Baby Bottle Tooth Decay

You’ve probably noticed how concerned dentists are about childhood cavities. While Dr. Shah and her team strive to educate children about how to care for their oral hygiene, very young children depend on their caretakers to keep their teeth clean. Therefore, it is important for parents of babies to know about a pattern we call Baby Bottle Tooth Decay.

Tooth decay increases with the amount of time teeth are exposed to sugar. While baby formula and milk are not as high in sugar content as juice, for example, they contain enough to cause a problem if they remain stuck to babies’ teeth for hours. Too often, this is the case, because babies are given bottles to suck from throughout the day, keeping their teeth coated and causing decay to set in on the fronts of the incisors.

There are several important steps parents can take to combat Baby Bottle Tooth Decay: limit the amount of time babies have bottles for, and supply them with water to wash their teeth. Start brushing their teeth as soon as the first one begins to emerge, and teach them to drink from cups as soon as possible (usually around their first birthday). And, of course, hold off on juice and anything else with lots of sugar until then.

Dr. Dipika Shah, Master in the Academy of General Dentistry, operates at 723 N Beers St, Suite 2F, Holmdel, New Jersey, 07733-1512. To schedule an appointment, call 732-264-8180 or visit DentistNJ.com and fill out a contact form.

 

How Thumb Sucking Affects Teeth

We care for entire families at Dr. Dipika Shah’s Holmdel office, including those who have just had their first child. Many parents probably know that thumb sucking isn’t a desirable trait in children as they get older, but may not be aware of the consequences or when they should be concerned, so we made that the topic of this week’s post.

Babies and toddlers normally suck their thumbs (or pacifiers) as a way of soothing anxiety, but they also usually stop in between the ages of two and four. If they stop at this age, they will probably not experience any problems, but if they continue sucking after they begin losing their baby teeth, they may suffer from malocclusions such as overbites, misaligned jaws, and misshapen mouth cavities which could inhibit speech and eating. Some children stop thumb sucking only to develop a habit of pushing their tongues against their front teeth, which causes similar problems.

When breaking children of their bad habits, it is best to try to make them understand the reason their habit is harmful and include them in plans and rewards for how to stop. But when thumb sucking is a response to deep-seated anxiety, it may be necessary to seek help from a counselor and dentist. 

Dr. Dipika Shah, Master in the Academy of General Dentistry, operates at 723 N Beers St, Suite 2F, Holmdel, New Jersey, 07733-1512. To schedule an appointment, call 732-264-8180 or visit DentistNJ.com and fill out a contact form.

 

Mouth Care Basics for Type 2 Diabetes

Diabetes can affect your whole body, including your mouth. Type 2 diabetes is a dangerous disease because, if uncontrolled, it can lead to complications throughout the body from the heart to the kidneys to the eyes. When diabetes begins to affect the mouth, it can cause gum disease and tooth decay.  If you have been diagnosed with diabetes, it’s important to tell Dr. Dipika Shah, DDS that you have this condition during your next visit and what medications you take to treat it.

Diabetes prompts an inflammatory response in the body. In the mouth, this leads to swollen gums. If left unchecked, your gums will begin to pull away from your teeth. As your gums retreat, deep pockets form between teeth and gums. Those pockets become home to bacterial and fungal infections, filling with germs and pus. Diabetes creates high levels of sugar in your saliva, a condition that spurs on these infections. To protect teeth and gums, people with type 2 diabetes must practice diligent oral hygiene and mouth care as well as manage their diabetes.

If you are diagnosed with diabetes and have questions about your oral health, please give us a call. To learn more about the services we provide at the practice, visit www.dentistnj.com for more information. To schedule an appointment with Dr. Dipika Shah, DDS, here in our Holmdel, NJ office, call 732-264-8180. 

Nausea and Teeth

If a sick feeling occurs before you ever step foot in the dental office, letting Dr. Dipika Shah, DDS know about any negative past experiences in the chair may give them a chance to make adjustments and keep you calm and comfortable. On the other hand, if you’ve experienced an upset stomach during or after a trip to the dentist, taking a look at what happens may help prevent the queasy feeling next time.

Visiting the dentist on an empty stomach or too full of a stomach may lead to queasiness or indigestion simply from the positioning of the chair and the smells in the office. Allergies and pre-existing conditions such as infections also can make the stomach hurt during dental work. In addition, individuals with latex or rubber allergies can get sick from exposure to gloves or dental implements made with rubber, and people with gum disease or tooth abscesses can also get ill from drainage of bacteria into the stomach. Others may have bugs or viruses prior to their appointments that are aggravated by having to lie in a reclined position on their backs.

If you have experienced some sort of nausea after receiving dental work, please notify us the next time you make an appointment. To learn more about the services we provide at the practice, visit www.dentistnj.com for more information. To schedule an appointment with Dr. Dipika Shah, DDS, here in our Holmdel, NJ office, call 732-264-8180. 

Dangers of DIY Orthodontics

Last February, the American Association of Orthodontists released a study that showed 13% of its members had treated someone who attempted to perform orthodontics on themselves. At Dr. Dipika Shah’s Holmdel office, it is alarming to us that anyone would think this is a good idea and we want to help our patients avoid scams and harmful practices.

DIY orthodontics were popularized by the story of someone who used a 3D printer to manufacture his own aligners while characterizing the standard orthodontic process as dragging out treatment to raise costs. This is not true; moving teeth, which are living tissue, through jaw bones takes time because the jaw bones must be allowed to rebuild themselves. Moving teeth too quickly will leave them loose and could cause them to fall out or move back to their former position.

Other publications encourage much more primitive corrective methods, such as substituting wires with home items. However, tying teeth together instead of connecting them with a bracket-supported wire could strangle the teeth’s blood supply. Furthermore, without a bracket to hold the ties in place, the ties could slide into the wearer’s gum pockets and get stuck there while they rot.

Our office provides a variety of orthodontic and payment options. Please come see us if you are worried about misaligned teeth so we can fix them the safe, effective way.

Dr. Dipika Shah, Master in the Academy of General Dentistry, operates at 723 N Beers St, Suite 2F, Holmdel, New Jersey, 07733-1512. To schedule an appointment, call 732-264-8180 or visit DentistNJ.com and fill out a contact form.

 

Warning Signs of Failing Implants

Holmdel’s Dr. Dipika Shah is renowned for her work on implants and highly recommends this procedure as one of the safest and most effective ways to replace missing teeth. However, it is possible for an implant to need to be replaced. Patients should know the warning signs of an implant that is failing both immediately after placement or after years of wear and tear.

The warning signs of an implant failing in the immediate wake of surgery are continual bleeding and severe pain for more than three days. While there is always some pain associated with recovery from surgery, if an implant was placed on a nerve, the patient’s pain will never diminish, and the implant must be removed. 

A successfully placed implant can fail if the matrix of fused bone and metal at the implant’s base becomes compromised. This usually occurs due to periodontal disease or a traumatic injury. Dentists will monitor the patient’s jaw bone tissue for the first two years following implant placement because the loss of too much bone tissue means the implant needs to be removed. A functioning implant is totally immobile. If you notice an implant moving at all, seek help.

Dr. Dipika Shah, Master in the Academy of General Dentistry, operates at 723 N Beers St, Suite 2F, Holmdel, New Jersey, 07733-1512. To schedule an appointment, call 732-264-8180 or visit DentistNJ.com and fill out a contact form.

 

Guiding Impacted Canines

 At her Holmdel office, Dr. Dipika Shah offers orthodontic work to adults and children for a variety of conditions. sometimes she comes across the failure of canine teeth to erupt. The canine teeth don’t just help us pierce food; they also occupy the points of maximum change of curvature in the jaw arches and are crucial to keeping the other teeth in alignment and your jaw joint healthy. Since teeth which have not erupted by adulthood likely never will, The progress of the canine teeth is one of the most important things for dentists treating children to check.

Guiding canines down into the proper position may require a bit of surgery and a distinctive bit of orthodontic work. An incision will expose the unerupted canine so a bracket may be attached to it. Connecting this bracket with the wire connecting the other brackets will require a chain or a looped bit of wire called a ballista spring. Depending on how far a canine is from its destination, moving it may require a year of orthodontic work. But aesthetically and functionally, guiding an impacted canine is one of the most important orthodontic procedures a child can undergo.

Dr. Dipika Shah, Master in the Academy of General Dentistry, operates at 723 N Beers St, Suite 2F, Holmdel, New Jersey, 07733-1512. To schedule an appointment, call 732-264-8180 or visit DentistNJ.com and fill out a contact form.