Send them Back-to-School Smiling!

The back to school preparation madness is about to begin! Back pack… check!  School supplies… check!   Haircut… check! Make sure you add a visit to the dental hygienist for an oral health check up to the Back-to-School list!

Get their back to school SMILE ready with a dental hygiene appointment! Now is the perfect time as the children are off for the summer break. Norfolk Dental Hygiene also recommends a Canary Scan. The Canary system is a device for the detection and monitoring of tooth decay. It can detect suspicious areas of decay on smooth enamel surfaces, root surfaces, biting surfaces, between teeth and around existing amalgam or composite fillings and beneath dental sealants. It is a pain free, safe and non-invasive early detection system, built on years of thorough research. Early detection of dental caries allows decay to be halted or reversed using remineralization therapies. The Canary system progressively shifts the dental care approach from intervention (filling of cavities) to prevention for all ages!

In addition to building a good oral health care routine, it’s important that your child have correct brushing techniques. The dental hygienist can see the trouble spots and offer your child ideas to improve how they brush their teeth.  A hurried and improper brushing style will lead to bacteria build up which may lead to other dental issues. Check out the Brush DJ app at www.brushdj.com.  It plays 2 minutes of your child’s music or you can choose music on the app, makes brushing fun! If flossing is an issue, at Norfolk Dental Hygiene we have other tools and techniques to get the same or better results!

What your child eats affects his or her teeth. Packing a healthy low-sugar lunch for your child helps to ensure that he or she doesn’t exist on a lunch of high sugar processed foods and candy. Too many carbohydrates, sugar (cookies, candies, milk, and other sugary foods and beverages), and starches (pretzels and potato chips) can cause tooth decay. How long carbohydrates remain on the teeth is the main culprit that leads to tooth decay. Half the battle is teaching your child to make healthy food choices! Xylitol gum is also another great option to help prevent decay. Because the bacteria in the mouth that are causing cavities are unable to digest xylitol, their growth is greatly reduced. The number of acid-producing bacteria may fall as much as 90%. After taking xylitol, the bacteria do not stick well on the surface of the teeth and as a result, the amount of plaque decreases.

With dental hygiene appointments, proper oral health care at home, and good nutrition, you can send them off with a healthy SMILE that will last a lifetime!