5 Holiday Stocking Stuffers to Make a Smile Brighter!

The Holidays are now in full swing. It’s getting colder, the sun is setting a little earlier, but the decorations are out and shining bright. The holidays are a time where people get together and celebrate friends, family, good health, happiness, and festive foods! With all the holiday sweets and desserts that we usually eat around this time, we don’t stop to think about the effects all that sugar can have on our teeth. Just like you, we know it’s not easy staying healthy over the holidays. For this Christmas, we’re striving to be more mindful of our oral health, do what we can to prevent any sugar overload, and invite you to take that on as well. Since we’re thinking about our oral health and what we can give out for gifts (because there’s still time!), let’s discuss some healthy and useful stocking stuffer options, that are also pretty affordable for all budgets.

• Toothbrush covers: When we’re done brushing our teeth, our toothbrushes sit uncovered, and they start to collect all kinds of bacteria before we start using it again. It’s super gross to think about it, but a simple toothbrush cover can help protect the bristles. It’s also convenient to have, especially when traveling. The cover is a great idea to give as a gift because it can keep our brushes hygienic and dust-free. PRO TIP: Just like your toothbrush, remember to replace them frequently.

• Sugar-free gum: Candy is a common stocking stuffer and whether it’s sugar-free or not, who doesn’t love gum?! Sugar-free gum is the healthiest option for teeth, especially kids. Gum also helps us produce more saliva. More saliva prevents dry mouth and helps clean bacteria and clear food particles that tend to linger after meals.

• Travel toothpaste and mouthwash: Small, travel size toothpaste and mouthwash are convenient to have around. Be it preparing for a trip, sleep over, or unexpected guests.

• Fun Flossers/Floss Picks: If we want to start them off early, fun flossers are a way to encourage kids to start flossing daily. Fun flossers brands like DenTek and Plackers come in unique shapes and colors to make flossing more fun for kids. Some flossers out there even come in different flavors with fluoride coating, which we all need for our teeth! Floss picks are another option that we can give out to people who procrastinate with a flossing routine. Stick a container of floss picks in their stockings, the picks are much easier to use than the regular traditional string floss.

• Electric toothbrush: Electric toothbrushes clean teeth and gums much better than the traditional manual ones we’re used to. Chief Executive of the Oral Health Foundation, Dr. Nigel Carter OBE says people who use an electric toothbrush have healthier gums, less tooth decay, and also keep their teeth for longer. There are also ones for kids that come in different colors and cartoon characters, that’ll get them excited to start brushing their teeth. PRO TIP: unsure if electric is for you? Try the battery powered ones.

    That should take care of our stocking stuffer gifts, but what about when we’re with our family and friends? We should be able to enjoy the holiday season without worrying about cavities or plaque. If you need a list to keep you on track to maintaining a clean and healthy mouth, we got that covered! Check out our list of what we can do this holiday season to keep our teeth healthy.

• Avoid overdoing it: Candy canes, cookies, cakes, and popcorn, all the wonderful classics we’ll eat during Christmas time. All the sticky, hard, gummy, and chewy foods are tasty, but can be difficult to get out and off our teeth. If we’re constantly snacking on something, we run a higher risk of tooth decay. Let’s try slowing down on the sugar and brushing after every meal. PRO TIP: Chewing sugar-free gum after a meal, can also help for those times you don’t have a toothbrush handy.

• Eat more of the healthy foods: If we’re worried about eating too much sugar, we can eat more fruits and vegetables just to balance out what we’re eating. Winter favorites like apples, carrots, and celery help clean plaque from teeth and freshen breaths.

• Stick to our daily routine: Brushing and flossing may sound tedious, but if we want to keep our teeth in great shape, we must stick to our daily routine. By brushing twice daily, flossing, and using mouthwash, we can keep up our good oral habits. PRO TIP: just brush and floss the teeth you’d like to keep!

• Drink plenty of water: We all know that drinking water has many benefits, and those benefits can work for us especially around the holidays. When we’re going out to see friends and family, it’s very important to stay hydrated. Aside from hydration, water can freshen breaths and it’s a quick way to get rid of debris in our teeth.

    The holidays are always a great time, we spend 11 months looking forward to this time of year. While we are having fun and enjoying ourselves, we can also be mindful about caring for our teeth. Keeping up with our daily routines and going the extra mile can assist in preventing dental problems down the line. Share these helpful tips with family and friends so they can be aware of what to do around this time as and support you as well. Happy Holidays and keep those teeth shining bright!

Stanford Ranch Family Dentistry

*ACCEPTING NEW PATIENTS* 5800 Stanford Ranch Rd. #110
Rocklin, CA 95765
Phone: 916-435-4222

Things You Need to Know About Dental History

The dentistry field has come a very long way from where it started. One of the oldest medical professions, it dates back to 7000 B.C. during the Indus Valley Civilization. However, descriptions that date back to 5,000 B.C document knowledge and presence of dentistry and tooth decay. Back then, people thought the cause of tooth decay came from tooth worms, but that was proven to be false in the 1700s. Over time, dentistry has seen many improvements and changes. Its modern-day use has evolved to better utilize preventative care and treatment. Learning about dental history is a wild ride, so hop in, and let’s go down memory lane!

    The concept behind today’s dentistry got its start between 1650 and the 1800s, and the man who started it all was Pierre Fauchard. Fauchard was a 17^th-century French physician, and he was properly named “The Father of Modern Dentistry”. But, did you know that as far back as the Bronze Age (3500 BC), barbers were the go-to people for concerns about teeth? These early dentists were known as “Barber-Surgeons”. They not only groomed faces but also performed minor surgeries. The barber dentists usually pulled teeth to treat tooth decay, but they also knew how to fill cavities.

    Humans have been attempting to clean their teeth for a very long time. One of the earliest tools that were used came from the ancient Babylonians and Egyptians. They were made from twigs that were chewed and worked on in the mouth. They were used to help get rid of leftover food debris. This tool was properly named “chew sticks”. The first bristle toothbrush was invented by the Chinese during the Tang Dynasty (618 AD – 907 AD). This toothbrush was most likely made from pigs’ hair for the bristles and bone or bamboo for the handles. Today, we have all varieties of toothbrushes, both manual and electric that come in all shapes and sizes. Toothbrushes now are mostly manufactured with plastic handles and nylon bristles.

    But what about toothpaste, you ask? Ancient toothpaste was used to treat the same concerns that we all have today, keeping our teeth and gums clean, whitening teeth, and freshening breaths. However, the ingredients that were used were a lot different than what we have today. Ingredients back then included powder of ox hooves, ashes, and burnt eggshells that were also combined with pumice (volcanic rock). The Greeks and Romans liked to use crushed bones and oyster shells for theirs. The Romans also added powdered charcoal and bark to give the toothpaste more of a flavor to aid with bad breath. The Chinese ingredients contained ginseng, herbal mints, and salt, which is the closest to what most of us use today. It’s also worth noting that some cultures used urine for whitening as early as the 18^th century!

   The development of toothpaste in modern times started around the 1800s. The early versions contained soap and chalk. After 1945, soap was replaced by other ingredients to make the paste smoother. The soap was replaced by sodium lauryl sulfate, which remains a common ingredient today.

    Dental implants are considered the most advanced solution to replacing missing teeth. Before titanium implants were invented, people replaced teeth using a variety of methods. In 2000 B.C. carved bamboo pegs were the go-to for teeth in China. In the 18^th century, researchers used a blend of gold and alloy to create implants. While that ended up not working out, it did plant the seeds for more research in later years.

  After that, almost 2,000 years ago, it was common to try and replace teeth with actual animal teeth and from other humans, specifically someone who was considered lower class. How crazy is that? Those often failed to work out because of rampant infections and the presence of decay. The issues with a lot of dental implants from previous years were the rejection of the foreign material by the body. Currently, dental implants have over a 95% success rate. Titanium roots that are used now are placed into your jawbone and fuse over time, and function just like a natural tooth.

    Modern dentistry has improved the lives of many people. Throughout the years, dentistry has continued to develop, improve, and introduce new techniques and materials to make our experience going to the dentist more comfortable. With modern dentistry, there is less pain, less anxiety, and more available treatment options to consider. Dental care is very important, and with the help of modern dentistry, a lot of people don’t have to suffer in silence. Let’s keep taking care of our teeth and maintaining good oral health!

Stanford Ranch Family Dentistry

*ACCEPTING NEW PATIENTS* 5800 Stanford Ranch Rd. #110
Rocklin, CA 95765
Phone: 916-435-4222

5 Easy Tips to Keep Your Teeth Healthy for Halloween

Halloween is approaching and we’re all looking forward to celebrating a little more freely this year! Vaccinations are out and people are feeling more comfortable going outside and participating in the festivities. Halloween brings out our inner child. It gets us excited to dress up, decorate the house, and share candy. It is also a time where we all feel comfortable enough to eat as many pieces of candy as we want, because what’s Halloween without sweets?

Kids come back home with hefty bags of candy, and it’s very hard to resist the temptation as we help them sort through it all. Candy is quite tempting, more so for some than others. Maintaining our oral health is vital, especially during these coming holidays that revolve around sweets. Remember, eat the candy that you like, BUT don’t let it ruin your smile! With that in mind, here are 5 easy tips to keep your teeth healthy for Halloween:

• Eat candy at a specific time: The saliva in our mouth increases when we start to eat, and saliva helps cancel out the acid that gets produced by bacteria from the bits of food that linger after a snack or meal. The prime time for eating candy is right after lunch or dinner. Being full from a meal will also help with portion control while satisfying that sweet tooth. PRO TIP: Rinse away any left-over food particles with water once you’re done eating anything. 

• Choose candy carefully: It’s very important to choose wisely what type of candy to eat especially if you’ve experienced dental problems in the past. Avoid those hard candies or the ones that stay inside of our mouths for too long. Anytime sugary foods linger; we are at risk for tooth decay. PRO TIP: Sugar-free candy is always a great option for kids and adults. 

• Avoid sticky situations: A lot of us love sticky candy, so let’s all be mindful to this fact. Sticky candy clings onto our teeth, making it very difficult to remove even with regular brushing and flossing. This has candies like taffy, marshmallows, caramel, and gummy bears take longer to get washed away with our saliva. When candy gets stuck in our teeth, we’re at a higher risk for tooth decay. PRO TIP: Save these for special occasions

• Drink water: Since we’re all concerned about tooth decay, one of the things that we can easily do to avoid it while eating candy is drinking more water. Drinking water helps keep our teeth healthy and free of food debris. PRO TIP: Drink water with fluoride. Fluoride helps alleviate some of the sugars from sticking to our teeth.

• Brush and floss daily: With Halloween approaching, we must remember to brush our teeth twice a day with fluoride toothpaste. We have to make sure that we get out all of the candy and food particles so we can keep a clean, healthy mouth. Flossing should also help with getting in between the places that our toothbrushes cannot reach. PRO TIP: Remember that flossing cleans about 40% of your teeth surfaces!

With all these helpful tips being shared, we also want to take a moment to share that October is National Dental Hygiene Month. Truly a time to reflect on our habits and double the efforts on those we may be casual about. Since we’re all getting ready for Halloween, let’s be sure to schedule an appointment to maximize our dental benefits before they expire at the end of the year.

Be safe out there, have fun, and remember to protect your teeth!

Stanford Ranch Family Dentistry

*ACCEPTING NEW PATIENTS* 5800 Stanford Ranch Rd. #110
Rocklin, CA 95765
Phone: 916-435-4222