Tobacco use is not only bad for your overall health, but it also increases your chance of tooth loss. Tobacco contains several chemicals that directly affect the function and structure of your nerves, blood, and bones. Therefore, you need to be extra diligent about your oral hygiene if you use tobacco products. Here is more information about how tobacco products affect your teeth and other parts of your mouth.

Ways Tobacco Ruins Teeth

No matter how you use tobacco, the substance will have a noticeable effect on your teeth. If you fail to take action, then you may have more serious complications over time. Here are some examples of common tobacco-related problems.

Increased Yellowing

All types of tobacco use leave stains on your teeth. These stains may be difficult to remove without special treatment. Several smoker’s toothpastes and other related products are on the market and may help with this problem. However, if you wait too long to address the problem, the stains could become very deep and possibly permanent.

If there is one type of tooth that needs removal more often than any other, it’s wisdom teeth. Wisdom teeth often emerge much later than the rest of your teeth, and because many people’s mouths are too small to accommodate a third row of molars, complications can ensue. Here is an overview of the signs that you may need your wisdom teeth removed.

1. Crowding or Impacted Teeth

Wisdom teeth are prone to growing in at an angle, and there are several reasons for this. For starters, these teeth can simply form at an angle. Wisdom teeth can also get lodged under the tooth in front of them and grow at an angle. In many cases, wisdom teeth are aligned crooked enough that they don’t emerge from the gums at all.

While there is not definitive research stating that angled wisdom teeth can lead to whole-mouth crowding, these teeth can certainly crowd the second molars adjacent to them. This can cause the wisdom tooth or second molar to crack, and it also promotes the formation of gum pockets behind the second molar that can trap bacteria and lead to infection.

Approximately 25 percent of all men and women suffer from bad breath, also called halitosis. While gum and mints can mask the smell of bad breath temporarily, bad breath may return after you spit your gum out or your mint dissolves in your mouth. Instead of simply masking your bad breath when needed, take steps to find the root cause of your halitosis so you can then conquer your bad breath permanently.

Read on to learn about three common causes of chronic halitosis and how you can combat the bad breath they cause.

A dry mouth from reduced salivary flow affects patients in a wide range of ways. Some people with dry mouth only have mild symptoms and light discomfort. However, dry mouth (also known as xerostomia) causes serious health issues for other patients. Here are four fast facts about dry mouth.

1. A Range of Issues May Cause Xerostomia

According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, xerostomia is triggered by over 400 known medications. Some commonly prescribed drugs interfere with saliva production, but medicines aren’t the only causes of xerostomia.

Other possible causes of dry mouth include the following:

Are you ready to take your child to their first dentist appointment? You’ll need to schedule this vital appointment sometime after your child’s first tooth erupts and before (or just after) their first birthday to make the most of your child’s dental care. Consult a pediatric dentist as well because they can give your child more specialized treatment.

To prepare for a first appointment, you should know what to expect from a child’s first dentist visit. Here are a few of the things you and your child will do during an initial visit.

Sit Through a Short Oral Exam

Fortunately, your child’s first dental appointment goes by pretty quickly. You’ll sit in a patient’s chair with your baby in your lap. Depending on your child’s level of comfort, they may either face you or face the dentist.

Gone are the days when oral piercings were a sign of social deviance. Oral piercings, like tongue rings, have become more popular than ever among the young and trendy. If you have thought about getting a piercing in your tongue, lip, or mouth, know that the piercing can negatively affect your dental health. Read on to find out more about piercings and how to keep your smile sparkling.

Know the Many Types of Oral Piercings

If you are considering getting an oral piercing, you have many options. Here are the some of the oral piercing options:

• Web piercing: A piercing is placed on the fold of mucus membrane, called the frenum. This piercing stretches between the top lip, over the top teeth, or under the tongue.
• Uvula piercing: A piercing is placed through the connective tissue at the back of the throat, called the uvula. This is an uncommon piercing location.
• Lip piercing: A piercing can be placed on the top or bottom lip. Some popular places include the corners of the bottom lip and underneath the center of the bottom lip.
• Dorsoventral tongue piercing: This type of tongue piercing was most common in the early 2000s. A piercing is placed from the dorsal (top) to the ventral (bottom) of the tongue. The top of the piercing can be seen when the wearer sticks their tongue out.
• Dorsolateral tongue piercing: While a dorsoventral tongue piercing is inserted from top to bottom, a dorsolateral piercing is inserted from left to right, through the widest part of the tongue.
• Cheek piercing: A piercing is placed through the cheeks and held in place by studs.

No matter what type of oral piercing you decide to get, it’s important to know how to properly care for your mouth and teeth afterward so you can avoid any harmful effects.

Easter is a fun time for kids, but not for their teeth. As a parent, you can protect your child’s teeth by following these easy tips and by instituting a few basic Easter-candy rules. Limiting the type of candy your child eats, giving toys instead of chocolate, and giving your child candies that are not as bad for the teeth can all help your child avoid cavities and keep their teeth healthy.

Limit Sticky Candies

Sticky candies like caramel and taffy are bad for your child’s teeth because they’re sugary and they stick to enamel easily. Limiting the type of sugary candies that you give to your child can prevent cavities and tooth decay. If you do give your child sticky caramel, toffee, gummy bears, or taffy, make your child spend extra time brushing and flossing afterward to ensure that all the candy bits have been washed away.

Give Stuffed Rabbits Instead of Chocolate Rabbits

Chocolate rabbits certainly are tasty, but they’re also not good for your child’s teeth. To avoid problems, give your child stuffed toy rabbits instead of chocolate rabbits. If your child insists on having a chocolate rabbit in their Easter basket, give your child a dark chocolate rabbit made of around 70 percent cocoa. Dark chocolate contains antioxidants that are good for the teeth. The higher cocoa content, the better.

When your children are small, you make almost all of the decisions about things that affect their health, including their dental health. You decide what they’ll eat, what they’ll wear, when they’ll visit the dentist, and what procedures they need or don’t need.

But by the time your child becomes a teenager, they’re making more and more of those decisions on their own, and some of those decisions can have serious impacts on their dental health. Take a look at some tips for guiding and encouraging your teen to make smart decisions about their dental health.

Better dental technology, greater access to dental care and more information about dental hygiene have made tooth loss during your golden years less likely than it used to be. While losing your teeth as you get older may have once been almost inevitable, these days you can expect to keep your teeth for life if you care for them correctly.

However, there are dental problems that seniors need to be especially aware of. Aging affects your whole body, including your mouth, and you may be at risk of certain dental conditions now that you weren’t at risk for 20 years ago. This post lists three of the most serious dental problems that seniors experience.

Like every other part of your body, teeth are susceptible to accidental injury. Chips, cracks, full tooth loss or intrusion (where the tooth is pushed back up into the gum) can all cause long-term dental health problems, especially if they are not addressed right away.

Tooth injuries can occur in everyday activities. Slips and falls, sports injuries or even biting into ice can cause trauma to a tooth. Here’s what you need to know about tooth injuries and how you should respond when they occur.

Types of Injuries

The severity of the type of tooth injury you receive can dictate what care you should give.