By Robert Thatcher

Staring your day with a frown face will not give you any luck. The best way to have a beautiful day is to have a beautiful smile. Having a beautiful smile is having clean and white bright teeth.

The first thing that you notice to a person when having a conversation is their teeth. Healthy bright white teeth always get special and extra attention.

Nowadays, people are more conscious on how their teeth look like. As much as possible, a person wants to have strong and healthy white teeth.

In order for the people to have white teeth they would tend to use teeth whitening. However, not all teeth whitening are advisable for the consumers. There can be a lot of side effects that may occur in making use of teeth whitening. Using teeth whitening can cause problem in your teeth, gums or even to your health in general.

People are so fond of using tooth bleaching. In tooth bleaching, there should always a tray mouth that should be used in order to avoid the leaking of the bleaching agent. On the other hand, there are times that the mouth tray does not fit in properly to the consumer. As a result, they may tend to swallow the bleaching agent and it can even seep onto and it can irritate their gum tissues. If you are already suffering from this kind of condition, you should avoid using bleaching until your condition has been properly cured.

Aside from teeth bleaching, all teeth whitening products has a peroxide content to make your teeth white. Peroxide and other chemicals that can also be a problem is also present in teeth bleaching which can damage your gum tissue and not only that, it can even cause nerve damage to your tissues inside your tooth pulp. Peroxide can also be one of the causes of increasing the tooth sensitivity from cold to heat and the cause of having tooth decay or even losing your tooth.

In some country, they use 30 times the normal concentration to their teeth whitening products to be more effective. However, in other countries, they no longer allow these teeth whitening products that are mostly used in the United States to be out in their market because of the harmful effects and certain disadvantages that will put the consumer in to danger.

Other things that can be of help in staining or permanently damage your teeth are tobacco, coffee and some other foods that have a strong content of chemicals. Therefore, stop using these things in order to have a pleasant and beautiful tooth.

There is a saying that laughter is the best medicine so how you can smile or even laugh when you do not have a pleasant teeth to show everybody. The best way to make your teeth white and healthy is to eat the proper food and brush your teeth every after meal. If you are facing any problem and difficulties from your teeth, don’t let it stay for long and wait till the pain get worst. Always go to your dentist to for further treatment to your teeth.

In addition, always pay a visit to your dentist at least once a month to make sure that your teeth stay strong and healthy.

Tags beautiful smile | white teeth | bleaching | peroxide | sensitivity

By Michael Russell

How often do you have to go home early from work because of a toothache becoming worse? Or wake up in the middle of the night bombarded by a throbbing pain that originates from a deeply carious tooth? Dental pain is usually caused by tooth decay and tooth abscess.

Tooth decay usually exhibits signs and symptoms including a sharp pain in the tooth generally occurring when you bite or chew your food. There is also a feeling of soreness and pain in the teeth, gums and jaw. Most often, a person who has a decaying tooth exhibits bad breath that comes from the decomposing tooth structure aggravated by the decaying food particles that are usually trapped and left in the dental cavity. A bad taste in the mouth will also be felt especially when the dental decay becomes severe or there is already the presence of a tooth abscess or infection.

The signs and symptoms of a tooth abscess on the other hand include the following:

1. Severe pain in the tooth and jaw.

2. A loose tooth caused by the damage in the periodontal ligaments. Periodontal ligaments are the tissues that hold the teeth to the surrounding alveolar bone. Impaired integrity of these tissues is caused by gum disease that results to subsequent periodontal disease when left untreated.

3. Gum disease characterized by red, swollen and bleeding gums.

4. A person suffering from tooth abscess may experience fever brought about the dental infection.

5. Earache.

6. Swollen glands in the neck.

If you are suffering from toothache, it is important that you should see your dentist especially if you are experiencing the signs and symptoms of tooth abscess. Until then, you can follow these home remedies that can provide some relief from your dental pain.

1. If the pain you are suffering is caused by pressure due to trapped food bits in between the teeth, a simple dental floss manipulation can remove the irritant. You can then rinse with warm salt water.

2. If you feel pain in your gums, suck on an ice cube to numb the area or an ice pack will do the trick for a painful jaw.

3. Try to apply a heat pack if cold application is not working. Apply a hot compress on your jaw and gargle with warm salt water.

4. A wet black tea bag placed on your sore gum for 30 minutes will relieve the soreness and may even stop the bleeding.

5. You can put oil of cloves onto your aching tooth every 20 minutes using a cotton swab. This will ease some of the pain.

6. Take over the counter pain reliever but never take aspirin if you are expecting a dental procedure. Aspirin can increase the bleeding and may jeopardize the procedure and may put you at unnecessary risk.

7. Never place aspirin on your gums to relieve the pain. This may worsen the condition and create burns to your gum tissue.

You may require emergency care and need a prompt dental visit if you are experiencing the signs and symptoms of a dental abscess. Otherwise, you can call your dentist for advice if you are experiencing a toothache that lasts for more than a day or two. A throbbing tooth pain, a tooth that responds to both hot and cold stimulus and a tooth that hurts during pressure may be exhibiting signs of a dental cavity. You may already have gum disease if you are experiencing swelling, redness, soreness and pain in your gums. This may also indicate an impacted tooth.

Tags toothache | throbbing pain | swollen gums | abscess | infection

By Michael Russell

“Smile for the camera!”, cooed the photographer. And you willingly flashed your most winning smile. “One, two, three!”, there it goes! You were sure you looked your best and you excitedly wait for the photograph to be printed. However, you get depressed when you look at your picture. There is something wrong somewhere. It was not as perfect as you thought it would be. Your most winning smile just wasn’t good enough. Your pearly whites just aren’t white enough – they are stained!

Stained teeth are among the most common dental complaints heard by dentists all over the country today. What might have caused your once pearly white teeth to become stained and discolored? There are a number of factors that can contribute to this dental problem – some may be external while others are internal in nature.

External factors are comprised of food and non-food items that we habitually eat, drink or put in our mouths. Among these are the following: • Tobacco. Tobacco is listed as the leading cause of stained teeth. Whether smoked or chewed, tobacco simply is bad for your dental health! • Coffee • Tea • Colas • Some fruits (especially blueberries) and fruit juices (especially grape) • Red wine • Soy sauce • Curry • Silver colored fillings that have leached out and discolored the surrounding tooth

On the other hand, internal factors are those factors that we can do nothing about. Aging is considered one of these factors. As you age, the enamel of your teeth begins to thin out allowing the underlying layer of yellowish dentin tissues to show through. This explains why your teeth take on a yellowish stain as you grow older.

Another reason for this common dental complaint can be intrinsic (occurs in the inside of the teeth) in nature. These are most commonly observed in children taking the antibiotic tetracycline or in the offspring of mothers who have taken the drug during pregnancy.

Solving the Stained Teeth Problem - Before you do anything about it, you should first determine the exact cause of your dental problem and be realistic of the results you want to achieve. Teeth are not naturally pure white so do not aim to have one!

The stain caused by some foods and drinks can often be removed with the help of your dentist. It might be possible that a good dental cleaning is all you need to take the stains away! However, intrinsic stains can only be removed by resorting to cosmetic dental procedures such as composite resin bonding and porcelain laminate veneers.

Whichever of these options might be right for you, there really is only one logical course of action to follow after you have restored your pearly white teeth – take care of them wisely! You can prevent this dental problem from occurring in the future by taking heed of the following suggestions:

• Observe proper dental hygiene. You must brush your teeth at least twice daily using a good toothbrush (choose one with soft bristles), good toothpaste and the proper brushing techniques. Do not scrub your teeth too hard – you might actually do more harm than good if you do this! And don’t forget to floss daily, either!

• Quit smoking. Tobacco is one of the worst dental offenders.

• Learn to limit your coffee intake. Have you noticed how coffee leaves a telltale stain on your coffee cup? Well, that’s what it will do to your teeth, too!

• Don’t drink, sip! If you can’t avoid drinking iced tea, cola and fruit juices, sip it instead. Using a straw will help minimize the contact between the teeth and the staining liquid.

• Get a cosmetic cleaning. It would be a great idea to make an appointment for a cosmetic cleaning in between your regular dental check-ups. This will take care of the problem for good!

Tags smile | dental | stained | white teeth | yellowish