If you slide your tongue to the roof of your mouth or around the lower gums, do you feel any hard bumps? If so, there is no reason for alarm. You have oral tori —which Colgate defines as “… harmless growths of extra bone … Emphasis on the word ‘harmless.’ Dental tori are simply tiny…
Along with brushing your teeth, flossing is a basic essential to achieving and maintaining oral health. However — like brushing — most people assume they’re doing it correctly. But in order to get the full benefits of flossing, there’s a certain technique to follow — not to mention that some circumstances can add challenges, such…
“We cater to cowards” is a common tagline that some dental practices use in their advertising to reassure those who have dental anxiety that their dentist treats such patients with compassion and understanding. However easily recognized that tagline may be, our NK Family Dental team knows that “coward” isn’t a good word. There is nothing…
We all experienced tooth loss when we were children. It’s easy to remember the initial shock and feeling of that first wiggly tooth, the days of waiting for it to fall out, and the excitement of receiving money from the Tooth Fairy. While losing teeth in childhood wasn’t scary, the same isn’t true when it…
Oral surgery is an umbrella term that includes any operation performed on your teeth, gums, jaw or surrounding facial and oral structures. It includes an extensive range of procedures — including wisdom tooth extractions, dental bone grafts, periodontal grafts and corrective jaw surgery. According to Cleveland Clinic, “Your teeth, gums and jaw joints all work…
Activated charcoal has emerged as a major trend in the skincare world — and is quickly doing likewise in the toothpaste market, based on its reputation for whitening teeth and neutralizing bacteria. Once a boutique product with limited availability, charcoal toothpaste has gone mainstream, being produced by major brands and sold on the oral care…
By now, it’s common knowledge that smoking — as well as any type of tobacco use — has a devastating effect on health. According to a 2020 Surgeon General’s report, smoking is the leading cause of preventable death in the United States. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) states that smoking causes cancer,…
Root canal treatment is probably the dental procedure that people dread the most. In fact, it’s the standard reference for an unpleasant experience, as in, “I’d rather have a root canal than (fill in the blank).” If you’ve never had a root canal, the procedure’s bad reputation could make you so anxious that you don’t…
The quest to restore missing teeth is almost as old as history itself. Archeological excavations have unearthed dentures dating back to 700 BCE, when the Etruscans created crude initial forms of dentures using ivory as a base, into which animal and human teeth were fastened. In fact, despite the persistent myth that George Washington had…
If you are among the more than 37 million Americans living with diabetes, you already know the risk for medical complications in such areas as your heart, kidneys, eyes and skin. But did you also know that diabetes can affect your oral health? According to the American Diabetes Association, diabetes and oral health complications are…
