When you’re expecting a new baby, there’s a lot to prepare: outfitting the nursery, stocking up on diapers or choosing a pediatrician. It’s also not too early to consider how to protect your new child’s dental development.

From birth through adolescence, a child’s mouth goes through a whirlwind of growth. Hopefully, it all follows a normal track, but detours can arise like tooth decay or bite problems.

Here are 4 things you can do to keep your child’s dental development on track.

Start oral hygiene before teeth. Daily oral hygiene is essential toward helping your child avoid tooth decay. And don’t wait for teeth to come in—begin wiping their gums with a clean, damp cloth right after nursing. When teeth do appear, switch to brushing with just a smear of toothpaste and then add flossing as more teeth come in.

Begin regular dental visits. The American Dental Association recommends pediatric dental visits around the first birthday. The possibility of tooth decay becomes a concern around this time as the primary teeth are steadily erupting. Starting earlier rather than later may also help your child adjust to the routine of dental visits that they’ll most likely carry on as they get older.

Control their sugar consumption. Because sugar is a prime food source for disease-causing bacteria, you should keep your child’s sugar consumption as controlled as possible. For example, don’t put a baby to bed with a bottle filled with a sugary liquid (including juice and breast milk)—the constant presence of the liquid during nap time encourages bacterial growth and acid production.

Get an orthodontic evaluation. While we often associate orthodontic treatment with the teen years, it may be possible to head off bite problems earlier. So, see an orthodontist for a bite evaluation when your child is around age 6. If there are signs of a developing problem, certain techniques could help stop or slow them from getting worse, helping you avoid extensive and expensive treatment later.

With a newborn coming, you and your family have a lot on your plate. Be sure, though, not to forget making plans for keeping their teeth and gums healthy.

If you would like more information on dental care for your child, please contact us or schedule an appointment for a consultation. You can also learn more about this topic by reading the Dear Doctor magazine article “Age One Dental Visit.”

If you're well past your teen years, you probably have several reasons for not straightening your crooked smile: the expense, the time and the embarrassment of being a 30-, 40- or 50+- something wearing braces. But we have five reasons why adult orthodontic treatment can be a smart choice: Tom Cruise, Kathy Bates, Carrie Underwood, Danny Glover and Faith Hill.

That's right: Each of these well-known entertainers and performers—and quite a few more—underwent treatment to improve a poor dental bite. And not as teenage unknowns: Each on our list wore braces or clear aligners as famous adults (the paparazzi don't lie!).

Here are a few of the reasons why these celebrities chose to change their smile through orthodontics—and why you can, too.

Age isn't a factor. Straightening misaligned teeth isn't reserved only for tweens and teens—there are a growing number of adults well into their middle and senior years undergoing orthodontic treatment. As long as your teeth are relatively sound and your gums are healthy, it's altogether appropriate to undergo bite correction at any age.

A boost to your dental health. Gaining a more attractive smile through orthodontics is in some ways an added benefit. The biggest gain by far is the improvement straightening your teeth can bring to your long-term health. Misaligned teeth are more difficult to keep clean of dental plaque, which can increase your disease risk. They also may not function as well as they should while chewing food, which can affect your digestion.

Traditional braces aren't the only way. If the thought of displaying all that hardware makes you cringe, it's not your only option. One of the most popular alternatives is clear aligners, custom plastic trays that are nearly invisible on your teeth—and you can take them out, too. Another method growing in popularity are lingual braces: All the hardware is behind the teeth and thus out of sight. And you can, of course, opt for traditional braces—just ask Tom Cruise!

Oh, yes—a new smile! Orthodontics was truly the first “smile makeover.” It can improve your appearance all by itself, or it can be part of a comprehensive plan to give you an entirely new look. While the gains to your health are primary, don't discount what a more attractive smile could do for you in every area of your life.

The best way to find out if orthodontics will work for you is to visit us for an initial exam and consultation. Just like our A-list celebrities, you may find that orthodontics could be a sound investment in your health and self-confidence.

If you would like more information about orthodontic treatments, please contact us or schedule an appointment. To learn more, read the Dear Doctor magazine articles “Orthodontics for the Older Adult” and “The Magic of Orthodontics: The Original Smile Makeover.”

Sometimes you need only a single solution to improve your smile: teeth whitening to brighten stained teeth; porcelain veneers or crowns to mask dental flaws; or a life-like dental implant to replace a missing tooth. But not all dental situations are that simple and sometimes require a combination of treatments.

A case in point: restoring a missing tooth within a poor bite. The absent tooth itself may be the cause of the bite problem if it’s been missing for some time: The nearby teeth tend to move or “drift” into the empty space, leaving no room for implant placement.

When this happens, you’ll first need orthodontic treatment to correct the bite problem. Not only will this open the space for the implant, it also comes with its own benefits. It obviously improves your smile appearance—but straighter teeth are also easier to keep clean of bacterial plaque, which reduces your disease risk. You may also experience better digestion after your teeth are properly aligned and able to function as they should during eating.

The traditional way to improve a bite is through metal braces. But there are some downsides: For one, braces can make it difficult to keep teeth adequately clean, making wearers more susceptible to tooth decay and gum disease. Braces are also quite visible and can detract from a person’s appearance (even more so if a missing tooth is involved).

Unless your situation requires braces, you can choose clear aligners as an alternative. These clear, computer-generated plastic trays are worn in sequence to gradually move teeth to their desired positions. Unlike braces, you can remove aligners for eating, cleaning or rare special occasions. And, they’re barely noticeable to others.

If you also have a missing tooth, you can have a temporary prosthetic (“false”) tooth built into your aligner trays. In this way you can still enhance your smile while undergoing aligner treatment.

Once your bite has been corrected, we can then proceed with restoring your missing tooth permanently with a dental implant. Although orthodontics adds to the time and expense of restoration, its often necessary to achieve the best result. Your future smile will be the better for it.

If you would like more information on dental solutions for improving your smile, please contact us or schedule an appointment for a consultation.

Getting a new smile doesn’t have to be an elaborate affair. If your teeth have minor to moderate chips, stains or tooth gaps, dental veneers could be the answer. These thin wafers of dental porcelain mask tooth imperfections and completely change your smile’s dynamic—and without a huge impact to your wallet.

To achieve that effect, though, your personal set of veneers will require the expertise of both your dentist and a dental lab technician to design and create your veneers. And while there are numerous considerations in achieving a truly life-like appearance with veneers, one of the most important is their color.

We always associate the color white with teeth. And while it is the dominant hue, actual tooth color is more complex. An individual tooth is comprised of multiple shades and tints, that range in variation from its biting edge to the gums. Likewise, tooth color in general can differ from person to person.

Your dentist must take these individual color variations into account while designing your new veneers, especially if you’ll be getting them for some but not for all your teeth. In that case, it’s important for the veneer color to blend seamlessly with the color of your natural teeth without veneers.

Your new smile expectations and desires are also important and should be considered when designing veneer coloring. For instance, do you want a more natural look—or would you prefer a smile with more “dazzle”? This could have an impact on color.

Your dentist takes all of this information (including your input) and communicates it clearly to the dental lab technician creating the veneers. That process is a combination of both science and artistry, using a variety of techniques to achieve an accurate, life-like texture and color result. For example, a technician may paint the edges of the veneers with a ceramic paste that when cured produces a life-like translucency.

This meticulous attention to color detail is necessary to create beautiful veneers that look natural. If the color is right, you’re sure to enjoy the change your veneers bring to your smile for many years to come.

If you would like more information on transforming your smile with dental veneers, please contact us or schedule an appointment for a consultation. You can also learn more about this topic by reading the Dear Doctor magazine article “Porcelain Veneers: Your Smile—Better Than Ever.”

The holidays draw families together like no other season as loved ones gather from near and far to eat, drink and be merry—and exchange gifts. For the little kids that means toys (and sometimes for the big “kids” too!). Unfortunately, a toy meant to delight children could instead cause them harm, including injuries to their teeth and gums.

Be selective, then, when giving toys to the special children in your life this holiday season. Here are a few tips to remember to help protect their teeth and gums from injury.

Avoid toys with small parts. Given infants’ and toddlers’ propensity to put objects in their mouth, try to avoid choosing toys with small parts. While the main concern with smaller toys is the risk for choking, small, hard objects in the mouth could also cause dental damage. The danger is especially acute if a child falls while a toy or similar object is in their mouth.

Watch out for hard, sharp-edged toys. Younger children especially like to bite and gnaw on things. It’s prudent, then, to stay away from hard plastic toys or those with sharp points or edges—these could chip teeth or cut into the gums. Instead, look for toys made of more pliable plastic or fabric, and with rounder surfaces. When in doubt, look for labeling on packaging that indicates the appropriate ages for a particular toy.

Discard damaged toys. With your kids’ toy boxes brimming over with new holiday treasures, it’s a good time to do a safety inventory of their older toys. Besides those they’ve outgrown, look for toys that may have been damaged or broken. Although initially they may have been safe, toys in poor condition might pose many of the dangers to teeth and gums we’ve previously mentioned. Damaged toys should be either repaired or discarded.

Supervise their playtime. You might also want to keep a watchful eye out as your kids play with their new toys. While they do need their own time to be imaginative during play, children could put their toys to uses not intended for them, increasing the risk of injury. A bit of gentle supervision is a good idea to prevent unintended—and unwelcome—consequences.

The holidays are a magical time for all of us, but especially for children. Follow these holiday toy tips to prevent dental injuries that could ruin your family fun.

If you would like more information about protecting your child’s dental health, please contact us or schedule a consultation.