| More than 51 million school hours
are lost each year due to dental-related illnesses. The Centers
for Disease Control say that dental caries are the most common
chronic disease of children aged 5 to 17. While younger children
attend appointments with their parents, teens take more control
over their free time and may not spend time for dental
check-ups.
“Many teens do not see a dentist for regular
dental care and some have never even been to the dentist. They
don’t get the care they need or the proper oral education to
make smart decisions on the foods they eat and on how to
practice good oral hygiene habits at home.
Teeth Tips for Teens:
Treatment for Acne
May Cause the Appearance of Discolored Gums
Minocycline, a commonly prescribed
antibiotic in the treatment of acne and can cause the teeth and
bone to discolor, which may make gum tissue to appear
blackish-blue in color. A dramatic blue appearance of the
gum tissue and bone surrounding teeth may appear.
Teeth discoloration from minocycline does not always resolve
after discontinuation of medicine. Approximately three to
six percent of long-term users of minocycline will develop
dental staining. This discoloration does not harm the teeth,
bone or gum tissue, but is the reason behind the
blackish-blue appearance of the gums. The periodontal bone can
become discolored from minocycline therapy and show through the
gum tissue, causing it to appear discolore.
Journal of Periodontology 03.
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We
all experience bad breath at different times for different
reasons. Certain foods, poor oral hygiene, gum disease, a dry
mouth, use of tobacco products or a medical disorder can cause
bad breath. In many cases simple changes in personal or
hygiene habits can freshen your breath. Bacteria usually is the cause behind bad breath. Good oral
health habits can help you fight off bad breath.
Effect of tongue
cleaning on bad breath in
These results of this study
revealed that accumulation of bacterial plaque on the tongue is
an important factor for bad breath in the adolescents. Oral
malodor levels were significantly reduced after cleaning the
surface of the tongue. Thus, tongue care shouldn't be
neglected in order to avoid bad breath.
Pediatrics International Official English
Journal of the Japan Pediatric SocietyEdited by: Yukishige
Yanagawa Volume 45: Issue 6Original Article Page range: 719 -
723 2/04
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Braces
Braces
can help you straighten and align your teeth and jaw to make your teeth easier
to clean and give you a more nature balanced appearance. Crooked and
crowded teeth are hard to take care of and clean which may lead
to tooth decay, gum disease and possible tooth loss. Bad
bites can also cause difficulty in speaking and chewing; cause
abnormal wear on tooth surfaces and lead to problems with bones,
jaw joints and gum tissue.
Oral Sex and Braces-BEWARE!
Sex Warning For
Teenagers With Braces
Metal braces can scratch genital areas or rip a hole in a
condom, increasing the potential for sexually transmitted
diseases such as HIV/AIDS, cautions Boston cosmetic dentist
Helaine Smith. She has issued a warning to teenagers engaging in
sexual practices such as oral sex or French kissing, saying they
should be cautious if they or their partners wear metal braces
on their teeth.
Metal braces can scratch delicate genital areas, tear
sensitive mouth tissues, or rip a hole in a condom. Such
incidents increase the potential for sexually transmitted
diseases and blood-borne pathogens, including HIV/AIDS,
chlamydia, and hepatitis B and C.
Most teens and young adults don't realize that metal dental
braces can do some damage,. `And while new dental
technologies such as Invisalign and plastic braces have been
introduced, the fact is, many dentists still rely on the
traditional metal braces and their nickel titanium brackets,
wires, and ties. Even plastic braces still use metal wires and
ties that can cause damage.
Because the metal brackets and wires can catch on the thin
latex of condoms and dental dams and cause microscopic tears,
Dr. Smith advises teens and young adults to carefully
consider whether to engage in oral sex with partners who wear
wire braces. Safer sex practices also include changing the
condom before engaging in another sexual activity in order to
reduce the risk of STDs and/or unintended pregnancy – even if
one thinks the condom has not been damaged.
Dental dams, which are also made of latex, are used when
performing oral sex on a woman and protect against herpes and
genital warts. Dr. Smith advises young adults to also exercise
caution when participating in long kissing sessions with
partners who wear braces because the brackets can tear delicate
mouth tissues and increase the exposure to blood-borne pathogens
and STDs such as HIV/AIDs. 1/06
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Eating Disorders
Bulimia
is harmful to overall health and destructive to teeth. The repeated binge
eating followed by self-induced vomiting exposes tooth enamel to strong
acids that erode tooth enamel. Over time, teeth exposed to stomach acids
become worn and translucent and decay easily. Your mouth, throat and
salivary glands may become swollen and tender. Bad breath
can result.
Anorexia
is self induced starvation. Inadequate nutrient intake damages not only
teeth but also muscles and major organs.
Obesity
affects oral health. Overweight teens have a 70% chance
of becoming overweight or obese adults leading to Type 11
Diabetes, hypertension, heart disease and osteoporosis.
 | Obesity has nearly tripled for teens in the
past 20 years. |
| Overweight teens have a 70% chance of
becoming overweigh or obese adults. |
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Limiting Snacks
and Pop
Snacking throughout the
day can increase your risk of developing tooth decay.
Each time you eat the bacteria in plaque produce harmful acids that attack your
teeth for up to twenty minutes after you eat. Over time these acids can
wear down tooth enamel putting them at a higher risk to decay. Try eating healthy
snacks. To keep your smile healthy, limit snacks and eat nutritious well
balanced meals make of foods from the five food groups: Breads,
cereals and grains, fruits, vegetables, meat and protein
alternates, milk, yogurt and cheese. Teens can keep
travel-size brushes in lockers or back packs. Chewing sugarless
gum with xylitol after meals or snacks can also help cleanse the
mouth. Drinking water throughout the day can help cleanse the
teeth of excess bacteria and food debris. Remember what you eat
and how often you eat can affect your overall health.
Hey guys this one is for you:
what if you
would pour soda on the hood of your car? There is so much
acid in pop it will eat the
paint off your car sooooooooo.....what do they think it does to
your teeth?
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Mouthguard
A mouth protector is
used to help you protect your smile during any activities you may be involved
with where you may receive a flow to your face or mouth.
They help prevent broken
teeth and injuries to your face, jaw, lips and or tongue. There are three
types of mouthguards: the ready made or stock; mouth-formed boil
and bite and custom made by your dentist. Only your
dentist can provide you will a high quality custom fitted mouthguard. All
three mouthguards provide protection, but vary in comfort and
cost.
Don't take
your teeth for granted. Be cool and protect your smile
while you play sports.
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Soft
Drinks & Cavities
12oz pop=10tsp
of sugar...average male teen drinks 868 cans a year=540 cups of
sugar in a year!+
Soft
drink purchases by teen in schools increase 1,100% in the last 20
years, while intake of calcium rich drinks have decreased by 30%.
Whether at school, home or on the
weekends, teens are drinking more soda than they have in the
past. In 1977, 12 to 19-year-olds drank 16 ounces of soda a day.
In 1996, this same age group consumed an average of 28 ounces a
day.
Not only is sugar harmful to teeth, acidic
flavor additives can also erode and damage tooth enamel.
There are simple ways for teens to limit the harmful effects of
sodas. Sipping soda through a straw cuts down on the contact the
beverage has with teeth and rinsing the mouth with water after
drinking soda can also reduce the risk of cavities.
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Toothprints-Dental
Identification System
Toothprints is a
simple, cost effective way of documenting through DNA in
saliva, scent and tooth imprint. Law enforcement officials
rarely have ID materials available for teenagers, yet teens are
the most likely to become lost, missing or abducted.
Toothprints offers a very powerful recovery and identification
component of any identification kit.
Up
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Basic
Steps
*Brush twice a day with a
fluoride containing toothpaste
*Clean between your teeth daily with floss
*Limit snacks and eat nutritious, well balanced meals
*Visit your dentist every 6 months or as needed
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Mouth Jewelry
Oral
piercing or mouth jewelry can be dangerous.
|
It cause infection that
cause more than pain. A tongue can swell after being
punctured, however in some cases the tongue becomes
infected and swells so much that it may cut off
breathing. Unclean piercing equipment can cause other
infections, such as bloodborne hepatitis |
|
Your tongue could swell large enough to close
off your airway |
|
It can cause uncontrolled bleeding |
|
Pain |
|
Injury to gum tissue |
|
Increased flow of saliva |
|
Cause nerve damage |
|
You can choke on a stud, barbell or hoop if
they come loose |
|
This jewelry can chip or crack your teeth |
|
Effect you oral health |
|
Prolonged healing time of a month or more |
|
Fractured teeth. The fracture
can be confined to tooth enamel and require a filling, or it
may go deeper; in which case, causing a need for a root
canal or extraction. |
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Tobacco
High
School students who smoke: 39%
Kids who become daily smokers each year: 8,100
Kids alive today who will die from
smoking: 35,000
Number of illegally sold packs of cigarettes
to kids: 1.7 Million*
Tens who smoke cigarettes are 14x more likely to try
marijuana than are those who don't smoke and 60% of repeat
marijuana users smoked cigarettes first.
Every day 2,000 children and teenagers
become regular smokers, one-third of whom will die prematurely
as a result.
Exposure to cigarette smoke raises the risk among teens of
metabolic syndrome, a disorder associated with excess belly fat
that increases the chances of heart disease, stroke and diabetes,
according to a study.
Researchers said it is the first study to establish such a link
in teenagers.
“The bottom line to me is: As we gear up to take on this
epidemic of obesity, we cannot abandon protecting our children
from secondhand smoke and smoking,” said lead author Dr. Michael
Weitzman, executive director of the American Academy of
Pediatrics Center for Child Health Research in Rochester, N.Y.
We are NOT blowing smoke!
If you start smoking at
age 18 and smoke one pack per day, you could lose between 4 and 5 teeth by the
time your are 35 years old. The rate of tooth loss due to smoking is about
2.9 teeth every 10 years according to Tufts University.
Smokers are about twice
as likely to lose their teeth.
Smoking and chew
causes bad breath, oral
cancer and periodontal disease.
Because the early signs
of oral cancer usually are not painful,
people often ignore them. If not
caught in the early stages, oral cancer
can require extensive, sometimes
disfiguring surgery or worse, it can
kill you. If you are a tobacco
user, watch out for a sore that won't
heal, white or red leathery patches on
your lips and on or under your tongue;
pain, tenderness or numbness anywhere in
the mouth or lips, difficult in chewing,
swallowing, speaking or moving your jaw
or tongue or a changes in the way your
teeth fit together.
Smokeless tobacco packs an extra punch.
Manufacturers often mix sugar in the tobacco to make it taste
better-sugar that can cause you to develop cavities. There
is nothing cool about tobacco use. Up
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Parents, online
tools keep teens from smoking
|
|
Tobacco use is a
disorder of childhood and adolescence.
"If a child gets to 18
years of age and hasn't started, it's
unlikely he or she will ever be tobacco
dependent," says Dr. Theresa Madden, a
faculty member at the School of
Dentistry of the Oregon Health Sciences
University. A Ph.D. in microbiology and
immunology, she has conducted workshops
and lectures widely on substance abuse
and tobacco addiction. She says
prevention programs that can delay
tobacco use for as long as possible have
a great effect.
Dr. Madden believes
teenagers are very different from adults
when it comes to the reasons they begin
using tobacco and the ways they quit. "Marketing
techniques that don't have an effect on
adults may lure adolescents," she
says.
She would like to see
tobacco settlement money used to
"reimburse dentists and other health
professionals for engaging in
tobacco-use cessation counseling; for
health care and disease prevention,
particularly of tobacco-related
problems; and particularly for
prevention programs that work." (Six
tobacco companies, 46 states, five U.S.
territories and the District of Columbia
signed the 1998 Master Settlement
Agreement. All the agreements combined
are known as the state Tobacco
Settlement Agreements.)
Quitlines, similar to
traditional phone hotlines, can be very
successful with adolescents,
particularly if they include Web
resources, Dr. Madden says. Currently,
all but six states have tobacco
cessation quitlines. The toll-free
number 1-800-QUITNOW (1-800-784-8669) is
a single access point to the National
Network of Tobacco Cessation Quitlines.
Callers are automatically routed to
a state-run quitline, if one exists in
their area. If there is no state-run
quitline, callers are routed to the
National Cancer Institute quitline.
Dentists are a tool,
but parents still have the greatest
impact on their kids' tobacco use. "It
doesn't do any good to talk to a
child about smoking prevention if a
parent is smoking."
"Adolescents are the
fastest-rising group of tobacco users,"
says Carol Southard, who leads the
smoking cessation initiative for the
American Dental Hygienists' Association.
2/07 |
|
|
Up
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Boxing and Oral Health
— Perhaps not Mutually Exclusive?
News Releases CDA June 13, 2005 Your dentist will
certainly never recommend it, but according to a study published
in the latest edition of the Journal of the Canadian Dental
Association (JCDA), participation in sports — even contact
sports including boxing and wrestling — may have protective
health effects.
The article, entitled "Tobacco Use among Young North American
Aboriginal Athletes", found that youths at high-risk for
smoking, are less likely to use tobacco when they are involved
in organized sports.
Among Aboriginal youth, average reported
smoking rates vary
from 30- 77%, (higher than the non-Aboriginal Canadian youth
average of 21.7%), putting them at increased risk for negative
health effects — including oral diseases. Through a mouthguard
clinic established at the July 2002 North American Indigenous
Games, a group of dental
researchers was able to learn that participation in sports
impacts other health choices.
We found that athletes presenting at the clinic were much less
likely to use tobacco products than their peers — and even
averaged below the rates of non-aboriginal youths who are less
at risk. These findings suggest that participation in
organized sportsmay be an important protective factor against
tobacco use.
Of 156 Aboriginal athletes participating in the study, only 22
(14.1%) reported current smoking. And of the few who did smoke,
consumption levels were low and most were interested in
quitting.
The full text of the above mentioned article is available from
the eJCDA Web site:
Tobacco Use among Young North American Aboriginal Athletes[
http://www.cda-adc.ca/jcda/vol-71/issue-6/403.html ]
7/05
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Tooth Whitening
The Academy of
General Dentistry makes the following recommendations for teens
who want to whiten their teeth:
-
You should wait for whitening
procedures until as least the age of 14. At this time,
the tooth's pulp is fully formed, which means you will
experience less tooth
sensitivity. Some
children may be able to whiten in their pre-teens with Whitestrips.
-
Drink soda
and coffee through a straw to prevent discoloration of the
upper, front teeth.
-
If you wear braces
you will have to wait until they are removed. By
meticulously keeping your teeth clean while you wear braces
can prevent their bi-product of discoloring your teeth or
causing cavities.
-
With the supervision of your
dentist some bleaching can be performed prior to having
cosmetic treatment.**
Over the counter tooth
whitening products can have many adverse effects:
|
Some of the ingredients
( hydrogen peroxide, carbamide
peroxide or acids) in these products can
damage gum tissue and cause tooth sensitivity |
|
TMJ problems due to ill fitting trays |
|
Result in
|
|
May not improve tooth color due to type of
tooth stains |
For these reasons tooth
whitening needs to be performed under a dentist supervision in order to help
prevent or limit the negative
effects of they whitening
ingredients.
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Wisdom Teeth
If you
are thirteen or older you will probably have most of your permanent teeth.
The last teeth to erupt are your wisdom teeth or
third molars and will appear around the ages of 17-21. Many times there is
limited room in the jaw for
these teeth which can lead to
them becoming impacted-they
can't fully emerge from the gum
tissue. Impacted teeth can
damage the teeth next to them.
Partially erupted wisdom teeth
are difficult to clean which can
lead to gum tissue infection
know as gum
disease.
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Calcium
Modern Lifestyle Damaging
Teeth
Today's
fast-paced lifestyle is damaging oral and overall health,
according to a new study in the latest issue of General
Dentistry. Quick meals made up of nutrition bars and
carbonated beverages may help to keep teens alert during the
day, but they're contributing to permanent health damage. '
Premature loss of tooth enamel and weakening of overall tooth
structure are two devastating oral affects of teens' poor diet
that can not be reversed later in life. Dr Soxman's
research shows that drinking carbonated beverages seems to
be one of the most significant causes of increased cavities
and obesity for today's teens. Fifteen percent of American
adolescents aged six to 19 are overweight. This number is
expected to increase as 10 per cent of children aged between
two and five are overweight, and today's pre-school
children are already becoming addicted to caffeine and sugar. ***
Only 13.5 percent of girls and 36.3 percent
of boys age 12 to 19 in the United States get the recommended
daily amount (RDA) of calcium, placing them at serious
risk for osteoporosis and other bone diseases, according to
statistics from the U.S. Department of Agriculture. Because
nearly 90 percent of adult bone mass is established by the end
of this age range, the nation's youth stand in the midst of a calcium
crisis
Up
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Mouths
Image is everything .
Poor oral health and nutrition care can prevent you from having
the mouth image you desire Teens primary concerns
are for straight, white teeth.
What can you
do to help you improve your mouth image:
|
Drink bottled tap that
contains fluoride water instead of soda. Doing so
strengthens teeth, prevents dehydration and cleans excess
bacteria in mouth. |
|
Turn the radio on while
brushing teeth. Brushing teeth for the length of one song,
three times a day ensures that proper brushing time is
achieved with noticeable results. |
|
Avoid sugary snacks
with bite-sized fruit or vegetables. Prevent cavities by
steering clear of candy bars and other convenience snacks.
Opt for natural foods to prevent cavities. |
|
Consult with dentist
before trying over the counter teeth whitening systems.
Although you can purchase inexpensive whitening kits in
stores, please share concerns and questions with your
dentist before using. The ingredients used may be stronger
than the average consumer thinks and lead to gum recession.# |
Up
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Tooth erosion in a cohort of
adolescents of mixed ethnicity
A random sample of 1753
12-year-olds were studied for tooth erosion. Erosion was found
in 56% at age 12, increasing to 64% at 14. There was
significantly more erosion in boys than girls. Over the
2 years, 27% developed new or more advanced erosion. The
lowest increases were seen in Asian girls. Overall, there were
greater increases in the most deprived children, and in
white males.
The progression of tooth
erosion in a cohort of adolescents of mixed ethnicity -
Dugmore R, Rock WP. Int J Paediatr Dent 2003; 13: 295-303
British Dental Journal (2004); 196, 86. doi:
10.1038/sj.bdj.4810897
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Overweight
U.S. teens are more likely to be
overweight than are teens from 14 other
industrialized nations
Overweight adolescents have an increased
likelihood of being overweight during adulthood, and adult
overweight increases the risk for such health problems as
heart disease and diabetes.
The CDC Division of
Adolescent and School Health has released state
Obesity Fact Sheets on the Healthy Youth.
Up
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+Teen
Oral Health Fact Sheet
The Archives of
Pediatrics & Adolescent
Medicine,
Mary Overpeck, Dr.P.H., of the
Health Resources and Services Administration and Mary Hediger,
Ph.D., of the National Institute of Child Health and
Human Development, one of the National Institutes of Health.1/04
Impact 2/05
# Academy of General Dentistry On line
Poll March 2003
~ Dentalnotes pg 1, Academy of General Dentistry Spring 2003.
***Smiles on 2/03
*Citizens
for a Healthy Nebraska",
Nebraska Dental Association
March 2001, Vol 101, Issue 3
** Dentalnotes, Fall 2001
February 06, 2008
Patient Education
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