Month: April 2015

Tooth Whitening Toothpastes

A closer look at this widely advertised product.

Turn on the TV at any time of the day and you will almost certainly come across advertisements for various brands of tooth whitening toothpaste. Understandably, as they are trying to sell a product, the models used in the adverts have beautiful white teeth that perhaps make some people envious.

But how successful are these toothpastes and do they really work?

When patients come to see one of our Bristol dentists, they often remark how they are dissatisfied with the colour of their teeth and would like them to be whiter. Almost inevitably, they mention whitening toothpastes.

We have to break the news to them that, whilst these do work, they only do so to a small extent.

The reason for this is that there are restrictions on the amount of whitening agent which is allowed in these pastes. This is for health and safety reasons, especially as toothpastes are usually kept within easy reach of children and could prove to be very dangerous if large quantities of what is essentially a bleaching agent were consumed.

Top up

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Taking Care of your Child’s Teeth and Gums

Our Bristol dentist discusses why children’s oral health is so important.

Some recent newspaper reports have indicated that tooth decay is on the rise in the UK (1).

In some ways, this comes as a surprise given the raised awareness of a number of health issues over the years, plus the fact that sugar is now coming in for increased criticism from all sections of the health sector.

Having said that, as parents, we know that children are not aware of these factors, and, even if they were, would probably ignore it in favour of that sweet taste.

Bearing that in mind, we can see the importance of the adult taking responsibility for their child’s teeth.

Prevention

Without a doubt, taking action to prevent tooth decay in children is key to good oral health.

Our dentists at Beau Monde Dental Care take no pleasure from seeing a distressed child with toothache and we are sure that neither do their parents.

The fact is that ensuring your child’s oral health is in good condition is really not that hard and just requires a few simple steps.

Supervision

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Dental Emergencies

Advice from a Bristol dentist about what course of action to take.

With good general oral health care, including regular brushing and flossing, those six monthly visits to the dentist should hopefully result in no more than a simple oral health check, or perhaps, at worst, a minor procedure such as a filling or a scale and polish to help prevent onset of gum disease.

Even with the best will in the world though, sometimes dental emergencies arise. These can be the result of an accident or perhaps an infection which has affected the nerves of the teeth.

In most cases, a dental emergency is a painful experience and needs prompt treatment.

Pain relief

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