Obesity, defined as an excess proportion of body fat, has reached epidemic levels in the United States. This condition presents health risks to many areas of your body, and takes a toll on just about every aspect of your life. What does obesity have to do with oral health? Recent studies have linked the development of obesity with oral bacteria.
By testing the saliva of overweight people compared to individuals within a healthy weight range, researchers have discovered an oral bacteria present in 98 percent of the obese subjects. Experts believe this bacteria is an indicator of developing an overweight condition. Also, they suspect that the bacteria may participate in the body functions that lead to obesity.
Preventing and controlling obesity usually begins with analyzing and changing your diet. A high glycemic diet, which generally means a diet high in sugars, contributes to weight gain. It is also connected with your dental health, because sugars in your mouth are converted into plaque. If plaque accumulates on your teeth and gums, the risk increases for tooth decay and gum disease.
While it will likely benefit your waistline to reduce the amount of sugar consumed, doing so will reduce your risks for oral disease. Likewise, regular dental checkups, proper oral hygiene including brushing and flossing twice daily, and smart diet modifications will also lower your oral health risks. As experts continue to investigate the connection between your mouth and your overall health, following recommendations for caring for your mouth will likely decrease oral bacteria and possibly limit your risks of other health concerns such as obesity.
Ready to transform your smile? Schedule your appointment today at our Shreveport dental office.
If your quality of life has been compromised by tooth loss, dental implants may be the answer to your problem. Missing teeth can affect even the most basic daily activities like speaking and eating. If you are looking for a lifetime replacement for a missing tooth, dental implants should be your first choice for restoration.
A dental implant is an appliance that is affixed to the jaw bone and replaces natural teeth by supporting a crown or fixed denture. Once the implant has been placed, bone forms around the implant to make it a stable anchor for a restoration.
Any patient who is missing natural teeth is considered a candidate for implant placement. Just a few of the many reasons you should consider dental implants include:
- Your desire for a durable and long-term restoration
- Your desire to restore your facial appearance that has been altered by missing teeth
- Your desire to eat and speak normally
There are many benefits to dental implants. The placement of dental implants does not require any alteration of adjacent teeth, which is ideal as it preserves your natural tooth structure. Dental implants are cleaned the same way as your natural teeth, allowing you to maintain excellent oral health. Once the implant has been placed, you can eat all your favorite foods and speak without worrying about slipping or breaking.
When you replace a missing tooth with a dental implant, you will enjoy the same function, convenience, and natural look as you have with your other teeth. If you are missing teeth, talk to your dentist about the possibility of dental implants to restore your beautiful, healthy smile.
Are dental issues holding you back? Take control of your oral health by booking an appointment with our experienced team at our Shreveport dental office.
If you have damaged or decayed teeth you may be considering options to restore both the look and function of your smile. Crowns and veneers are both utilized by cosmetic dentists to accomplish these goals. Which should you choose? Both crowns and veneers have pros and cons, and some distinct differences.
A crown is a cap that is placed over the tooth to reinforce the tooth and restore its original size and shape. Crowns are bonded into place and cover the entire tooth that is visible above the gum line. Crowns are most often used when the tooth has serious problems with structural integrity, often caused by decay. Cracked, broken, or worn down teeth also get crowns. Crowns modify how the tooth looks, and can help restore a more perfect smile. Crowns can be made of stainless steel, resin, porcelain, ceramic and other metals.
Veneers are similar to crowns in that they are used to restore the appearance of a tooth. Veneers utilize a thin shell of either porcelain or composite material that is placed over the tooth to protect it from damage and correct its appearance. Veneers require the structure of the tooth surface to be altered to bond it to the tooth.
Veneers are most commonly used to restore the outward appearance of a tooth, while crowns are typically used for structural repair. If your goal is simply to change the appearance of your teeth, veneers may be the best option. If you have extensive tooth decay or trauma, a crown might be the best choice. Consult with your dental professional to find out if a crown or veneers would be most appropriate for your specific dental issues.
Take the first step towards optimal oral hygiene. Reserve your dental appointment at our Shreveport dental office now and experience personalized care.
Thanks to advanced techniques and technology, your family dentist can now offer you and your family a wide variety of cosmetic dentistry treatments to help you achieve the smiles you desire. There is often no need to search for a specialized cosmetic dentist, as your family dentist can provide many of the cosmetic dental procedures right in their office. Some of the cosmetic treatments you can expect to find at many family dentists include:
- Professional teeth whitening is used to improve the appearance of stained or discolored teeth, can be completed in as little as one visit, and can lighten teeth up to ten shades.
- Dental bonding with tooth-colored resin can be applied to repair discolored or chipped teeth.
- Crowns and bridges can be placed to fix damaged or missing teeth and can be matched to the color, height, texture and overall appearance of your natural teeth.
- Tooth-colored composite fillings come in multiple shades to match your natural tooth and are used as an attractive alternative to traditional silver or gold fillings.
- Porcelain veneers are placed to conceal cracks, chips, and gaps and create a whiter, more perfect smile.
- Inlays or onlays, also called indirect fillings, can be made of composite, tooth-colored material, are long-term, and are used on teeth with tooth decay or other damage needing larger coverage than a traditional filling.
- Complete and partial dentures are used to replace missing teeth and create a more natural-looking smile.
- Invisalign is an orthodontic solution used to straighten misaligned or crooked teeth.
Many of these procedures can be combined to create the beautiful and healthy smile you desire. Schedule a consultation with your family dentist to find out more about the cosmetic procedures they offer to help you achieve a winning smile.
Take the first step towards a confident smile. Contact our Shreveport dental office to schedule your consultation!
Have you been told that you may need a root canal treatment? Are you worried because of things you’ve heard in the media about how “awful” a root canal is? Don’t worry about what you’ve heard; endodontic therapy isn’t at all what you’d think. Let’s debunk some myths!
- Myth #1: Root canal treatment is very painful. This isn’t true! In fact, a root canal treatment is performed specifically to relieve a patient’s pain, not to cause more. After a root canal treatment, you might feel some tenderness, but the pain you felt when the damaged tissue and infection was still inside the tooth will be completely gone. Once the swelling from the procedure has gone down, you will be able to use your new tooth exactly the way you could use your natural tooth when it was completely healthy.
- Myth #2: Root canal therapy or other endodontic work can lead to disease elsewhere in the body. Another falsehood! Root canal treatments don’t spread disease to the rest of the body, rather, they remove infected tissue and bacteria from the body, preventing the affected tooth from becoming re-infected.
- Myth #3: Extraction is better than root canal treatment. Extraction is not preferred to root canal treatment! Whenever possible, it’s preferred to keep your natural tooth. Your natural tooth’s roots stimulate and preserve the bone of your jaw, as well as providing adequate support to the surrounding teeth. Dental implants or dental bridges can be problematic, both in function and in dietary restrictions. In fact, an extraction can lead to several prolonged appointments to perform replacement procedures, treatments that are far more involved than a root canal treatment.
Endodontic treatment is an extremely common dental procedure that can provide durable, long-lasting restorations that will function as your natural tooth did. If you believe you may need a root canal treatment, talk to your endodontist or dentist today to see how this successfully proven treatment can help you and your smile needs.
Do not wait any longer. Book your appointment now and achieve the smile you have always wanted. Dr. Michael Woolbert & Dr. William Hall is accepting new patients from Shreveport and the surrounding area.
By far, the best way to brighten and whiten your smile is through an in-office treatment performed by your dentist. The concentration of hydrogen peroxide in the whitening gel used by your dentist is much higher than that which can be obtained over-the-counter by you in a drugstore. Lasers or special lights are employed by many dentists to achieve the best results.
With the rise in popularity of in-office teeth whitening, some specialty brands have emerged that offer different methods and ingredient strengths to address even the most stubborn stains.
- BriteSmile also uses whitening gel and a blue light, but their gel has a concentration of 15 percent hydrogen peroxide and a nearly neutral pH level, a mix that is easier on sensitive gum tissue.
- Lumbrite employs a custom light, known as the Sapphire Plasma Arc Curing and Whitening Light. This light has no destructive UV rays, although the gel is so strong it can work without the light. Lumbrite also has a desensitizing agent in its gel to reduce problems with sensitivity.
- GLO Science Professional has a specialized mouthpiece that employs Guided Light Optics (GLO) that works in tangent with a whitening gel, delivering light and heat to the tooth surfaces. The mouthpiece prevents oxygen from leaving the treatment area, giving optimal whitening results.
- Philips Zoom! is one of the most popular and well-known of the teeth whitening brands available at the dentist’s office. Their whitening gel uses a 25 percent concentration of peroxide which is stimulated by a proprietary blue light to achieve maximum whitening and is said to provide a more sparkling look to your enamel.
- Opalescence uses one of the most powerful gels available, utilizing a 40 percent concentration of hydrogen peroxide as well as potassium nitrate to reduce gum and tooth sensitivity after treatment. It also contains fluoride which strengthens the tooth enamel and reduces decay.
Talk to your dentist today to determine which of these or any other professional whitening methods is best for you and your teeth whitening needs.
Do not wait any longer. Book your appointment now and achieve the smile you have always wanted. Dr. Michael Woolbert & Dr. William Hall is accepting new patients from Shreveport and the surrounding area.
