a previous blog post we looked at why flossing is so important for your oral and overall health. It’s always important to floss, but it’s especially for people with braces to floss to make sure they’re keeping their mouth free from food particles and plaque build-up.

Flossing with traditional braces is… challenging. Challenging, but not impossible! Although the wires mean you can’t use dental floss the way you did pre-braces, there are still ways to clean in between your teeth and at the gum line. To help you with this, here are four great tools that can help you in your dental hygiene routine.

Floss Threaders

Wires in traditional braces make normal flossing impossible, but floss threaders help. These little pieces of looped plastic allow you to insert floss in between each pair of teeth, one by one, so you can make contact with the inside edges of the teeth and get all the way up to the gum line. This is crucial for keeping gums healthy and for ridding bacteria from in between teeth. (They’re also useful later for the same reason if you’re fitted with a permanent retainer on the back of your upper or lower teeth after getting your braces off.)

Water Flossers

Water flossers do what regular floss does, just with water instead of fiber. They are electric, either battery operated or rechargeable, and use high water pressure and pulsation to dislodge food particles, plaque, and bacteria from in between teeth. Just like dental floss, water flossers are intended for daily use.

Air Flossers

Water flossers use water to clean between your teeth; guess what air flossers use. That’s right, air. One complaint about water flossers is how much water they use. Instead, these just use a very small amount of water to shoot high-pressure pulses of air in between teeth, removing plaque and debris in the process. Like water flossers, they are battery operated or come with a recharging station and should be used daily.

Interdental Brushes

Also called interproximal brushes or soft picks, these devices come in different sizes and typically feature a very small 360º brush at the end of a slim plastic handle. The very small brushes can get in between teeth to clean above and below the braces wire. They’re also great for cleaning the spaces between the wire and the tooth surface, as well as the brackets themselves. Some people use them daily in place of floss while others use them to clean as needed.

It’s About the Habit

Remember that it’s important to keep up good hygiene habits during orthodontic treatment. You don’t want to get your braces off only to find you have decay and gum inflammation that needs attention – that’s not part of the beautiful smile you’ve been dreaming about.

Flossing daily must be a habit, and it’s less important whether you use dental floss you got free from your last check-up or the latest, most expensive gadget. The only must is to do it daily, or you won’t get optimal results. In the end, it’s not about the tools you use, but the habit you have.

Did you know that a little piece of string is powerful enough to save your teeth, and maybe even your life?

Sounds crazy, but it’s true. I’m talking, of course, about dental floss. Though we all know by now that we’re supposed to floss daily, many of us still skip this basic step in oral care, believing that brushing is enough.

If you’ve been lax in your flossing habits, read on. You’ll better understand how powerful this simple piece of white string can be to your oral health and your overall health.

Flossing Saves Your Teeth

Quick recap on how decay happens: Sugars from the things we eat and drink attach to the surfaces of the teeth. Bacteria present in the mouth feed on these sugars and produce an acid that erodes the surface of the tooth, which can lead to decay. If the decay becomes bad enough, this can lead to fillings, crowns, root canals, or even tooth extractions.

To prevent decay, we need to get rid of the bacteria’s meals – i.e., the leftover sugars and food particles. Brushing does a great job of removing them from the surfaces of the teeth, but only flossing gets in between the teeth, removing the plaque and food we can’t even see but are doing harm.

Flossing Keeps Your Gums Pink and Healthy

Bacteria building up between the teeth can start attacking the gums, too, causing inflammation. If you’ve ever stopped flossing for a while and noticed puffy gums, red gums or light bleeding when you started flossing again, then you’ve experienced this yourself. Fortunately, the bleeding usually stops on its own after a few days of flossing, and the gums return to their healthy, pink selves.

When gums are ignored, it can lead to gum inflammation (gingivitis) and gum disease (periodontitis). Left long enough, gum disease can leave the gums in a state that can only be fixed with invasive procedures like gum grafts or bone surgery.

Flossing Can Help Your Whole Body Health (And May Extend Your Life)

The benefits of flossing go beyond healthy gums and teeth. As an important part of the defense system in the mouth, healthy gums keep foreign invaders out of the rest of our system. When diseased, gums can allow in harmful pathogens that can wreak havoc on our insides. These may cause acute infections or contribute to systemic diseases, such as cardiovascular disease, bacterial pneumonia, and diabetes, all of which gum disease is associated with.

Other research has found a link between gum disease and death, showing that people with periodontal disease have higher rates of mortality, particularly when combined with other oral health hygiene problems.

Flossing is Especially Important for Pregnant Women

Periodontitis in pregnant women is associated with pre-term birth and low birth weight, both of which come with their own set of complications for the baby’s short-term and long-term health. Since fluctuating hormones during pregnancy can cause more gum problems in the first place, it’s vital for pregnant women to keep up (or start) a good flossing habit.

Floss Every Day

As you can see, flossing is about more than keeping your teeth looking good. It’s one of the simplest, cheapest, and quickest things you can do that has a disproportionately large impact on your overall health. If you’ve been skipping the floss recently, get back into the habit. Your health will thank you.

A healthy smile is a wonderful gift and an investment in health and self-confidence. It’s a gift that may initially give you sticker shock, but really, it’s worth every dollar and an investment that will continue to give returns for a lifetime. Before you get discouraged by the price tag, take into account all of these ways to save money on a beautiful smile. An amazing smile can be much more affordable than you may realize.

Avoid Cutting Corners

Not all providers and treatment plans are created equal. Consider quality while shopping because the cheapest orthodontic treatment in town may come with a significant hidden cost in dollars, time, comfort and your end-results.

One example of a treatment plan that may cost you more in the long run is the removal of permanent teeth. Unless this is a “last resort” case, a doctor may be recommending extractions when modern orthodontic techniques could treat equally or better, without removing teeth. Pulling permanent teeth can compromise the health of gum and bones, and result in long-term negative effects on facial structures and costly corrections.

Another treatment plan requiring careful consideration is mail-ordered braces. As convenient as mail-order services sound, moving teeth is a complicated process that requires a trained professional. It’s so important for orthodontic treatment to be supervised as dental appliances can get damaged, teeth don’t always move as planned, and necessary bite correction involves much more than making teeth look straight. Fixing issues common to mail-order appliances could result in paying for a full set of braces plus the cost of your mail-order experiment. Make sure to first visit an orthodontist for a consultation to make sure your case is a good candidate for at-home treatments.

Flexible Financing

Most offices will offer several options to pay for treatment, which may include:

-Paying in full to receive a certain percentage off

-Making a down payment followed by affordable monthly payments

-Opting for an extended financing plan for the lowest monthly payment options

Make sure to ask your orthodontist or someone on their team for flexible financing options.

Avoid Hidden Fees

If you opt for an extended financing plan, watch out for missed payment fees or surprise charges. You also shouldn’t need to pay higher than a 7 or 8 percent APR for an extended payment plan. Shorter payment plans are available with a 0 percent APR.

When comparing orthodontists’ prices, look closely at the cheapest. Many offices offer seemingly attractive low prices up front but hit you with fees later in treatment, making the total cost much higher. Fees for broken brackets, missed appointments, and extra charges for retainers and the like can dramatically increase your total cost. Make sure to ask very clearly if your treatment is ‘all inclusive’.

Also, beware of any office that charges additional monthly fees after a certain point. For example, many lower-priced offices will charge extra if treatment extends beyond twenty-four months—creating an incentive for them to keep your braces on longer.

Insurance

Approximately 50 percent of those seeking orthodontic treatment do not have coverage. If you have orthodontic insurance, congratulations!

A few tips for getting the most benefit from your orthodontic insurance:

Some insurance policies require a one-year waiting period, so you may have to sign up now for benefits next year.

If you could be interested in orthodontics in the future, get a free exam. Most offices will offer a complimentary insurance benefits check along with the exam so you can fully understand your coverage.

Find the doctor you like because, for almost all orthodontic insurance, you will still get the same insurance benefit for in- or out-of-network doctors.

Flexible Spending and Health Savings Accounts

FSAs and HSAs allow the use of pretax dollars for qualified health-care expenses, which include orthodontics. Both types of accounts are a significant tax advantage and can be the most powerful way to save money on orthodontic treatment.

A few things to remember:

FSA funds expire each year, so pay attention to your company’s deadlines.

Most companies require you to let them know ahead of time how much you would like to set aside.

Know your enrollment periods; failing to sign up in time could cost you significantly more in after-tax dollars to pay for your treatment.

Make the most of this gift to yourself by using insurance, spending and savings accounts, and flexible financing, while also wisely avoiding hidden fee costs for correcting bad treatment. Finally, be sure to ask your orthodontic provider’s office for help and best practices along the way!

You have a partner or a child who snores. Is it just snoring, or is it sleep apnea? Is it a big deal, or should you just ignore it? Here’s what you should know about snoring and sleep apnea.

How to Tell the Difference

We’re all familiar with snoring. Snoring is simply the sound made when air is partially blocked as it passes through the mouth, nose, and throat. It may be loud or soft. It may go all night long or may last only a short amount of time. But what sets it apart from sleep apnea is that the breathing itself doesn’t stop.

While sleep apnea often involves snoring – sometimes snoring so loud, it disturbs a partner’s sleep – the hallmark of sleep apnea is not snoring, but the complete stoppage of breath at certain moments. There can be up to 100 of these episodes per night, some lasting a minute or more, during which oxygen is cut off from the body. The sleeper is unlikely to be aware of this, as these episodes don’t tend to wake them up.

There are three types of sleep apnea: obstructive sleep apnea (OSA), caused by an obstruction in the airway; central sleep apnea, caused by the brain’s failure to signal the muscles to breathe during sleep; and mixed sleep apnea, a combination of the two. Whatever the type, they all involve the same thing: disturbed sleep and impaired oxygen flow.

Are Snoring and Sleep Apnea Always Bad?

Snoring can be a sign of sleep apnea, but it can also be a harmless (if annoying) habit.

Sleep apnea is not harmless. It’s been linked to a variety of life-shortening conditions, including blood pressure, heart disease, diabetes, and stroke. Even automobile accidents are associated with this condition, as sleep deprived sufferers are more likely to fall asleep behind the wheel.

People with sleep apnea also experience a lower quality of life, with unrestful sleep, daytime sleepiness, and declines in cognitive function, and have reported a higher incidence of headaches, impotence, and weight gain.

Sleep Apnea in Children

According to the National Sleep Foundation, the prevalence of sleep apnea in children is as low as 2-3% but may be as high as 10-20% (compared to 26% of adults). They can be diagnosed as early as four or five.

Sleep apnea in children has been linked to a number of behavioral and physical problems. Many children with sleep apnea are diagnosed with ADHD, whose behavior and learning problems stem from lack of quality sleep. They are more likely to have lower grades and even their physical development is affected, as the body grows during sleep, which is impaired.

Parents can look out for snoring, “purring,” mouth breathing, daytime sleepiness, behavioral and learning issues, and bedwetting as possible signs of sleep apnea in their child.

Diagnosing Sleep Apnea and Getting Help

A sleep study is the best way to get a diagnosis. This is an overnight session in a medical setting where sleep is monitored to pinpoint the problem. Treatment may involve the use of a CPAP (Continuous Positive Airway Pressure) machine at night, surgery, or oral appliances. In some patients, weight loss is also very helpful for managing sleep apnea.

For children, a CPAP machine or surgery may be overkill when a simple orthodontic device can do the trick. I’ve seen life-changing results from a simple expander, which can help open up the air passage. An orthodontist can do a sleep apnea screening on your child and discuss treatment options.

As sleep apnea is not just an annoyance but has a major impact on health and quality of life, it’s imperative to take steps to address it now. You’ll be glad you did.

Thanksgiving is a time to be thankful for friends, family, and life! It’s also a time to indulge in delicious foods like turkey, mashed potatoes, cranberry sauce and pumpkin pie. While it’s common knowledge that some of these foods are not friendly on the waistline, did you know that some of these popular dishes are also not treating your teeth so well? Check out this list of popular Thanksgiving foods and how they might harm (or help!) your teeth. You can thank me later ?

1.    Thanksgiving turkey

Meat, like Thanksgiving turkey or ham, is high in protein. Protein is loaded with phosphorus, a mineral that protects tooth enamel and improves the strength of your teeth and jaw.

2.    Mashed potatoes

You might not be thinking of mashed potatoes as helping out your teeth, but I am trying to do you a favor! The milk in mashed potatoes is an excellent source of calcium and vitamin D. This dose of vitamin D helps the body to absorb calcium. And, calcium strengthens bones and teeth. An added bonus, the casein in milk can also help your enamel get stronger.

3.    Cranberry sauce

Strong acids, like those found in cranberry sauce, are the number-one cause of enamel erosion and tooth decay. When sits on your teeth, it wears down tooth enamel, eventually causing cavities and other problems. If you just can’t go without your beloved cranberry sauce, minimize the acidic exposure of your teeth by drinking lots of water and, if possible, brushing your teeth after eating. Then, avoid other acidic foods and drinks for several hours.

4.    Pumpkin pie

Sugary foods like pumpkin pie, pecan pie, and other baked goods leave plaque, a sticky film of bacteria on your teeth. The sugar can also get stuck in the crevices between your teeth and become a breeding ground for bacteria. The bacteria in plaque turns into acid (similar to that discussed above) that will attack your tooth enamel, eventually breaking down and creating a little hole in your tooth, a cavity.

So, what can you do?

Offer to bring the veggie tray! Although veggie trays may not be the most delectable of all the food choices, raw vegetables are great for your teeth. These crunchy, crispy delights contain lots of water to help your teeth stay sharp, scrub tooth surfaces and stimulate the flow of saliva. Saliva is very important because it contains enzymes that fight off the acids present in your cranberry sauce and pumpkin pie, cleaning bits of food out from between your teeth and gums.

Give your teeth some extra love. If you can’t resist that pumpkin pie, you may want to bring along a toothbrush, and, brush more than you think you should. If you aren’t able to brush after indulging, at least rinse your mouth with water so that the sugar doesn’t have a chance to turn acidic on your teeth.

Avoid eating a post-dessert, dessert. Eat the sweets after dinner and don’t have them again later! By continually snacking on those super sugary desserts, your teeth will be constantly exposed to these cavity-causing acids. Have at the pie all at once, rather than saving up and gorging on all the leftovers.

This Thanksgiving, let’s be thankful that certain foods can help prevent cavities and tooth decay, keep plaque at bay, and even freshen breath. Make sure to incorporate some of the above tooth-friendly foods into your Thanksgiving meal!