Dr. Mogell Dental Blog

Boca Raton Cosmetic Dentist

Healthy Options Hurting Your Teeth?

Tuesday, February 14, 2012

People in Boca Raton are a pretty healthy bunch. We work out, we try to eat right and we try to follow all of the healthy living advice that we hear. But every day we are doing things to hurt our teeth and we don't even know it.

Do you drink sports drinks after exercise or sports? These drinks are extremely popular but they aren't great for your teeth. They are typically full of sugars which act as food for oral bacteria. On top of that, the pH levels in many of these drinks can cause your tooth enamel to wear away. The combination leaves you with teeth that are open to decay and a well-fed army of bacteria ready to go to work on them.
Do you love a glass of wine? Wine may be good for your heart but it isn't so great for your smile. This goes beyond the issues of stains from red wine. It seems that the acidity in wine, both white and red, can also erode your tooth enamel. To avoid this don't swish the wine around in your mouth -- take small sips and rinse your mouth with water after drinking.
Are you on a weight loss diet?. Losing a few pounds is good for your health, going on a very restrictive diet might deprive you of vitamins and minerals you need for your healthy smile. Poor nutrition can also affect your immune system leaving you susceptible to infections such as periodontal disease. Proper nutrition and exercise are the keys to losing weight, crash diets are never the answer.
Do you drink bottled water? Bottled water typically does not contain fluoride like many municipal water systems do. Fluoride is controversial for some but it has been safely added to water supplies for many years and has drastically cut the rate of cavities in children and adults in this country. This substance helps remineralize the teeth making them stronger and resistant to decay.
Do you love a slice of lemon in your water glass? Restaurants do this regularly and diet books suggest adding a squeeze of lemon juice to your water to promote weight loss. It really just makes the water taste a little better so you'll drink more of it. While drinking lots of water is fine, the added acids from the citrus juice are bathing your teeth and weakening your dental enamel all day long. Keep drinking water, just make it plain tap water.

What can you do to protect your teeth if you don't want to give up anything on this list? Your enamel has been softened by the acids and scrubbing at it with a brush immediately will only make matters worse. Rinse your mouth with plain water or better yet, chew a piece of sugar-free gum. The xylitol found in sugar-free gum actually inhibits oral bacteria and increases your saliva flow which will begin to remineralize your teeth. Follow up with a good brushing and flossing about an hour later.

If your habits have left you with a smile that is not as healthy and bright as it once was you have many options for restoring your smile. Cosmetic dentistry using porcelain veneers can reshape, rebuild and restore your naturally beautiful smile and dental whitening is highly effective for removing stains on teeth.

Please contact Boca Raton cosmetic Dentist Dr. Kenneth A. Mogell at 561-394-9000 to schedule your consultation.

Labels: cosmetic dentistry, dental veneers

yourdentalblog

Dangerous Internet Options for Sleep Apnea

Wednesday, February 08, 2012

Anybody can sell anything on the internet and I'm amazed at the dangerous internet options I run across while researching sleep apnea. This morning I came upon a simple looking website that had lots of "information" about how obstructive sleep apnea "really" works and then a pitch for an herbal supplement that would "cure" the sleep apnea.

If it sounds too good to be true it usually is. If there really was a pill that patients could take to solve their sleep problems the big pharmaceutical companies would have jumped on board. That obviously hasn't happened.

Obstructive sleep apnea, like a broken leg, is not something we can fix with a pill. Treating the problem requires using a CPAP, oral appliance or surgery. CPAP is the gold standard but many people cannot tolerate the treatment. For mild to moderate sleep apnea using an oral appliance is a comfortable, easy to use solution to ensure a full night of sleep (and breathing).

Patients often tell me how much more energy they have once they have begun treating their sleep apnea. Obstructive sleep apnea can have serious health consequences if it is ignored. Please don't try internet options to treat your disease - we want to see you healthy and getting the proper sleep.

Please contact us at 561-394-9000 to schedule a consultation to see if you are a candidate for oral appliance therapy.

yourdentalblog

Sleep, Breathing and Silent Stroke

Friday, February 03, 2012

Most people have never heard of them but there are these sneaky things called "silent strokes". Silent strokes do the same type of tissue damage in the brain but there are no outward symptoms like you have with a regular stroke.

Research presented at the American Stroke Association's International Stroke Conference made a link between silent stroke and sleep apnea.The researchers evaluated stroke patients for sleep breathing disorders and they found 91% of the study population had sleep apnea. The researchers also performed brain scans on the patients and found that those with sleep apnea were more likely to have silent strokes. Having more than five episodes of apnea per night was linked to the silent strokes and the worse the case of sleep apnea, the more likely the patient experienced silent strokes.

This important research underscores the need to treat sleep breathing disorders such as obstructive sleep apnea. However, there are two problems healthcare providers face when it comes to these patients.

First, most people who have sleep apnea do not know it. Patients are usually diagnosed only when a bed partner complains about the snoring and gasping or their daytime sleepiness forces them to seek a medical opinion.

Secondly, once a diagnosis is made the first line of treatment is usually CPAP. While CPAP is a lifesaving therapy about half of patients find it impossible to sleep with a CPAP machine. They find the masks uncomfortable, the machine annoying and refuse to continue the therapy.

For mild to moderate sleep apnea a wonderful alternative for these patients is an oral appliance. An oral appliance is a small device that looks like a mouthguard. The appliance is created by a dentist who has special training in the field of dental sleep medicine. The appliance is designed to place the jaw in a position that enables the airway to stay open all night long - no more stoppages of breathing.

To find out if you may suffer from sleep apnea or if you have been diagnosed and cannot tolerate your CPAP please contact Dr. Kenneth Mogell in Boca Raton, FL at 561-487-5595.

Labels: obstructive sleep apnea