Category Archives: Blog

Some people ask our International District Seattle dentist about why their children need to visit the dentist before their permanent teeth come in. They reason that it doesn’t matter whether or not a baby tooth suffers decay, since it’s going to fall out anyway. This is a dangerous misconception. The truth is that baby teeth have a very important role to play that can affect your child’s mouth well into adulthood.

The first thing to understand is that primary teeth are your mouth’s “training wheels”, and you can’t get too far on training wheels if you let them break. These are the teeth that your child is using to develop proper chewing habits, speech patterns, and brushing technique. If these teeth are uneven or cause the child pain, they may develop problems that will only get worse as they age. If primary teeth are not properly cared for, the permanent teeth may even come in crooked. The consequences on your child’s health and self-esteem can be disastrous.

We recommend that you bring your children in for their first dental visits within six months of their first teeth erupting, or around their first birthdays. Do the right thing for your little ones, and get them to Sixth Avenue Dentistry as soon as they’re ready.

Some patients of our International District Seattle dentistry are using a poorly maintained toothbrush, and this is aggravating their dental problems. Though your brush may seem like a simple device with a simple function, there are many ways that your brush can fall short and even start doing more harm than good if you don’t maintain it properly.

Firstly, remember to replace your brush every three months. This is generally how long it will take for your bristles to be worn down too much to clean your teeth effectively. They become weaker, they jut out at unfavorable angles, and they’re not lifting plaque away like they ought to.

Another problem that can show up on your brush is bacteria build up. Your brush is always exposed to bacteria in your mouth, and these bacteria can quickly multiply deep within the bristles. To fight this, it’s a good idea to store your brush upright, like in a cup or a brush holder. This allows it to dry out between use, which makes it a less friendly environment for microbes. You might also occasionally dip the bristles into hot water or an antibacterial mouthwash. Do not microwave your toothbrush or attempt to wash it in the dishwasher; these can damage your bristles.

Many of the problems we see at our International District Seattle dental clinic could have been avoided with proper brushing. Even something as small as how you hold your brush can have noticeable effects when you go to the dentist’s office. If you feel like you could stand a refresher course on toothbrushing, try following these simple steps:

• Floss before you brush. This clears out plaque and allows the fluoride of your toothpaste to better gain purchase between your teeth.
• Brush twice a day, once after you wake up and once before you go to sleep, after your last meal of the day. Your mouth is less able to clean itself while you sleep, so don’t eat or drink anything but water between your final brushing and your bedtime.
• Brush for two minutes at a time. Too little and you may not be cleaning enough, and too much might be too hard on your gums.
• Do not brush directly after eating. Acids in your food can weaken your tooth enamel, making them vulnerable to being stripped away by your brush for a short while.
• Brush the sides of your teeth in a circular motion, with the brush held at a forty-five degree angle. Gently massage your gums as you go.
• Plaque can gather on your tongue just as easily as any other surface in your mouth. Use a tongue scraper, or simply scrub your tongue with your brush.
• Follow up your brushing with a good antibacterial or fluoride mouthwash. There are many good products available to give your teeth the extra edge they need.

Have you ever considered employing whitening toothpaste as an alternative to a professional cosmetic treatment from our International District Seattle dentistry? If you have, we encourage you to reconsider. The truth is that the so-called “whitening” toothpastes are probably harming your teeth far more than they are brightening your smile.

If your toothpaste identifies itself as a whitener, take a good look at the fine print on the package. You’ll likely find that it only claims to “whiten teeth by removing surface stains”. This means that it’s only wiping away potential stains on your teeth that have not yet settled. This is decent as a preventative measure, but it does nothing for the stains that you already have. To remove real stains, you need whitening agents that are too strong to come in toothpaste form; any bleach in a toothpaste gets rinsed away too quickly to have any real effect, and only serves to make your paste more abrasive on your gum tissues. Do the right thing for your teeth, and restore their whiteness with Sixth Avenue Dentistry.