Dental Myth #8: Root Canals Hurt

FALSE! Root canals actually

relieve the pain from acute in-

fections—the procedure itself is

absolutely painlessabsolutely painless.

The best way to avoid root ca-

nals is to stop avoiding the Den-

tist! Find and treat problems

early—before you “feel it”—

while they’re still small.

2009: A Difficult Year Behind Us2009: A Difficult Year Behind Us!

Well, somehow, we made it through 2009! We all know it was a difficult economical year for just about everyone. But, the “silver-lining” maybe that the financial crisis has forced the US, if not the whole world, to “reset” to more sound, realistic economic princi-

ples. With dollars in such short supply, we demand value in the services we purchase. We also realize that applies to services we supply: if we don’t provide excellent quality services — a good value for our clients—we lose our competitive advantage.

It is commonly accepted that it is desirable, when possible, to prevent disease from occur-ring—this provides us the best long-term healthcare value. If this is not possible, then we strive to detect and treat dis-ease processes in their earliest possible stages.

This issue of The Downtown Dentist Newsletter will bring you some rather amazing new research about how our dental health affects our overall health and how our na-tion’s Dentists may turn out to be one of our best first lines of defense when it comes to early detection of ma-jor illnesses!

In the last issue we told you about how researchers had iden-tified protein markers in human saliva which may provide an early and non-invasive diagnosis of breast cancer.

Maybe even more exciting is a report in the journal Gastroenterology suggesting there are similar salivary bio-markers for the early detection of pancreatic cancer!

The Numbers Are Coming In The Numbers Are Coming In

...and they’re staggering! The connections between inflamma-tory diseases of the mouth, like periodontal disease, and other systemic inflammatory processes are being documented by new research. The correlations are so strong that they are essentially revolutionizing how we look at many major diseases and the whole aging process!

Read on for more information on this and other exciting developments!

315 S. E. Mizner Blvd • Suite 216 • Boca Raton • FL • 33432 • www.BocaDr.com • 561•338•5005

Welcome To The Downtown Dentist Newsletter!

March, 2010 Volume 2, Issue 1

DR. OZ ON DENTISTRY DR. OZ ON DENTISTRY (Notes from his web site www.DoctorOz.com)

Question: Has periodontal disease Has periodontal disease

been linked with other health been linked with other health

problems?problems?

According to the CDC, researchers

have uncovered potential links be-tween periodontal disease and other serious health conditions such as stroke and heart disease. Diabetes is not only a risk factor for periodontal disease, but periodontal disease may make diabetes worse.

Question: Why should I floss?Why should I floss?

Brushing and flossing twice daily (along with seeing your dental profes-sional regularly) can add up to 6.4

years to your life! How? By re-moving plaque bacteria from your teeth and under your gums, you keep these bacteria from getting into your bloodstream and causing inflammation in your arteries. Think you’re just too tired or pressed for time to brush and floss? OK: just brush and floss the teeth you want to keep!

PREGNANT? PREGNANT? Be very diligent about brushing and flossing; get regular cleanings from a Hygienist, but skip the mouthwash if it contains triclosan—we don’t want pregnant

women to have that.

SPRING TOOTH WHITENING SPECIAL!!!SPRING TOOTH WHITENING SPECIAL!!!

Through April 30th, complete full-mouth Tooth-

Whitening System normally $600 Now reduced to $400

Call for details!

The Downtown Dentist | March, 2010 | page 1 www.BocaDr.com The Downtown Dentist | March, 2010 | page 1

“OK, already! If it‟s so important, I‟ll brush twice/day! But, what‟s the best way?”

Great question!! So many of us, as kids, were taught to brush our teeth like you often see on TV: up and down. WRONG! Nothing could be worse for your gums!! Imagine the end of your toothbrush magnified: as the bristles move up and down, they drag any plaque from the tooth sur-face and force it underneath the gum-line. Going in the other direction, the bristles skip over the gumline, leaving that plaque under the surface. It’s a perfect formula for gingivitis, the 1st

stage of gum disease. Much more effective is to move the toothbrush back and forth or in small circles with the bristles angled at a 45° angle to-ward the gumline. This gets the bris-tles under the gumline and sweeps out the plaque bacteria. Better yet: get a Sonicare electric toothbrush! Ask us for more details…

“What about flossing? Why is it so important and what‟s the right way?”

Yet another excellent question! There’s nothing magical about floss...it is sim-ply a tool to remove plaque where nothing else can physically reach—in between your teeth, where they touch. The correct technique is to “ease” the floss through the tight contact be-tween the teeth, using a gentle sawing motion. This removes plaque bacteria where the teeth touch. When you’ve

passed the contact, wrap the floss a bit around the neck of each tooth and use an up-and-down motion to scrape plaque off these hidden surfaces.

“My gums bleed: is that OK?”

No. Bleeding gums always indicate inflammation, so we should strive for a

state of “Zero Bleeding”.

“If my gums are a little tender, should I „go easy‟ on them and leave them alone for a bit?”

No. In general, gums don’t like to be “babied”. It may seem counter -intuitive, but the more you “baby” the gums, the more sensitive they will become. If an area feels a little more sensitive, or bleeds, give it a little more attention with the toothbrush and floss. If this doesn’t work in a few days, come see me and let me look at it.

The Downtown Dentist - Boca Raton, FL

SPRING

TOOTH

WHITENING

SPECIAL!!!

Through April 30th,

complete full-mouth

Tooth-Whitening

System normally

$600

Now reduced to

$400!!

Call for details!

Mother’s Gum Disease Linked to Death of Fetus We have long known of the link between the inflammation from periodontal disease in our mouth and inflammation in our arter-ies and cardiovascular system. In fact, re-searchers are able to culture the same bac-teria from plaques removed from diseased arteries as those found in dental plaque! A report in the February issue of Obstetrics and Gynecology describes the 1st docu-mented case of bleeding caused by preg-nancy-induced gum disease allowing plaque bacteria to enter the mother’s bloodstream leading to a massive septic infection and death of the fetus. Dr. Yiping Han, the

author of the study says “normal ly a mother’s immune system takes care of the bacteria in the blood before it reached the placenta, but in this case, the mother also experienced an upper respiratory infection a few days before the still birth.”

DNA cloning was able to match the bacteria from the fetus to the mother’s mouth.

This is further evidence of how important it is for all pregnant women to be sure to include dental cleanings in their program of prenatal care.

"When It Has To Be

Perfect..."

This Is Serious Stuff!

A pregnant woman with periodontal disease is over 700% more likely to deliver a prema-ture, low birth-weight baby. If her periodontal disease worsens during her pregnancy,

that goes up to over 1,000%!

.

INFLAMMATION IS THE LINK BETWEEN GUM-DISEASE AND SYSTEMIC DISEASES Most diseases of aging are due to chronic systemic inflamma-tion: Cardiovascular disease, Arthritis, Alzheimer’s, Diabetes, Cancers, Osteoporosis

Moderate to severe periodontal disease increases systemic inflammation

Chronic periodontal disease increases one’s risk of developing Alzheimer’s Disease by 400%!

Men with a history of gum disease are 54% more likely to de-velop pancreatic cancer than men with healthy gums.

Diabetics are 300% more likely to have periodontal disease.

The Downtown Dentist | March, 2010 | page 2