oral probiotics

Forget the gingerbread men, the fruitcakes, the candy canes and the champagne. This year, give your loved ones the gifts that will undo the effects of unhealthy holiday eating and drinking! Fancy toothbrushes and whitening treatments can be pricey so if you’re feeling generous this holiday season, give someone a gift that will keep giving: the gift of healthy teeth and gums!

Sonicare Electric Toothbrush

There are many players in the electric toothbrush game, but Sonicare remains the top name in the field. We always recommend the Sonicare Electric Toothbrush to our patients. Sonicare, created by Phillips, has at least ten different brushes for every budget and everyone in the family.

The DiamondClean electric toothbrush is top of the line with multiple brush heads and power modes, wireless charging, a travel case, and a variety of color options. Kids can begin to build healthy dental hygiene habits with Sonicare for Kids, featuring a Coaching App and stickers. Sonicare is the electric toothbrush most recommended by dentists, including us! With regular use, the brand boasts you’ll have healthier gums in just two weeks.

Zoom Teeth Whitening Treatment

Phillips continues to dominate the oral health market with its Zoom Whitening Treatments. Zoom treatments are professional whitening treatments administered by a dental professional or prepared by the dentist for home use. The treatments are effective, and results are instant – up to 8 shades whiter in just 45 minutes! Take a look at our patients’ before and after photos here!

There are different treatment options based on each individual’s needs and budget. If your loved one wants to whiten their teeth, giving them the gift of perfectly white teeth is a great option for this holiday season! Contact us to learn more!

Oral Probiotics

Probiotics have seen an increase in popularity in recent years. But they’re not just good for a healthy gut. Oral probiotics can help increase the health of oral biofilm for a healthier mouth. Unlike the probiotics for healthy digestion and immunity that can be found in certain foods, oral probiotics from healthy live strains can only be found in specific supplements.

These supplements work best in children to set up a healthy oral environment early on and in people who already follow good overall oral hygiene practices. They usually come in the form of lozenges that are dissolved in the mouth and are distributed by dental offices. They could be a great addition to another in-office gift like a whitening treatment! Learn more by giving us a call!

Travel Dental Hygiene Kit

A travel dental hygiene kit can make a fantastic gift. If you know someone who’s traveling over the holidays, gift it in advance to keep their teeth shiny and strong throughout their travels. Travel dental kits usually include travel size toothbrushes and toothpaste, mouthwash, and dental floss. They come in all price points and are available at nearly any drugstore or general retailer.

Many travel dental kits come in plastic zip pouches to prevent spills or leakage into luggage. Travel dental hygiene kits contain everyday essentials for everyone, and at Christmas time, many come in festive colors and prints. They can make a great gift or a stocking stuffer!

Travel Toiletry Bag

Travel-size foldable toothbrushes and tiny toothpaste can be perfect for some travelers. But for those who like to bring their regular, full-size equipment, a travel toiletry bag with different compartments makes a great gift.

Toiletry Bags or Dopp kits come in different fabrics, sizes, and with different features. Some are large enough to accommodate an entire travel dental kit, while others feature compartments for toothbrushes and oral care items. They can be found in a variety of styles and price points – just be sure there’s a separate section specifically for dental items so they stay clean and sanitary during travel.

We wish you a very merry Christmas and holiday season! If you have any questions about your dental health during the winter, don’t hesitate to contact Water Tower Dental Care!

Think flossing and brushing are the only paths to healthy gums? While doing both of these things is essential to the health of your gums, there are a lot of other ways you can keep your gums as healthy as possible. We asked our dentists at Water Tower Dental Care to share some of the most effective tips for keeping your gums healthy that you might not have heard before. Here are 5 unusual tips to keep your gums in tip-top shape from our dentists!

Scrape your tongue

Tongue scrapers aren’t just for bad breath. The bacteria on your tongue that causes bad breath can also spread to your gums and cause serious damage, leading to periodontal disease, gum infections and gum recession. With its ridges, small bumps and moist surface, your tongue offers the perfect place for bacteria to grow. You want to make sure to scrape the bacteria off of your tongue to keep it from spreading. Using a tongue scraper will also keep your breath smelling fresh.

Rub essential oils on your gums

Essential oils are described as essential for a reason: they are extremely important for our health. We’ve found that essential oils work wonders on our patients’ gums. We use PerioScience Essential Oils in the form of a gel. Rubbing these natural oils on your gums every evening after you brush and floss can help keep your breath fresh, soothe your gums, keep bacteria away, and prevent gingivitis.

Chew gum

Chewing gum can keep your gums in great shape! But you can’t just chew any old gum. The xylitol in gum is what really keeps your gums healthy. Look for a sugar-free gum with xylitol. Since bacteria can’t digest xylitol like it digest sugar, it won’t grow from xylitol. Xylitol also actively works to keep the pH level neutral in your mouth. The less acidic your pH levels are, the less bacteria will be able to grow, which means less of a risk of gingivitis and gum disease. Xylitol also helps to keep bacteria off your teeth, which can damage your gums.
Along with chewing gum, you can find xylitol in toothpaste, mouthwash, candy, and mints.

Wash your mouth out with antimicrobial mouth rinse

Bacteria are your gums’ number one enemy. Antimicrobial mouth rinses destroy the bacteria that cause gum disease until they are almost completely gone. These rinses are much more effective than over-the-counter mouthwashes. We typically only suggest antimicrobial mouth rinses to patients who suffer with moderate to severe periodontal disease. Feel free to contact us to see if you would benefit from antimicrobial mouthwash.

Take oral probiotics specifically for your mouth

Probiotics are no longer used only for digestive and immune health. There are now probiotics designed specifically for oral health that can improve the health of your gums! Oral probiotics stimulate the production of healthy bacteria that keep your gums and mouth healthy. They also help to battle bad breath.
We hope you use these unusual tips alongside your normal brushing, flossing and rinsing routine to make your gums even healthier! Check out our dentists’ unusual tips for keeping your teeth healthy. We’re always here to help put you on a path to a healthier mouth!

When it comes to taking care of our teeth, we generally hear the same kind of advice all of the time: brush and floss everyday and don’t eat too much candy. While this advice is extremely important, there are a lot of additional ways to keep your teeth healthy as well. We asked our dentists at Water Tower Dental Care to share some tips for taking care of your teeth that you probably haven’t heard before. Here are 6 unusual teeth tips straight from our dentists.

1. Eat Cheese (In Moderation)

Believe it or not, cheese is good for your teeth! Like the peroxide-based teeth-whitening solutions we described earlier, cheese helps to neutralize acids in your mouth, increasing your pH levels for about 30 minutes, according to the Academy of General Dentistry. This means less bacteria breeding in your mouth and less teeth erosion. Cheese also causes salivation, which helps get rid harmful bacteria and food particles. Finally, cheese contains casein phosphate, which keeps your teeth strong. Unfortunately, this doesn’t mean you should eat all of the cheese that you possibly can. You only need about ⅓ of a slice to get these oral benefits.

2. Whiten Your Teeth For Health & Cosmetic Reasons

While teeth whitening can make your teeth look better than ever, its benefits aren’t purely cosmetic. Teeth whitening can also help keep your teeth healthy by removing plaque and preventing tooth decay. Recent research has found that teeth whitening products that contain a peroxide-based solution can effectively get rid of plaque, reduce caries bacteria, and increase the pH level of your mouth, according to Professor Van B. Haywood.
When the pH level in your mouth becomes too low, this means that it is highly acidic. If your pH level is highly acidic, bacteria will begin to breed and your enamel will break down. Peroxide-based teeth-whitening solutions will neutralize your pH levels to a healthy 7 or 8, reducing the acidity in your mouth. This is especially helpful after you eat or drink highly acidic food, such as coffee, wine and citrus fruits. Ask us about our at-home teeth whitening kits to help your teeth look and feel healthier today!

3. Keep Your Mouth Healthy With Coconut Oil

Coconut oil has a ton of health benefits, from decreasing cholesterol levels to helping diabetes. It turns out that coconut oil is great for your oral health too. Through a method called oil pulling, coconut oil can actually help pull bacteria off of your teeth for a healthier and cleaner smile. All you have to do is swish around a teaspoon of coconut oil in your mouth for about 20 minutes. Of course, you should still keep up with your regular routine of brushing, flossing and using mouthwash.
If you’re questioning the validity of this claim, good for you. You shouldn’t believe everything you read on the Internet, especially when it comes to oral health. Thankfully, there are various studies, including the following three, that have proved that oil pulling effectively fights off bacteria: Study 1, Study 2, Study 3. You can read more about oil pulling for your teeth here.

4. Use Oral Probiotics For Your Mouth

In the past, probiotics were thought to only help digestive and immune health. But recently, probiotics designed specifically for oral health have been found to naturally support gum and tooth health, make your breath fresh and whiten your teeth. Effective probiotics trigger the production of healthy bacteria that work to keep your mouth and gums healthy. They also reduce the nutrients for bacteria that cause bad breath, and produce low doses of hydrogen peroxide to gently whiten your teeth. Learn more about oral probiotics from Evora.

5. Don’t Use Your Teeth As Tools

While it may be more convenient to open that bag of chips with your teeth rather than finding scissors, using your teeth as tools can have serious (and expensive) consequences. Many of our patients have come in with broken, cracked or chipped teeth because they tried using their teeth to cut or open something. Your teeth are meant for chewing food in your mouth - Not for anything else. It’s not worth the pain or the price to fix your teeth.

6. You Can Use A Reversal Agent for Mouth Numbing

Some patients avoid important dental procedures because of the irritating and sometimes damaging numbing sensation that they experience hours afterwards. While it’s great to be numb in the dentist’s chair, it’s not so great when you’re hungry a couple hours afterwards. At worst, some patients chew their lip and gums because they can’t feel what their teeth are doing. Many patients may drool and not be able to talk properly, smile, or eat and drink because their mouths are numb. Thankfully, at Water Tower Dental Care, we offer reversal agents for teeth numbing, so that you can return to feeling your mouth much faster, and avoid the painful and embarrassing after effects.
We hope these unusual tips from our dentists, along with your normal health routine, help you to make your teeth even healthier. If you would like any more tips, reach out to us on our Facebook page. We’re full of helpful and creative ways to keep your teeth looking and feeling as good as new!