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Dental Trouble Makers - avoid these simple pitfalls

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Submitted By Dr. Kevin P. Grace

Here are some common concerns that can ruin your dental health:

1. Thumb sucking - children, who suck their thumb or finger, especially after the age of 5-6 yrs old, could cause permanent changes that affect teeth and jaw position. Common effects of thumb sucking are breathing problems, chewing difficulties, malposition of teeth, speech and pronunciation concerns and jaw malformation
2. Brushing too hard - if you brush too hard (pressure) and use a hard or medium brush, you are doing more harm than good. Use an ultra-soft bristle - if you wanted to paint a picket fence, you would use soft bristles to get into the nooks and crannies of the structure.  Hard bristles cause notches in teeth at the gum line and causes gum recession.
3. Clenching or grinding teeth - many people grind or clench their teeth at night.  This excessive pressure can cause micro fractures in teeth making the tooth non-restorable and needing extraction.  Existing dental restorations also suffer and will chip needing replacement before expected replacement.  A simple night appliance that we can fabricate at our office can save your teeth.
4. Ice crunching - for people who chew on ice, it is common that they could have an iron deficiency.  A simple vitamin with iron could solve this problem.  Similar to clenching/grinding of teeth (see above), significant damage can be done to your teeth.
5. Teeth used as a tool - don't use your teeth as a tool to cut string, fishing line or open bottles.  Once broken, the tooth needs continual care - nothing is as good as the original!
6. Nail biting - like #6, get the proper cutter for the job
7. Soda and sports drinks - this is a nightmare for your teeth - high acidity, high amounts of sugars and/or chemicals.  There is NOTHING good about soda. InTahiti, there was no tooth decay on that island UNTIL soda was introduced. Dentists were not needed, so you can understand it is the items we eat and drink that cause the problems.

      8.   Acid in foods - lemons, tea, coffee, sauces, wine, soda etc.  Acids erode the                             enamel of the teeth and the decay process begins

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