When we’re not feeling 100% it can be a pretty miserable time, and we naturally tend to tackle the visible symptoms of whatever ails us. Many people don’t realise that when you’re fighting a nasty bug, there can be hidden implications that can put your teeth in harm’s way. Here at CK Dental in Bristol we’ve prepared a quick rundown of what to look out for when you’re not feeling very well.

Sickness bugs and dental health

If you’ve succumbed to the winter vomiting bug (norovirus) or have picked up a nasty bout of food poisoning, your teeth won’t be your main concern… but they are right in the firing line.

Each time you are sick, potent stomach acid passes through your mouth and can damage tooth enamel. If tooth enamel becomes damaged it can cause teeth to become sensitive, become discoloured or become more likely to become damaged.

The first thing you’ll want to do once you’ve been sick is to brush your teeth, but this is not recommended straight away. Washing and swilling your mouth with fresh water first is the best course of action, then you can brush as normal after 30 mins or so. However, if this is not practical, if the sickness strikes in the middle of the night (for example) then brushing your teeth is a better option than not.

Chesty coughs, tickles and sore throats and tooth decay

If you’re feeling pained by a persistent cough or have a sore throat, there are a plethora of cough syrups available that you’ll no doubt work your way through until you find something to ease the discomfort. While they might ease one problem, the sugar content in a lot of cough medicines is eye-wateringly high and can put your teeth at risk of developing cavities or decay. There are often sugar-free alternatives available, and although they may not taste quite so good, they’re a lot better for your oral health.

Dehydration and dental bacteria

If you’re feeling really groggy, the chances are you’ll not be eating and drinking enough. If you’re suffering with sickness and/or diarrhoea, then there is a good chance that you’re probably getting dehydrated. This can be serious for many different reasons, including the repercussions it can have on your teeth.

If you’re dehydrated then your mouth won’t be able to produce enough saliva, which helps keep the pH balance in your mouth at the correct levels. Salvia is also your mouth’s natural way of keeping bacteria at bay. Even if you don’t really feel up to drinking, keep sipping water as it will do your body no end of good.

 

Mouthwash is a tale of two perspectives, with some people singing its praises and others believing it does more harm than good. So, what really is the truth when it comes to using mouthwash? Is it helping or hindering our oral hygiene? CK Dental shares its point of view on the pros and cons.

Can mouthwash help keep plaque at bay?

Absolutely. That is one of the main benefits of regularly using a mouthwash as it fights bacteria that can cause plaque to develop. Killing these harmful bacteria also helps reduce the risk of gum disease and cavities that are also caused when too much bacteria takes hold in your mouth.

Mouthwash won’t remove plaque though. Once it has developed you need to have it removed by a dentist. The mouthwash routine is then importance for maintaining the look and feel of your teeth once the plaque has been removed.

Fresh breath – an added bonus

There’s no denying that another clear benefit of using mouthwash each day is that it makes your breath minty fresh. It also cools your mouth and leaves it feeling fresh and tingly.

Mouthwash kills bacterial – but should they all be removed?

Most people who err on the side of caution with regards to mouthwash are concerned about just how effective it is at killing bacteria. Some of the bacteria that live inside our mouths are good for us and can help maintain a healthy digestive system. The trouble is, mouthwash can’t discriminate between the good and bad bacteria. If you’re worried that your mouthwash may be too overzealous in its bacteria-killing credentials, then you could consider using a gentle mouthwash that is purely designed to freshen breath, rather than kill bacteria.

Cosmetic mouthwashes will help with fresh, minty breath, while therapeutic mouthwashes will help kill germs. For more information about what to look for when choosing a suitable mouthwash, check out our blog which is designed to help the decision-making process.

Can mouthwash damage your teeth?

Some mouthwash contains alcohol which can have a negative impact on the delicate layer of enamel that coats your teeth. If you are worried at all about this, look for 0% alcohol on the label of your mouthwash. Plenty of these exist so they are not difficult to get hold of.

 

 

By the time we reach adult life, many of us have adopted a tooth brushing regime that we are fairly comfortable with. Nevertheless, there is always room for improvement. As dental technologies evolve and improve, new products become available that can help push your oral hygiene even further, and help maintain healthy teeth and gums.

There are new ways of brushing teeth that many people are not aware of – the dental industry has a responsibility to ensure that people know what is out there and what is best for their teeth. The staff here at CK Dental think it’s important that patients are kept up to date and are made aware of interesting new dental innovations.

One such new innovation is the interdental brush, which offers a modern alternative to flossing.

A new, tiny type of brush is available that can be used in conjunction with a traditional (manual or electric) toothbrush. These tiny brushes are called ‘interdental brushes’, they are conical shaped and specially designed to get into the small spaces between your teeth.

Interdental brushes are effective in removing plaque and bacteria by interproximal brushing (in laymen’s terms, getting in between the tiny gaps between teeth). It is not possible to remove all plaque and bacteria by conventional brushing alone, hence why flossing has always been recommended. Interdental brushes can offer a different approach that can be less fiddly compared to trying to squeeze a length of floss in-between your teeth.

Interdental brushes can be used every day as part of your regular brushing routine, and they come in lots of different shapes and sizes. Some people will opt for a series of interdental brushes, as they require different sizes to get into the different sized gaps between teeth. Once you’ve started to weave this into your oral hygiene routine, it soon becomes second nature, and your teeth and gums should feel cleaner as a result.

Many people find that using interdental brushes is a lot more user-friendly compared with floss, so they are less likely to become discarded and ignored at the back of the bathroom cupboard. When you first start using an Interdental brush, you may experience some slight bleeding from gums as they get used to the intrusion. This should be temporary and is usually the case when you first begin flossing too. This should clear up fast and as long as you’re not forcing the brushes into gaps that are too small for the size of the brush, you should not feel any discomfort.

Interdental brushes: what’s best, Vision or Tepe?

Having discussed the merits of interdental brushes, the next question is how to choose what type of interdental brush to use. There are a variety of offerings, but the two main types are Vision brushes and TePe brushes. Here at CK Dental, we look at the differences between the two, so you can make an informed choice which is best for you and your oral needs.

Vision brushes

• Vision interdental Perio brushes claim to be an “easy, effective and great value for money solution” to keeping your teeth and gums healthy
• They are available in a variety of different sizes, which means you can squeeze them into the different sized gaps between your teeth. Your dentist will be able to help advise which size(s) are going to be most suitable for you
• The brush has a curve to it (similar to the shape of an elongated hockey stick), which allows easier access into the hard-to-reach areas of the mouth
• The USP of the vision brush is that it “compresses gum tissues for a deeper clean than other brushes or dental floss.”

TePe brushes

• TePe interdental brushes are “designed to clean between teeth, around bridges, fixed appliances and implant abutments. They help to maintain a high standard of oral hygiene .”
• There are also available in a variety of sizes
• These brushes are conical in design, with a soft, ergonomic handle and a plastic coated central wire to ensure that teeth and gums are cleaned safely and gently
• TePe brushes can be straight or on a curved handle, depending on whether you’re tacking the teeth at the front of your mouth of the trickier ones at the back.

Thumbs up for interdental brushes

Both styles of brushes have their merits and it will largely be down to personal preference with once you feel most comfortable using. Regardless of which you’re leaning towards, the concept of interdental brushes has the experts convinced. A review of nine dental studies recently concluded “interdental brushes used as an adjunct to [normal] toothbrushing removes more plaque than just toothbrushing and that dental floss and woodsticks are surpassed by interdental brushes in plaque removal.”

Many people will remember train-track braces from when they were younger, as they are the standard NHS orthodontic fix for jumbled or protruding teeth. However, many people don’t realise that teeth don’t stop always moving. Quite often, if teeth were straightened when you were young, they may move again with age, hormonal changes or when wisdom teeth come through. Other people may not have opted for teeth straightening when they were younger, yet decide to go down that route when they are older.

The idea of train-track braces as an adult may not be the most appealing idea and so here at CK Dental in Bristol we offer a newer, more visually appealing, modern alternative.

What can be done if I want straighter teeth but don’t want a visible brace?

Invisalign does what the name suggests – it straightens your teeth while being hardly noticeable. Instead of a wire which is cemented to the front of your teeth and tweaked to adjust their alignment, treatment with Invisalign braces is done with a series of plastic ‘trays’ or ‘aligners’, that fit over your teeth and are adjusted every few weeks.

How does Invisalign work?

Imprints are taken of your teeth and gums, and then aligners are custom-made to fit your mouth perfectly. The aligners slot in and out of your mouth easily, which means you can take them out when you want to eat or drink, brush your teeth and so on. Ideally you’ll keep them in for the majority of the time and this will ensure the process works as quickly as possible. They are very discrete too, at first glance you would not know that they are being worn, as they are transparent and do not protrude.

Does Invisalign hurt?

Although your teeth will ache when a new aligner is fitted, as there is no wire or attachments, these won’t cause discomfort inside the mouth in the same way that a train-track brace might do.

How long has Invisalign been available? I don’t want to be a guinea pig

Rest assured that even though Invisalign is relatively new to the UK market, it has been established since 1997 and has helped millions of people around the world achieve a smile that they are happier with.

How long will I need to wear my Invisalign braces for?

The process typically ranges from 9-18 months, depending on how much your teeth require adjusting and how complex the treatment is. Your dentist will be able to give you a good indicator of this at the initial consultation.

So, if you’ve decided that for 2018 you’re going to invest in a beautiful smile then now is the time to find out more about Invisalign.

Thanks to awareness-building advertising campaigns over the years, many of us now feel sufficiently informed to know about the warning signs of cancer in different parts of the body.

From checking for lumps and bumps, to persistent headaches and changes with moles and freckles, cancers such as breast, prostate, testicular, brain and skin are well known, and there is a reasonably good awareness of how to perform ‘bodily MOTs’ – checking for changes that could signal a problem.

But we are as clued in when it comes to mouth cancer?

Mouth cancer is one of the lesser known cancers, although according to Cancer Research UK, the incidence of mouth cancer in the UK is on the increase. “Oral cancer incidence rates are projected to rise by 33% in the UK between 2014 and 2035, to 20 cases per 100,000 people by 2035.”

What this means in real terms is that the number of people each year in the UK who are diagnosed with oral cancer is now in excess of 7,500.

Although it is becoming more prevalent, it is believed that the vast majority of mouth cancers are linked with lifestyle choices. What this means is that with greater opportunities to educate people about the causes of mouth cancer, there are things that people can be doing on a day to day basis that can help reduce their risk.

How to mitigate your risk of developing mouth cancer

Here at CK Dental we always advocate oral hygiene and good oral health, and this is the first important starting point. A regular brushing routine and a good awareness of the state of your teeth, tongue, cheeks and gums is essential in being able to spot if anything looks or feels different.

There is a proven link between excessive alcohol consumption and mouth cancer, so ensuring you are keeping alcohol intake with the recommended weekly units is a good starting point to ensure that you’re not putting your mouth at risk. There is also an increased risk for smokers, as tobacco usage has also been linked with higher incidences of mouth cancer – in fact three quarters of those diagnosed with mouth cancer are reportedly smokers.

Signs to look out for

Mouth cancer can start out as a mouth ulcer that does not cause discomfort or irritation, but that fails to heal.  It is also important to keep tabs on any red or white patches that form within the mouth and that do not seem to be healing or clearing up. The same is true for any unexpected lumps, bumps or rough areas within the mouth.

As with many cancers, the sooner it is detected, the greater the chance that it can be treated effectively, so if you have any areas of concern within (or around) your mouth, book an appointment to come and see a dentist for an expert assessment as soon as you can.

At CK Dental, our routine exams always include an examination of the teeth, gums and tissues of the mouth for any signs of a serious health condition that needs further examination.

To arrange an appointment at our Bristol dental clinic, call us on 0117 906 4868.