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When people think of dental hygiene, they often only focus on the teeth. That's what most people see, right? Bright, white, straight teeth are the goal. However, most people neglect to consider how important it is to take care of your gums properly. While sore, sensitive gums can occur from lack of brushing and proper care, the gum's biggest threat is Periodontal Disease, or Gum Disease. According to the National Institute of Dental and Craniofacial Research, over 8% of adults and 17% of seniors over the age of 65 have periodontal disease. Without proper care of your gums, Periodontal Disease can cause red and bleeding gums, bad breath, sensitive teeth, pain while chewing, and eventually loose teeth. However, if you take the proper steps to good oral hygiene, which includes care for your gums, you will be able to avoid this terrible disease.

Eat Right

The first step to proper gum care is to eat healthy foods that promote the best possible gums. That starts with avoiding sugars. Sugar isn't just candy for you, it's candy for bacteria as well. Plaque forms when sugar feeds the harmful bacteria that can be roaming in your mouth.
As well, focus on eating foods that are high in Vitamin C and Zinc. Vitamin C is a great defender of your gums as it builds up white blood cells, which have the ability to fight bacteria. Zinc also improves your white blood cell count but also helps restrict the build up of plaque.
There are plenty of foods that help promote healthy gums as well. Check our list of foods that are good for your teeth.
Don't forget to drink plenty of water as well. Especially after eating, water is a great way to flush out the teeth and gums to keep any potential bacteria from forming.

Brush The Right Way

Of course, brushing is a must and should be done at least twice a day. Make sure you're following a correct brushing technique. It's important to note that you don't have to brush your teeth or gums too hard. A soft touch away from the gums, yet still slightly massaging them, is the best technique.
It's best to brush at least twice a day. If possible brush after breakfast, lunch, and dinner. If you're unable to brush directly after a meal, use water to swish around in your mouth for 30 seconds. This will help clear most food and sugars from your teeth.

Find the Right Toothpaste

There are plenty of toothpastes to choose from, many with special ingredients that focus on different parts of the mouth. Of course there's plenty of teeth whitening and cavity-preventing toothpastes, but there are also ones that focus on fighting gingivitis and gum disease. If you are experiencing any of the symptoms that were listed above, think about using toothpaste that specifically focuses on the gums.

Floss Often

Flossing is a great way to keep food and bacteria that forms in between your teeth from traveling down into your gums. Flossing is extremely important for proper gum care. It's recommended to floss once a day. Focus on the tooth more than the gums. Though flossing is a critical element to healthy gums, it's really about removing the plaque and build up between your teeth before it reaches the gums.

Visit Your Dentist

Even if you take proper steps to keeping your gums healthy, there can always be complications that go much further than you think. It's recommended to visit your dentist twice a year to ensure you're on the right track to healthy gums, not just for the present, but for the future as well.
If you have any more questions, contact Water Tower Dental Care and speak to our expert dentists and team to put you on the path to healthy oral hygiene.

Though there are plenty of foods that can harm your teeth such as candy, soda, and coffee, there are also many foods that are good for your teeth. If you want healthy teeth that fight bacteria, kill plaque, and build enamel, there are dozens of foods you can fit into your diet that will help. Today we'd like to tell you about five of the best foods (or food groups) for your teeth.

Foods That Are Good for Your Teeth

DAIRY

Teeth need a great deal of calcium to stay strong, there's almost no better food to get it than through dairy products. Milk and cheese especially are great for your teeth and jawbone. Calcium prevents tooth decay by protecting your teeth from periodontal disease, a form of gum disease, as well as maintaining healthy bone structure of the teeth and jaw. About one-third of your body's bones and teeth are made of calcium, so it's important to have a great deal of it in your system. Yogurt, tofu, and soy milk are also good sources of calcium.

SALMON

 
Another great food that’s rich in both calcium and Vitamin D is salmon. Without Vitamin D, your body cannot absorb and utilize the calcium that you've just consumed from your dairy products. Consuming food rich in Vitamin D is essential to healthy teeth. What better food to eat than salmon for your Vitamin D as it's also rich in Omega-3 fatty acids which help cognitive function, eye, cardiovascular, skin, and hair health.

CRUNCHY VEGGIES

 
Though mostly all vegetables are great for your teeth, there are many benefits to crunchier vegetables like cauliflower, broccoli, and cucumber. Crunchy vegetables contain many vitamins, minerals, and antioxidants that are all good for your health. Specifically to teeth, they contain Vitamin C, which helps prevent plaque and bacteria. As well, crunchy vegetables contain phosphorus, which is another major player in absorbing calcium. Last, crunchy vegetables promote and stimulate your salivary production. This is the body's natural way of washing debris and food from your teeth and gums while providing disease-fighting enzymes throughout your mouth to prevent infection.

ORANGES (CITRUS)

While crunchy vegetables are a good source of Vitamin C, oranges and other citrus fruits are your ultimate source. Vitamin C is extremely important to the teeth because of its ability to strengthen blood vessels and connective tissues. This is vital to keeping your teeth connected to your jaw. As well, vitamin C is an anti-inflammatory, which can help reduce and/or slow the progression of gingivitis.

ONIONS

Last, onions are a great source for anti-bacterial sulphur compounds, which play a major role in killing a lot of the bacteria that breed on your teeth and gums. If you don't mind just a little stinky breath for a minute, it's best to eat the onions raw. This will help you get the best from the vegetable to help prevent a fair amount of tooth decay.
There are dozens of other foods that are great for your teeth, gums, and jaw. Most importantly, without question, water is number 1. We didn't mention it in our list because it seems so obvious, but it really helps, especially avoiding sugary, acidic sodas and soft drinks that can cause detrimental damage to your teeth.
If you'd like to know more about healthy teeth care, make an appointment with Water Tower Dental Care, Chicago's #1 Dentists to discuss what steps to take to be on your way to a healthy lifestyle and a brighter smile.

Many patients think that the longer they wait to come to the dentist, the closer they get to un-repairable teeth. Though untreated dental conditions can rapidly affect the health and appearance of your teeth, our team at Water Tower Dental Care can always do something to help. More likely than not, a full-mouth reconstruction plan can be set up to transfer your frown into a gleaming smile of straight and white teeth. How does full-mouth reconstruction work? It depends on the severity of your teeth, but there are a few treatments that are typically considered when deciding to reconstruct.
Here are a few of the most common treatments for full-mouth reconstruction.

General Dentistry

First, and the most basic, we do a full cleaning and evaluation of your teeth to determine the severity of your conditions. Often we can find one or two underlying problems that, once addressed, can drastically turn the condition of your teeth. Conditions such as gum disease and TMJ dysfunction can be discovered at this stage. After a proper cleaning and inspection, our talented dentists can recommend the proper cosmetic procedures to help bring your teeth back to life.

Dental Implants

One cosmetic treatment the dentist might recommend is dental implants. Often one or two missing teeth can be all that stands between you and a perfect smile. Though it may be a tooth that someone wouldn't notice is missing, gaps in the mouth can be detrimental to your oral health, allowing an open space for bacteria to breed. Missing teeth can also damage your jawbone and wear away at its structure. Dental implants fill in those areas to provide you with a great looking smile while helping prevent gum diseases and retain healthy bone structure.

Porcelain Veneers

Another potential option when undergoing Full-Mouth Restoration is porcelain veneers. This is a way to mask stained or misshaped teeth. The Water Tower Dental Care team first takes digital photos to show you an altered image that helps you decide the look of your smile. Next you are given a trial set to mimic the final veneers for 100% confidence that you will have the look you want. When ready, the Water Tower Dental Care team will bind the veneers to your teeth using a heat-activated cement that holds the porcelain tight onto your tooth.

Cosmetic Bonding

Sometimes, porcelain veneers can't be applied or your teeth have too small of a misshape to need a full veneer. In this case, Water Tower Dental Care recommends cosmetic bonding. We apply a putty-like composite resin made to match the color of your teeth. We then rebuild your tooth with the composite. Once it hardens we can shape and sculpt the tooth to a perfect look. Bonding only lasts 5 - 10 years but can drastically affect the look of a smile.

Maintenance

Last, no matter how good your teeth look, they won't last long unless the proper steps are taken to keep your teeth and gums clean. We will help our patients maintain their healthy smile by addressing the underlying dental conditions and making sure they stay away. Teeth grinding, gingivitis, and a long line of gum diseases must all be kept at bay to keep your smile looking fantastic. We are happy to work with you to ensure a healthy smile and lifestyle.
If you have any more questions on Full-Mouth Reconstruction, don't be afraid to contact Water Tower Dental Care, you're #1 Dentist in Chicago. We'd be happy to discuss with you any of your concerns and assure you that choosing us is the first step to a wonderfully bright smile.

Flossing is an important part of dental hygiene. One should consider it just as beneficial as brushing their teeth in the fight to prevent plaque, cavities, and gingivitis. However, from last week's post: How to Brush Your Teeth Properly, we learned it's not beneficial to brush your teeth more than three times a day and can potentially hurt your gums. Another question we though we could clear up is; "Can you floss too much?" (Too much being more than three times a day)
The simple answer is no. If you're experiencing pain or discomfort while flossing regularly, it's more likely that you're flossing incorrectly than flossing too much. We'll get to that issue in a moment. But more importantly, we would like to respond to the question by asking another, "Why would you want to floss that much?"

Why Is It Important to Floss?

To understand why we ask that question, it's good to know a little more about flossing. Flossing is a critical element to healthy gums. Its main purpose is to remove the plaque and bacteria that forms in between the teeth, where a toothbrush will have trouble reaching. Though its purpose is to mostly help the gums, the floss' focus should remain on the tooth. When plaque builds up, it will slowly work its way down into the gums. By removing it from the teeth, you're preventing any potential health issues with your gums.
So, here's why we ask the second question. Plaque and bacteria between your teeth does not produce as quickly as it might on the outside layer of your teeth. Most plaque and bacteria in between your teeth will take about 24 hours to form. So, if you floss once a day, there's not much reason to continue flossing. Of course, if you ate a messy meal and have food stuck between your teeth, you might find a second (or even third) flossing session in a day beneficial for your comfort, however, it's not a necessary action.
So back to those who do floss several times a day and are experiencing discomfort. Most likely, you're flossing incorrectly.

3 common flossing mistakes that you should avoid:

Not Working Each Side of the Tooth

When flossing, you should place the floss between your teeth and form a C shape around one side of a tooth and scrub. Then, you should reverse your C shape and scrub the opposite side. Often, many people will only scrub one side, or neither and just "saw" the floss between the teeth. This can result in neither plaque or bacteria being removed and ultimately causing gum damage.

Forcing The Floss Between the Teeth

Another common mistake happens when two teeth are very tightly pushed together. The proper way to move floss in between the teeth is so use a sawing motion to slowly enter the tight space. If you're forcing the floss between the teeth in a snapping motion, you can cause the floss to come down hard and cut the gums, which can result in bleeding and further damage.

Not Using New Floss

When you switch from one tooth to another, it's a good idea to move the floss in your hands to an un-used spot. Floss removes the plaque by scraping it off and catching most of it on the floss. If you're using the same area of floss for the next tooth, you're going to be adding plaque you already removed to a new area.

Flossing Without a Plan

Another issue that can cause discomfort, even if you are flossing numerous times a day, is missing entire sections of your teeth because you're not strategically flossing. If you're not focusing the floss between every tooth, your numerous flossing practices may not be working very well. You should start with a plan as to how you will work your way around your mouth to floss between every tooth.
Your plan is entirely up to you, but it's wise to stick to whatever that plan is. If you want to start at the very back of your lower teeth, work your way around and then do the same for the top, that's a great strategy. Whatever the plan is, just make sure to stick with it each time you floss, that way you're always sure you're cleaning every tooth.
If you avoid these common mistakes and keep a good schedule of flossing at least once a day, you'll be on your way to healthier gums and a brighter smile. If you have any questions or would like to set up an appointment with Water Tower Dental, Chicago's #1 Dental Office, contact us today, we'd be happy to talk to you more about proper dental techniques and make sure you're teeth are on their way to meet their full potential.