Dr. Rick Aaronian S DDS

Did you know that maintaining good oral health is critical to maintaining good health, in general? Brush, floss, and use a rinse at least twice daily; replace your toothbrush once every three months; and visit your dentist twice a year for an exam and cleaning.

Although gingivitis is a common gum disease, there are a number of conditions that affect the gums that can have serious implications for whole body health. They include melanoma (skin cancer), fungal infections, and herpes. Good dental hygiene and annual checkups are the best ways to protect your teeth and gums and help monitor your overall health.

Malocclusion can also be called a bad bite. This is caused by the jaw being out of alignment, or crowded, extra or missing teeth. The upper and lower teeth do not line up when biting down, and it can occur on one or both sides.

Before your dental implant procedure, your dentist will discuss options with you. One of these is whether you want to have a temporary tooth fitted over the implant while you’re waiting for it to fuse with the bone. This gives you more natural tooth function while you’re waiting for your permanent replacement teeth.

Periodontics centers around the treatment of gum disease, including everything from preventive measures to the use of dental implants to reduce or even virtually eliminate the possibility of future gum disease.

When shopping for a mouthwash, check the labels and choose one that is alcohol-free. Alcohol is known to have a drying effect on your gums, tongue and roof of your mouth that can make it easier for bacteria to grow.

A recent study, which showed participants pictures of people smiling with teeth that were various shades, found that the people with the whitest smiles in the pics were consistently rated by participants as happier, younger, more genuine, and more confident than the others.

Tooth contouring and re-shaping is a dental procedure that corrects teeth that are crooked, chipped, irregularly shaped, or over-lapping. The procedure can often be completed in one session and can change the shape, length, or position of teeth and helps make subtle changes that improve the over-all smile.

Dental bonding is a process that involves the application of a dental composite material that looks and feels like enamel. The bonding material is applied to the surface of the tooth and is then sculpted, hardened, and polished to look like a natural tooth.

For one missing tooth, one dental implant works best. But if you have many or all of your teeth missing, it’s possible to support several teeth with each implant. In fact, for some people as few as three implants can support an entire mouthful of replacement teeth.

One of the advantages of dental implants is that they can’t get cavities. This doesn’t mean, however, that you shouldn’t maintain good oral hygienea regular regimen of brushing and flossing will keep your gums and the rest of your teeth healthy, too.