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Did you know that your diet affects the overall health of your teeth and gums? Your diet has a vital part to play in your dental health. If you have an unhealthy diet full of sugars, your teeth, and your health in general, will suffer.

Sugar Takes All

Sugary sweets and starches will destroy your teeth if you’re not careful when you eat them. Your body is a machine that needs fuel, but if you fuel it with sugary foods, it will break down. If you take in too many sodas, candies or other non-nutritious snacks, you can do real damage to your teeth.

First, plaque can develop on your teeth. If you go without proper dental cleanings, that plaque will eventually create pockets between your teeth and gums, which will start the process of breaking down your tooth and inflaming your gums. Experts believe that bad eating habits are the leading cause of tooth loss in adults and children.

A Healthier Alternative

For better or worse, the foods you choose now are affecting your gums and teeth. Rather than binging on sweets, why not take a different route and eat raw, fresh fruit? Fruit still contains sugar; however, it’s a lot less than the sugary cakes, candies or sodas so common in our diet today. Plus, fruit is nutritious.

Your plate should consist of four ounces of meat, along with plenty of fresh vegetables and fruit. Eating this way will probably help you shed a few extra pounds too. You’d be saving your teeth and trimming your waistline. Who wouldn’t love that?

Gingivitis is Preventable

Gingivitis is the inflammation and irritation of the gingiva around the base of a tooth. There are many ways to prevent gingivitis. Make sure you use an antibacterial toothpaste, an antibacterial mouthwash, and floss daily. Brush your teeth at least two times a day. The antibacterial properties of these products will fight plaque for 24 hours. It will help you to stave off any bacteria that want to hide between your teeth and gums.

If you don’t pay attention to your gums and teeth now, your health will suffer later. Gingivitis can develop into periodontal disease. Periodontal disease causes further decay and the eventual loss of all of your teeth if not cared for. Bad oral health habits can cause your smile to be taken away completely. Protect your smile with the tips you’ve found here today!

For more information on keeping that smile perfect in the Palm Beach Gardens, FL area, call Mark L. Civin, D.D.S. at (561) 624-2224 or make an appointment today!

If you never knew how important your dental health is, you’re about to be surprised. Our Palm Beach Gardens patients know the obvious risks involved when it comes to the improper care of your teeth and gums. Decay, gingivitis, the need for dentures, and other oral health related issues aren’t really a surprise. By now, you know the importance of regularly brushing, flossing, and having regular cleanings performed. What you may not know, however, is how far reaching the state of your dental health can be in other aspects of your life.

What if it turns out cosmetic dentistry could actually influence your professional life or how someone would view you as a romantic partner? Would you be surprised to hear that crooked or missing teeth could be hindering you when you interview for jobs? Well, you shouldn’t be, because studies have been done showing how people behave when it comes to observing the state of another person’s dental health.

It all comes down to first impressions. As we know, first impressions are everything and there are no do overs. Let’s look at some of the ways the state of your teeth could be having some surprising effects.

First impression judgments

We all rely heavily on first impressions. It’s just the way that we’re wired. Imagine needing to process the entirety of a situation every time you come across it? You’d never get anything done. When we meet people for the first time, we make evaluations both consciously and subconsciously. And whether we know it or not, we tend to focus on mouths.

We derive a lot about people from their teeth. We even go so far as to make judgment calls on how desirable they are as a romantic partner and how successful they are professionally. People tend to remember your teeth after the meeting ends. Here are some stats that might give you pause. Two out of five people surveyed said they would not go on a second date with someone they observed had crooked or misaligned teeth. That’s because a nice smile is associated with being more desirable in general, more successful, and even smarter.

This attitude gets carried over into job interviews as well. Half of people surveyed said given two candidates with the same experience on paper, they would opt for the candidate with the better teeth when it came time for interviews assuming everything else was equal.

Correlations with success

There are no hard numbers on people with perfect smiles actually being more successful than people with less than perfect ones. Much of the literature pertains to the perception rather than the hard reality. But perception is often enough when it comes to issues of one’s self-esteem. Another study touched on the correlation of whitened teeth and perceptions of success. It’s not too different from what studies around crooked teeth or missing teeth have shown.

Respondents found people with whiter teeth 20% more attractive than those who didn’t have whitened teeth. Men in particular felt having whitened teeth made them look more successful, wealthier, and better educated regardless of the actual facts of their lives. And everyone agreed that whiter teeth made people look younger.

Connections with other aspects of your health

While much of the focus has been on cosmetic dentistry and personal successes, it’s important to stress that your overall wellbeing has a lot to do with your dental health as well. Medical professionals continue to find correlations between oral bacteria and heart disease. While the exact mechanisms haven’t been found yet, it has been observed enough that many are confident drawing a connection between the two.

It’s no secret that your mouth can be home to a lot of bacteria. Because it’s an entry point for getting sick, it stands to reason that your dental health could be reflected in other aspects of your overall health. Gum disease also has observed correlations with diabetes and certain kinds of cancer. It’s important to keep in mind that your dental health extends far beyond just cosmetic issues where you’re concerned with how people perceive you. Your overall health could be at stake if you don’t take proper care of your teeth and gums.

Contact Mark L. Civin, DDS

Who knew so much of your social and personal life was connected in some way to your dental health? If you’re surprised by all of this information, you might be wondering what the next steps are that you should take. If you haven’t been to the dentist in awhile, now is as good a time as any. Contact us today. The team at Mark L. Civin, DDS is dedicated to providing you with the best dental care so you can not only look your best, but you feel your best. If you’re located near Palm Beach Gardens, FL, make an appointment today and we’ll help you get the smile you’ve always wanted.

Keeping our mouth and teeth in tip-top shape isn’t always the easiest thing to do. Sometimes we forget to brush our teeth before bed or have one too many sodas throughout the day. While no one is perfect when it comes to dental hygiene here are five essentials for an overall healthy dental routine.

Consistency

Perhaps the most important factor of good dental hygiene is consistency. If you forget to brush your teeth or floss every once in a while, it’s not the end of the world as long as you get back on track quickly.  Don’t beat yourself up if you make a mistake, instead work to get back into your routine. If you have your dental hygiene right 98% of the time, you will go far.

Floss

There’s a reason you’re told to floss! We don’t just do it to torture you! Flossing regularly really does make a difference! One of the best ways to get into the habit is keeping your floss directly next to your toothbrush in a visible location in your bathroom, so you don’t forget.

Tongue Scraping

Another essential in your routine is to scrape your tongue either with a dedicated tongue scraper or the back of your toothbrush! It will help prevent bad breath and work to build a healthier mouth.

Mouthwash 

No one likes bad breath! Mouthwash is a great way to fend off those less than ideal smells.

A clean diet!

Lastly, while all of the above are important, watching what you eat and drink can have a significant impact on your overall dental hygiene. Avoid sugary foods and drink when possible, or at the very least consume them in moderation.

In need of a check up? Looking for a GREAT cosmetic dentist near Palm beach Gardens? Contact us today! Mark L. Civin, D.D.S. provides general, cosmetic, and restorative dentistry services and is ready to help you with whatever oral health needs you may have!

Despite the clear benefits of flossing regularly, many of our patients struggle to get in the habit. After all who wants to spend 5 minutes every day flossing their teeth? If we’re perfectly honest, it’s not exactly the most fun thing to do!

That being said, flossing regularly is one of the most effective ways to improve your dental hygiene, and it doesn’t have to be as difficult as we often make it out to be!

Having helped dozens of our patients get into the habit of flossing, we’ve found a simple trick to help increase your chances of building the habit!

Commit to flossing ONE tooth.

The concept is simple, based on the latest leading science on habit change. One of the reasons we fail to build any habit (not just flossing) is we often make our goal way too big! If you want to get into the habit of running, for example, telling yourself to run 10 miles a day probably won’t be very motivating, and you’ll likely set yourself up for failure!

When applied to dental hygiene we’ve found that when you commit to flossing just ONE tooth a day, you can quickly build the flossing habit. The way it works is simple, instead of telling yourself you’re going to floss every day, just commit to flossing one tooth. If you floss one tooth, you’re good for the day. Really. You can call that day a success.

Some days you might just muster enough energy to floss your one tooth, but many times we’ve found patients continue flossing their tooth after they get over that initial hurdle of just one tooth.

Don’t underestimate this incredibly simple habit hack, that we’ve seen work with many of our patients! If you’ve struggled to build the habit of flossing give it a try.

Commit to flossing one tooth every day, and you’ll quickly discover how easy the habit of flossing can be!

In need of a check up? Looking for a GREAT cosmetic dentist near Palm beach Gardens? Contact us today! Mark L. Civin, D.D.S. provides general, cosmetic, and restorative dentistry services and is ready to help you with whatever oral health needs you may have!

When it comes to good dental hygiene, what you eat and drink has a much more significant effect on your mouth health than we care to admit. While most foods and drinks are okay in moderation, excessive consumption of specific beverages can negatively impact your teeth. Given the massive consumption of sugary beverages in the United States, it’s no wonder we continue to see so many struggle with cavities and other teeth alignments.

If you’re looking for optimal dental hygiene here are three beverages you should enjoy in moderation.
Soda

Regular soda drinkers are significantly more like to suffer from a whole host of dental issues due to the excessive amounts of sugar a standard soda has. In addition to the sugar, many sodas contain artificial coloring which can stain and affect the color your teeth. While sugar-free soda is often hailed as a healthy alternative the carbonation from the soda can still negatively impact your teeth.
Milk

While known for the calcium it provides to help promote strong bones, consumed consistently, milk can also negatively affect your overall dental hygiene. Enjoying a nice glass of milk before bed can also coat your teeth in sugar which can accelerate tooth decay.
Fruit Juices

While many fruit juices are undoubtedly tasty, like soda, the vast majority of fruit juices, even “all natural” contain significant amounts of sugar. Unfortunately, despite the many health claims fruit juice can have a negative impact on your teeth and should be avoided as much as possible.

While we aren’t saying you should never have your favorite tasty beverage, if you’re working towards healthier teeth, cutting back, or drinking the above beverages in moderation will significantly improve your dental hygiene.

Brushing your teeth and flossing regularly is only part of the equation, what you eat and drink matters as well.

When is the last time you had a check-up? If you’re located near Palm Beach Gardens, Florida, Dr. Mark Civin is accepting new patients! Contact his office an appointment or visit the website for more information.