(Part 2) Best products from r/Dentistry

I appreciate that.

I'm grinning sheepishly as I write this, but there's a reason I'm posting on the dentistry forum at work. I like to use reddit as yet another channel of communication.

I'd like to help you define out of the box, or at least, how I've come to know it. I think it works. It's called Go - Giving.

Here and here are two books related the this. I read them in order and loved it.

We do, but there is always room for growth and improvement. I interact with them in a little bit of everything. Most of the time its for the really fun stuff; Inviting them to events, answering pricing questions when they call in to the lab, sending them giveaways, ect. All while I'm doing that, I'm always thinking in the back of my mind about how I could improve my ability to bring value to them. That in turn is feedback for my own marketing.

Thank you for being so inquisitive. It's interesting how things are re-enforced when you explain them to someone else who is genuinely interested in what you have to say.

I have GERD (I'm 27, not overweight) verified via an endoscopy and over the past few years the tooth decay has gotten really bad... I'm averaging 2-5 cavities per year right now but I'm trying to treat the GERD now because "enough is enough". Even before I had GERD I would get cavities even with good dental hygeine (I think I inherited this from my mother), but GERD makes it much worse. It used to be maybe 0-2 cavities a year. Now it feels like I'm lucky if I only have 2.

The dentist told me 2 weeks ago, "If I were to guess your age based on your teeth, I'd say you were 20 years older."... :| Ouch.

My GERD involves occasional burping (not "wet burping", which is when stomach acid comes up with it) and that's about it. I don't get painful heatburn or anything like that. If not for the dentist pointing out when I came in with 4 cavities one day that the culprit was acid erosion and recommending that I see a gastroenterologist, I would have never known. I just thought that I burped a lot. But when I go to sleep it's likely that small amounts of stomach acid are being deposited on my teeth, which is the cause of most of the dental complications I believe. Not enough to notice, but enough to do damage.

To treat this I need to treat my GERD I think. An elevated wedge pillow such as this one is something I picked up recently that I hope helps with the acid depositing on my teeth while sleeping. You won't like hearing this but I've also recently tried out a vegan diet (and basically no sugar) for all but 2 meals per week (those 2 meals I have lean chicken - I work out a lot and need the extra protein) and the belching has subsided quite a bit. Eating slow and making sure you chew your food thorougly is also very important. I used to eat faster than anyone I knew, but focusing on chewing and eating slow has helped a lot as well. Along with this, I stop eating 4 hours prior to going to bed and stopped drinking alcohol altogether. PPIs such as omeprazole work in the short term but have lots of side effects in the long run, so I try to avoid them. Regardless, it really sucks. I worry about what complications my GERD will cause in the future, but all I can do is try my best to treat it with diet, good dental hygeine, that wedge pillow I linked above, and staying healthy otherwise. Feel free to check out /r/GERD for more info. It sounds like your situation is much less severe than mine, but it's always good to be aware of potential complications! I'm early in my treatment process so I'm still optimistic that I'll be able to get a hold of this through lifestyle changes.

If any dentists can weigh in on my situation or have any advice for me I'd greatly appreciate it!

I wouldn't say waterpicks are better than flossing, but they do make a great addition to the oral health routine. I have seen a lot of patients benefit from them.

For you I think it would be a great investment because lets face it, flossing around brackets it difficult and time consuming. A waterpick would be a great way to flush out food/debris that are stuck around the brackets and in between teeth. Personally I recommend the product shower floss ( http://www.amazon.com/showerfloss-SF-1-ShowerFloss-by/dp/B0018AGB7M) because I feel the tips fit better in the mouth and it is much less bulky and cumbersome than the waterpick. I use it ever day in addition to regular floss.

Good on you for realising that with braces good oral hygiene is critical. Don't forget to brush the area of the teeth between the bracket and gumline, as I've seen a lot of patients in braces struggle with this and end up with decay and gum issues once the brackets are removed. Spend a few extra minutes gently massaging the gums with a brush every day, a smaller head kid's toothbrush works great in those tight areas.

Hope this helps.

Dental Caries can be a frustrating disease. There are many factors at play: genetics, diet, homecare, bacterial load, and others. Home care is usually stressed because it is the easiest to change and the most common culprit. Without getting to much in the the constant state of demineralization/remineralization that your teeth are experiencing. Somehow the balance is tipped on the demineralization for you.

Assuming your home care is good (you did not mention flossing, that will be very important for you) the first place I would look is your diet. Its not necessarily what you eat but how often. In basic terms you need to give you teeth a few hours of rest between each meal, which will allow your teeth to remineralize. That means no snacking, even relatively health snacks, and nothing to drink except water.

I would also look into your home care products, specifically your toothpaste. I'm a huge fan of the Carifree products. You can get the gel on Amazon however you may benefit from a higher fluoride version that will only be available in your dentist office. They may have a different high fluoride toothpaste they work with such as Fluoridex for ControlRx (both are pretty good IMO).

I hope this helps and I hope you are able to turn things around. Feel free to PM me if you have any further or more specific questions.

Crest Whitening Strips

Apply it 1x or 2x a week to make it last longer instead of using it everyday, which could irritate your teeth and gums. The last time I used whitening strips was about 7 years ago. I drink coffee and soda almost everyday. As long as you maintain your dental hygiene, you'll keep the whiteness a lot longer.

Philips Sonicare toothbrush (or any other electric toothbrush)

Use at least twice a day. This will keep your teeth super clean, hence, whiter. I cannot go back to manual toothbrushes. It's amazing what a difference it does in cleaning your teeth. Do not skimp on your toothbrush if you want whiter teeth.

Sensodyne Toothpaste

Get sensitive toothpaste because whitening strips will make your teeth super sensitive. You don't have to get a whitening toothpaste. Those just use more abrasive ingredients, which doesn't necessarily make teeth noticeably whiter.

Water and Gum

Always try to rinse water after every sip of a drink and bite of food. If water isn't available, drink your beverages through a straw and/or chew a sugar-free gum. It doesn't need to be whitening gum - plus gum is just good to have around because many people don't realize they have unpleasant breath.

Floss

Every night. I did this for 6 months straight (I normally flossed infrequently — like once or twice a week) and had a perfect dental checkup after flossing everyday. The dental hygienist didn't even need to scrap off any plaque. This also helps make the sides/gaps between teeth whiter.

Listerine Mouthwash

Use weekly or as needed. I doesn't have to be whitening mouthwash. Do not use it everyday because it will create an imbalance of good bacteria and saliva which is essential for a healthy mouth.

Oh, and get a tan :)

Pictures of me showing my teeth:

http://i.imgur.com/Ulixjy8.gif,
http://i.imgur.com/FJCkoU3.png,
http://i.imgur.com/Cy5eSZw.jpg

You sound like you really care so I'm going to lay out the pretty OTT things you can do for your teeth which can help.

Xylitol: http://www.xylitol.org/dental-info-about-xylitol

Use it 5-10 times a day whether it is in granular form (eating off a spoon, putting it in water/milk and so on) or chewing gum, mints, hard candy etc.

CloSYS mouthrinse: http://www.amazon.com/Closys-Mouth-Rinse-16-Ounce/dp/B00156C2FE/ref=sr_1_2?ie=UTF8&qid=1382035866&sr=8-2&keywords=CloSYS

Use before brushing.

Eat cheese: http://www.dentistryiq.com/articles/2013/06/cheese-may-prevent-cavities.html#

These oral probiotics: http://www.walgreens.com/store/c/evoraplus-probiotics-for-oral-care/ID=prod6150797-product

Research is limited, I haven't personally tried them, but they're from a company called oragenics which has some pretty cool research going on right now, so it could be useful.

Out of those four things, I'd consider Xylitol paramount, followed by CloSYS.

There's not much more anything anyone can say without a good quality copy of your x-rays. You can email them, request your x-rays, and by law they are required to send them to you. If you upload them here I'm sure people will give you their opinion.

With what you explain though, the scenario doesn't sound too odd. It's likely that the two different dentists you have seen have different opinions on when a cavity should be filled. Some dentists fill as soon as it hits the DEJ (where the enamel meets the dentin). At this point, more often than not the decay will spread like wildfire. Some dentists fill only when it has exceeded a certain amount past the DEJ. Reason for this is that if the demineralisation extends past this junction just MARGINALLY, it is not necessarily a hidden cavity. The enamel still may be intact and can therefore remineralise/seal it off - not many dentists like to take this chance, though.

Chances are the decay was already close to the DEJ, but because of your (as you say) good oral hygiene and frequent visits to the dentist, she decided to do a 'wait and see'. If you were a patient that only came in once every 2 years then it's understandable that they would want to fill even the smallest areas of demineralisation. Unfortunately, it sounds like the decay did spread and now the conservative dentist you're with now, thinks that it's time to drill and fill them.

Using floss once a day is great. If you want to do both, that's great as well. Glad you're so concerned, most young people aren't. Remember, the brackets on your teeth will collect plaque around them. if not cleaned properly, when they take the braces off, a weakened area in the form of the brackets outline will be left on your teeth. So I would also recommend proxy brushes to basically clean around the brackets. Scrub the plaque off. Superfloss by Oral B is also a great product for braces. Here are Amazon links

GUM Proxabrush Go-Betweens Interdental Brushes, Wide, 10 Count https://www.amazon.com/dp/B079M9TBW7/ref=cm_sw_r_cp_apa_i_GWlyDbH8QMCFA

Oral-B Super Floss Mint Dental Floss Pre-Cut Strands 50 ea (Pack of 6) https://www.amazon.com/dp/B07253YGPD/ref=cm_sw_r_cp_apa_i_3YlyDbJWSGPX1

I want to add that you're probably only going to the dentist when you're in pain. The type of appointment you're getting is called "limited oral exam" where the dentist is only going to set aside enough time to look at what your main concern is and if time permits (his time, not your time), he will try to take care of it.

During a limited oral exam, he isn't being paid to look at the rest of your mouth and give you detailed explanation of your problem and come up with a treatment plan. You need to schedule a "comprehensive oral exam with full mouth xray" for him to speak to you about your other problems.

If you only make $1200 a month, you should qualify for state sponsored insurance where you would get basic dental work for free or next to nothing. In California, it's called Denti-Cal; in Massachusetts, it's called MassHealth, in Washington, it's called Apple Health.

You would probably have to go to a Community Health Clinic, wait a long time in between appointments, have dentists who are always rushing about trying to help as many patients as they can - but they can really help you establish pathway to good oral health.

It's not too late to start.

Here's a link to disclosing solution mentioned by jdw0665 that will help you brush your teeth better:

https://www.amazon.com/Butler-Red-cote-Dental-Disclosing-Tablets/dp/B000WADTGA

A floss handle may help you clean your wisdom teeth. This one is a good example: (http://www.amazon.com/Reach-Access-Flosser/dp/B0017TU2HE/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1345718456&sr=8-1&keywords=reach+floss+handle)

Just started using new products about a month ago and my bad breath is virtually gone! ( my daughter always tells the truth about my breath lol). Anyways I bought a waterpik off Amazon for like 40 bucks, any kind of oral irrigator will do. Also bought https://www.amazon.com/gp/aw/d/B001ET76AI/ref=mp_s_a_1_1_a_it?ie=UTF8&qid=1483254451&sr=8-1&keywords=bad+breath and the toothpaste they make. Every morning and night I floss, use waterpik, brush using therabreath toothpaste, rinse & gargle with the therabreath mouthwash. Before using the waterpik when I would floss I would have this really funky smell between some of my teeth, now when I floss the smell is completely gone! If you try out my suggestions please let me know how it went! Good luck and hapoy new year!

http://amzn.com/B000GLRREU Your new best friend.

Canon body, 60mm macro lens for best depth of field if APS-C (no 100mm unless full size CCD), Canon ring flash. And this absolutely excellent book, worth every cent.

Both are excellent brushes. Rechargeables in either of those brands are great. I slightly prefer the oral b versions with the round head http://www.amazon.com/gp/aw/d/B004X8IIP4/ref=mp_s_a_1_10?qid=1405092635&sr=8-10&pi=AC_SX110_SY165_QL70
It is mostly personal preference.
Edit: oh and ignore the 'floss action' bs. You still need to floss. I wish it were illegal to claim toothbrushes floss!

Before ever considering surgery, I would recommend you give a Waterpik a shot and see if that helps clear out your tonsil stones. Just aim it (at the lowest pressure) at your tonsil crypts and you should see a bunch of tonsil stones come gushing out.

Try this. (Amazon link.) :)

I'm a fan of Breathrx's plastic tongue scrapers as they have a regular and soft side. https://www.amazon.com/BreathRx-Tongue-Scraper-Scrapers-bulk/dp/B01LMO2AXM Unsure if they are meant to be disposed of after "x" uses, but I wash and wipe/dry mine. I don't like metal ones as the ones I have used had an edge that was a little too aggressive for my liking.

Use something like this https://www.amazon.com/Reach-9655-Access-Flosser/dp/B0017TU2HE?th=1

Mine looks like that when I don't clean it. I've become partial to these kind of tongue scrapers because they seem to get so much more off compared to what other types do.

Show your hygienist how you are brushing and flossing and ask for any tips. There is a genetic marker that can indicate increased risk for periodontal disease. However, this does NOT mean that just because your relative had gum disease that you have to. The number 1 thing you can do is make sure you properly remove all the plaque biofilm.

Try these. They color all the plaque so you can see where you missed.

Brush twice a day (once before bed and once AFTER breakfast). Floss at least once (I would say at night, since you’ve eaten all day). Don’t snack throughout the day. Rinse your mouth out with water after meals but NEVER after brushing.

But to answer your bad breath thing, also scrape your tongue. And I hear good things about this:
TheraBreath Fresh Breath Oral Rinse, Mild Mint, 16 Ounce Bottle (Pack of 2) https://www.amazon.com/dp/B001ET76AI/ref=cm_sw_r_cp_api_i_CENHDb8J2WPWQ