Baywood Dental Group: Valencia, CA

When you drink hot or cold beverages, do you feel pain or discomfort in your teeth? What about when you are eating, brushing, or flossing? If you experience one or more of these symptoms, you have what is known as “sensitive teeth”.

Now, you may be wondering- what causes teeth to become sensitive? Cavities or fractured teeth are actually a common cause of sensitive teeth. It can also be brought about through tooth enamel becoming worn down or a tooth root becoming exposed. By over-brushing, brushing incorrectly, or using a hard toothbrush you can actually cause your teeth to become sensitive. Bruxism (or teeth grinding) can lead to teeth sensitivity as well. As you can imagine, age can also lead to sensitive teeth.

Depending on the cause, there are treatments available for sensitive teeth. For cavities and fractured teeth, having these repaired will help ease your sensitivity. Desensitizing toothpaste is sold in most stores, which will help in some scenarios. If it does not help ease your pain after several applications, some in-office techniques are available. Speak to your dentist at Baywood Dental Group if your at-home treatments are not working. When none of these methods are helping, an endodontic treatment (or root canal) may be needed to solve your sensitive teeth pain.

Keeping up with your regular cleaning and at-home treatment can help reduce the risk of teeth sensitivity.

At Baywood Dental Group, one of the many cosmetic procedures we offer is veneers. What are veneers exactly, you many be wondering? A veneer is a ceramic (or porcelain) shell that is bonded to the front of a tooth. Why would someone need this? It is an easy way to change the color, size, or even shape of any tooth. Veneers are an option to consider in a variety of situations. Those with stained, chipped, or broken teeth chose veneers as a permanent option to help correct their teeth. Gaps between teeth can also be closed through veneers. This procedure lasts many years, and can help vastly improve your smile.

While veneers may be a newer procedure, the idea came about in the 1930‘s. With the start of “talking” motion pictures, the lack of dental hygiene practiced by actors and actresses became apparent. Charles Pincus, a dentist in California, created the first version of veneers to cover the broken or decayed teeth of Hollywood stars. While these fixes back then were extremely temporary, veneers have came a long way.

If veneers sound right for you, come discuss this treatment with one of our qualified specialists. We will help assess if veneers are your best option, and what your treatment plan will be. This procedure can be done typically in one additional appointment, with only a local anesthetic needed (if at all). Visit our Valencia office to discuss any further questions you many have regarding veneers.

When shopping for a new toothbrush, have you noticed that you can choose from soft, medium, and hard? This is actually just showing the level of firmness of the bristles on the toothbrush. Does it really make a difference which kind you use though, and if so, which really is the best? The answer may surprise you. Many of us pick the harder brushes, thinking the firmer bristles will clean our teeth better. That firmer bristles will surely scrub away more plaque and leave a cleaner mouth, right?

In reality though, the “soft” bristles are actually the best way to go. Think about it. The softer bristles are able to flex easier, allowing them to get into all those hard-to-reach places. Not only that, but toothbrushes with harder bristles may actually do more damage than good. The Journal of Periodontology recently did a study which showed participants that used hard bristled toothbrushes in their study had more gum recession. As for tooth enamel, the debate is still out on whether firmer brushes actually do more damage. While firmer bristles may slightly accelerate erosion, it does nowhere near the damage as fruit juices and sodas. (On that note, it can’t hurt to keep an eye out for drinking too much acidic drinks either.)

So the next time you are at the store to pick out your new toothbrush, keep this in mind. Stronger might be better in most cases, but not when it comes to your bristles.

Regularly brushing your teeth is very important, but there are certain ways to brush that are more helpful than others. Our dental team at Baywood Dental Group recommends the following techniques to make your brushing habits most effective.

To begin, you should brush your teeth 2 times a day for at least 2 minutes. Consider using a stopwatch at first to be sure you are reaching that time. You should hold your tooth brush at a 45-degree angle, using short, gentle strokes. Be sure to brush the outside, inside, and chewing surface of each tooth, paying extra attention to fillings, crowns, and other treatments. In addition, be sure to brush your tongue. Your tongue can hold a lot of bacteria and cause bad breath (and no one likes that).

On top of brushing, don’t forget to keep up on your flossing and cleanings. We know it’s hard to remember to floss all the time (ok.. or sometimes at all). Flossing can reach those hard-to-get places though brushing and mouthwash can’t. It may take a bit more time to do, but your teeth will thank you.