Blog - West Los Angeles Dental Care

Kiss & Make Up With the Beautiful Smile You’ve Always Wanted

Afshin Golyad DDS.

Kiss & Make Up With the Beautiful Smile You’ve Always Wanted

Teeth.  A good set is essential when landing your first high paying job.  They’re the beautiful smile that makes somebody want to kiss you.  One of the first things people notice about you is your smile. Nothing shows good health and betters a beautiful smile more than healthy white teeth.  Now you can get that perfect smile you always dreamed about through porcelain restorations (Dental Veneers | Porcelain Veneers), veneers, teeth whitening (Teeth Whitening | Bleaching), and other state-of-the-art cosmetic dentistry (Cosmetic Dentistry Learn More) treatments.

If you love to smile and you want everyone to notice your lovely smile, follow these tips and make them a part of your regular beauty routine:

 

Tips for a Healthy Beautiful Smile

 

  • Kiss & Make Up With the Beautiful Smile You’ve Always Wanted

    Kiss & Make Up With the Beautiful Smile You’ve Always Wanted

    Use a tongue scraper (Tongue Scraper Wiki Page) to clean your tongue using your toothbrush as bacteria build up. This way the bacteria which cause bad breath or plaque will be eliminated. Rinse your mouth with mouthwash to kill remaining bacteria.

  • Massage your gums gently to increase blood circulation around your gums.  This will help reduce gingivitis (Bleeding Gums). You can use special brushes (rubber tips) for your gums or you can gently massage them using your finger.

 

  • Stay away from stains in food that can stain your teeth such as Strawberries, lemon juice, Orange rind, coffee, tea, and smoking.  If your teeth are already discolored ask your dentist for options for teeth whitening.

Senior Citizens Keeping Dentures Clean

Afshin Golyad DDS. , , ,

Senior Citizens Keeping Dentures Clean

Keeping one’s mouth and teeth clean is healthy and allows for healthier eating. It is very important to take are of your mouth at any age especially when one is an elderly and has dentures. Senior citizens are at a higher risk of experiencing complications with gums and teeth (Healthy Gums and Teeth).

 

In’s & Out’s of Keeping Your Dentures Clean & Intact

When you start using dentures, it is recommended to start with softer foods to get used to the denture and how it feels. One should also be careful since bones and hot food can not be easily detected with dentures and may cause damage.

Keeping Senior Citizens Dentures Clean

Keeping Senior Citizens Dentures Clean

Dentures or partials should be brushed daily with a soft toothbrush or denture cleaning brush, using a commercially prepared denture powder or paste, hand soap, or baking soda. They should be brushed inside and outside, and rinsed with cool water. Remaining natural teeth and gums, especially those teeth supporting a partial denture, should also be brushed (Teeth Brushing Mastering Tips). It makes them more important since loosing any more teeth causes the partial to be looser or one may need a new appliance which can be costly.

Night Time Guide for Keeping Dentures Clean

When not in use or at night, dentures should be stored in water or a denture cleaning solution to prevent drying.

Those with arthritis or other limiting conditions should try adaptations to make dental care easier. For example, attach a bicycle grip or wrap a washcloth around a toothbrush handle for easier grasping.  Also by using electric toothbrush (Electric Toothbrush Wiki Page), it may be easier to control than a manual one. They are also great for removing plaque (Dental Care | 7 Basic Things You Should Do) and stimulating gums.

 

Denture Fitting

Check dentures for fit. If you wear full or partial dentures, be sure they fit properly and that you are using the correct amount of denture cream. If you experience discomfort, or if you are using more than one tube of denture cream every three weeks, your dentures may not fit properly and should be evaluated. Visit your dentist (Best Dentist in Santa Monica) to see if they need to be adjusted. Ever few years the dentures may need to be relined meaning your dentist needs to add more plastic in the bottom of the denture where it sits on your gums. Over time by wearing dentures and placing pressure on the gums, the gums and bone will shrink producing a gap between your gums and denture. The reline procedure will fill this gap making the denture fit better and tighter.


Popsicles & Your Teeth

Afshin Golyad DDS.

Popsicles & Your Teeth

Now that summer has arrived, there are many picnics and barbecues that people will join their friends and family to enjoy the summer. Unfortunately, some of the summer food can be damaging to your teeth (Healthy Gums and Teeth).  Luckily, some of these have sugar free alternatives that can still be enjoyable as your favorite treat.

 

The Effects Popsicles Have on Your Teeth

popsicles & your teeth

Popsicles & Your Teeth

Popsicles- when the weather gets hot, there are not much enjoyment than having your favorite flavored Popsicle. Although this is a refreshing summer heat escape, it may not be friend to your teeth. The Popsicles are usually filled with sugar site and artificial dyes that may stain your teeth.  In general the more your teeth are exposed to sugar, the greater the chance of damage to your teeth.  When eating a Popsicle, one tends to lick it for a long time therefore exposing teeth to sugar (Understanding the Connection Between Sugar and Tooth Decay) for much longer time compare to other snack foods.  Thankfully, there are many sugar free Popsicles on the market that are as delicious and refreshing but much friendlier to your teeth.

 

Summer Time Fun That may Effect Your Teeth Other Then Popsicles

Popcorn- to escape from a summer day many people ran away to a movie theater. If you are like most others, you may include popcorn and a soft drink to your movie experience. Popcorn kernels can get stuck in the teeth or may cause teeth to chip, crack or break (Top Dental Emergency Tips).

Hard and chewy candy- people tend to eat more hard candy in the summer than you did in other months. These candies however are damaging in a number of ways. First of all, the more you suck on it, the more you expose your teeth to sugar.  Also, if you decide to bite on these candies, you run the risk of cracking or fracturing your teeth (Dental Fracture Wiki Page). There is also the chance that these candies get stocked between the teeth where it is difficult to clean them with brushing (Teeth Brushing Mastering Tips) and flossing (Floss | Flossing Benefits).


Extraction Post Op Care

Afshin Golyad DDS. , , , ,

Extraction Post Op Care

If you just had a tooth extracted, the following information will help. The initial healing period typically takes from 1-2 weeks, gum tissue (Gum Disease | Gum Disease Treatment) takes about 3-4 weeks to heal and complete healing of the bone can take about 6 months.

Immediately Following Surgery After Extraction

  • Keep the gauze placed over the extraction (Extraction Procedures) site with pressure applied by biting down until the bleeding stops. You may need to change the gauze a few times if it is soaked with blood. You may have some minor oozing for the next 24 hours which is perfectly normal. Place a towel on your pillow case before sleeping at night so the pillow case won’t get bloody.

 

  • Extraction Post Op Photo

    Extraction Post Op

    Take your prescribed pain medication and antibiotic pill if you were prescribed by your doctor before the numbness goes away. This will usually coincide with the local anesthetic becoming less effective.

 

 

  • Restrict your activities the day of surgery, and resume normal activity when you feel comfortable probably the next day.

 

  • Place ice packs on the side of your face where surgery was performed.

 

  • Restrict your diet to liquids and soft foods for the first few days till you are comfortable eating regular food.

Dental Extraction | Tips & Guides

Afshin Golyad DDS. , , , ,

Dental Extraction | Tips & Guides

Dentists and oral surgeons (dentists with special training to perform surgery) perform tooth extractions (Dental Extraction). Before removing the tooth, your dentist (Best Dentist in Santa Monica) will place a numbing gel on the gum next to the tooth to get your gums (Healthy Gums | Healthy Teeth | A Lifetime Commitment) numb before give you an injection of a local anesthetic to numb the area where the tooth will be removed.  In cases where is desired by patients or if the extraction is complicated, the oral surgeon may use general anesthetic to put you to sleep for the amount of time it takes to perform the procedure.

 

Factors & Procedures of Dental Extraction

If a tooth is impacted or broken down badly, your dentist will cut away gum and bone around the tooth and then, using forceps (Forceps Wiki Page), grasp the tooth and gently rock it back and forth to loosen it from the jaw that hold it in place. Sometimes, a tooth must be removed in pieces if it breaks or as a result of cavity (Cavity Treatment and Prevention) can not be grasp by a forceps.

 

Post Op Dental Extraction Procedure 

Extraction | Tips & Guides Image

Extraction | Tips & Guides

Once a tooth has been removed, after the bleeding stops, a blood clot forms in the socket where the tooth was kept in the jaw bone. Initially the dentist will pack a gauze pad into the socket and have you bite down on it to help stop the bleeding. Sometimes the dentist will place a few stitches to close the gum edges over the extraction site. This will help with cases that bleeding is difficult to stop or as a result of cutting the gums (Healthy Gums and Teeth) around tooth, it is necessary to place the gum back in its place.

 

Dry Socket Due to Extraction

Sometimes, the blood clot in the socket breaks loose, exposing the bone in the socket. This is a painful condition called dry socket.  Smoking or using a straw may increase the chances of dry socket.  Some area in the mouth has a greater chance of developing dry socket compare to other areas.  If this happens, your dentist will place a medication over the socket for a few days to protect it as a new clot forms. A dry socket is not an infection and does not require antibiotics.


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