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If Gums
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Premium dental hygiene services, an experienced dental hygienist, and unparalleled customer service are what we promise at Dental Hygiene Haven. Based in Fort Collins, CO, we are passionate about assisting people who want expert teeth cleaning and dental care services without the pain and stress associated with going to the dentist. Check out the helpful dental hygiene resources that we have prepared for you.

I Brushed My Teeth With… What?!? by Vicky Flint | Oral Hygiene

Another title for this blog post might be “My Body, My Lab.” I’m always trying out things to see what results I get. How else would I be able to speak to my clients and friends about what they might expect from various products? Plus – I’m just plain curious about things. I should post a picture of my bathroom cupboard – you’ll see 3 electric toothbrushes, about 6 different types of manual toothbrushes and maybe about 8 different toothpastes.

My latest tooth brushing “experiment” was inspired by a speaker at the Dental Convention in January. He’s a Periodontist, Researcher, and Inventor. He showed us a slide of two petri dishes, both having a nice thick layer of Strep Mutans (a common nasty oral bacteria) grown on them. Both dishes had little discs of plastic dropped onto the suspension, but the plastic discs in Dish 2 were dipped in Probiotics first. Those discs each had a “halo of inhibition” around them – an area where the bacteria just backed away from the disc.

My brain lost no time at all deciding that when I got home, I was going to do a little self-experiment and brush my teeth with…….plain yogurt!! Which I did. I had some Greek yogurt in the fridge and decided it would do. This is referred to as “off-label” use – using a product for other than for which it was intended.

The results were pretty amazing. I felt like I’d just had my teeth professionally cleaned. And that clean feeling lasted a good 6 hours or so, even after a meal. The only problem with it: yogurt is on the acidic side and my teeth are sensitive to acidic things, so after a few hours, my teeth were hurting. (Don’t try this at home; remember, I’m a trained professional. :-))

A few days later, I brushed my teeth with yogurt again – I put a tiny amount in a dish on the counter-top so it would come to room temperature first as my teeth are also sensitive to cold. This time, I followed the brushing with a rinse of a little baking soda in water, since baking soda is very basic and nullified the acidity of the yogurt. Plus, being a salt product, it draws inflammation from tissue and that’s nice too.

In the past, I’ve tried out various Probiotic Toothpastes and was not all that impressed. They worked OK as I recall, but there were issues with them. One product separated in the tube; another was so difficult to squeeze out of the tube, I wanted to stand on it to squeeze it out. And they were expensive – about $30 each! I love the convenience of having it in a tube, easy to use, but sometimes I’d rather take a 1/4 teaspoon of plain yogurt out of my refrigerator than spend $30 on a tube of toothpaste. But that’s just me.

As I mentioned, the Convention speaker is also an Inventor. He’s working on a Probiotic Toothpaste and Rinse, which will be available soon, and may even be available now, in Dental Hygiene and Dental offices only, and hopefully at a reasonable price point. I, of course, will experiment with it on myself first – then I’ll let you know what you can expect – so stay tuned!

(This article is for informational purposes only. It is not intended to diagnose, treat, or cure any illness or disease. Please seek appropriate Medical and/or Dental care regarding the use of products you are not familiar with.)

The Truth About Toothpaste by Vicky Flint | Oral Hygiene

Vol. 1, Issue #3

THE BOTTOM-LINE SCOOP: TOOTHPASTE IS NOT SOAP.

There. Now you know. The truth is: you would do just fine without toothpaste at all. You don’t need it. What? We don’t need it? That’s right. Plaque (“biofilm”) is sticky. Think of peanut butter on a knife. Think about getting peanut butter off of a knife. You can rinse it in water, smear soap on it, blast it with high-pressure water, and swish it through an anti-peanut butter preparation – and still have peanut butter on that knife. These actions, of course, are analogous to rinsing your mouth out, smearing toothpaste across your teeth, using an oral irrigator, and using mouthwash.

The most effective way to remove sticky biofilm (and peanut butter) is to scrape it off. That is best accomplished with a toothbrush and floss (tooth brushing reaches about 70% of tooth surfaces). Think back to how great your teeth felt as you were leaving my office – so smooth and “slick”. Run your tongue over your teeth right now. Do you feel some “rough” spots? That’s plaque. About once a week or so, take your dry toothbrush (no toothpaste, no water) and brush along your gumlines in tiny, gentle circles. Check with your tongue again. Those “rough” spots usually go away. That means your toothbrush has reached the areas previously missed. Then put a small smear of toothpaste on your brush and brush your tongue with it. This is the best in-between professional cleaning spiff-up you can do.

So – Why do we have toothpaste? Why use it?

There are 3 primary reasons to use toothpaste.

1 – It tastes good. Toothpaste has mint or some other flavoring that freshens breath and leaves a pleasant, fresh taste in our mouths. In fact, that pleasant, fresh taste can shut down sugar cravings. Sometime when you are craving sweets, go brush your teeth and tongue (with toothpaste). See if it works for you!

2 – Most toothpaste contains fluoride, and topical fluoride treatments help keep tooth enamel hard and cavity-resistant. (The fluoride in water controversy will be addressed in a future article.)

3 – Specialty toothpastes help special needs. Specifically, sensitive teeth, whitening, early tooth decay, and gum disease issues.

Toothpaste for sensitive teeth is highly appreciated by people who have this issue.

Whitening toothpastes help to control coffee and tea stains and may prolong the effects of professional whitening.

I sometimes recommend toothpastes such as Arm & Hammer’s® EnamelCare™ with ACP (Amorphous Calcium Phosphate). Studies have shown that ACP re-mineralizes tooth enamel. That means that small or beginning cavities may “heal” and not grow into something that needs a filling. Now where was ACP when we were kids? Sensodyne’s Pronamel is another one.

For people with gum disease issues, a couple of herbal blends have gained my respect. I like Auromere, an Ayurvedic herbal blend in toothpaste form. I’ve seen some dramatic turn-arounds with this toothpaste. I’m also a fan of Dental Herb Company’s Tooth & Gum Tonic. Refreshing and restorative.

How much should I use?

Pea Size Dollop of Tooth PasteThose TV toothpaste commercials really pour it on, balancing a twisted figure-8 blob of toothpaste on top of a toothbrush. As is typical of TV ads, it encourages wasteful consumption! A small pea-sized amount of toothpaste is plenty.

A closing word about toothpaste and mouth sores. If you have frequent break-outs of canker sores, you may hold your toothpaste suspect. Many people are sensitive to the foaming agent in it, called Sodium Laureth (or Lauryl) Sulfate, or SLS. Try Tom’s of Maine, available in stores, or Glister, available from Amway Global, the herbal toothpastes mentioned above, or any other toothpaste that doesn’t have SLS.

So now you know. Toothpaste is not necessary, but it is nice. Select one that you like or one that addresses a special need you have. Use it knowing that it is your excellent brushing technique, and not the toothpaste, that is removing plaque and keeping your gums healthy!

Have You Been SCAMMED by Gum Disease? by Vicky Flint | Oral Hygiene

How do you know if you have gum disease or not?

Before I start cleaning your teeth, I take a “Perio Probe” (a tiny ruler), which may feel “pokey,” and take measurements around each tooth under your gums.

You see, the visible end of your gums leans against your tooth – it’s not attached. It attaches further up or down the tooth, like a cuff. The probe tells me how deep is the “cuff.

Who cares?

The reason those numbers matter is that correct brushing and flossing gets under the gums about 3mm at best. If you have 4mm or 5mm “pockets,” you need specialized gadgets to reach that far under your gums. Teeth need to be cleaned all the way down to where the gums attach to them.

A Picture is Worth 1000 Words

This picture, courtesy of Arestin(R) tells the story:

Wonder No More!

If you’d like to know whether or not you have gum disease, call for an appointment. A Gum Disease Exam will answer the question for you.

Contact

Call me for an appointment today! 970-481-8752.

I’ll give you a mirror, so you can see EXACTLY what I’m doing.

You’ll see for yourself!

Mind Map: Goal Setting Tools for the New Yearby Vicky Flint | Oral Hygiene

Hi, Friends!

A New Year is upon us — a time for setting goals and making resolutions. How many times have we heard about the importance of writing our goals down? Do you have a system for this?

Each New Year’s Eve, my husband and I have the tradition of making a “Mind Map” — this is our system for goal setting for the year. I’ve had several ask me about it — how it works, and how we do it. You asked and you shall receive! Mind Maps can be done electronically or manually. We prefer to do ours manually. And we s p r e a d o u t ! We get an end-roll from our local newspaper and unroll about a four-foot length on our table.

We put a catchy label in the middle, usually in a heart. Our label is our declaration of the kind of year we want to have. Then we put the main categories in various places around the paper, connected to the center by a line. The categories we use are: Physical, Spiritual, Social, Financial, Business/Career, Family, etc. Then we fill in sub-categories, then whatever detail we want. When we’re all done, we color it to be able to see it better at a glance.

This would be a good place to mention that the main “rule” for Mind Maps is: There are no rules. The intent is to get your ideas, thoughts, goals, and dreams down on paper. We do ours on a long sheet of paper, others do it on lined paper, others do it in their computers. Your main categories will likely be different from mine — make them whatever you want. Some years we put one main category down and fill in all the details we want to capture for that one category before moving on to the next. Other years, we jump all around — what I call the “brain dump” technique. There’s no “right” way.

Vicky's Life in 2008 DiagramOn the right is a simple mind map for you. You’ll notice that the main category labeled “FUN” has some example detail around it. Put in as much or as little detail as you want.

In closing, I’d like to tell you something amazing that happened. The first year Bill and I did this, we rolled up our Mind Map, put a rubber band around it and stored it in the basement. The following New Year’s Eve, we started the evening by unrolling our Mind Map to look at it. We were amazed to discover that everything on it except one thing had been accomplished (the new house we bought wasn’t on a lake). Wow! Now we hang it on a wall where we see it more often. Just walking by it and seeing it there is good. Plus, our Mind Maps have more categories now and it’s fun to make notes on it throughout the year.

The Difference a Millimeter Makes by Vicky Flint | Oral Hygiene

One of the most important messages I focus on to help my clients achieve and maintain good oral health is how they can control oral bacteria on their own. As my tagline says, my mission is to

“Empower Tooth Owners….To STAY That Way!”

As you look at your gums in the mirror, see where they end? Those edges are not attached to your teeth; they just lean up against them. Somewhere further up (for upper teeth) and down (lower teeth) the tooth is where they actually attach. It’s as if each tooth has its own “turtle neck” around it. This is the gingiva. When it is swollen, you have gingivitis.

In health, the gingiva is flat, pink, and firm (bottom left picture). In gingivitis, it is red, swollen, and bleeds (bottom right picture). This is good for you to know as all you need to do to monitor your own results is look in the mirror!

When I do a Periodontal Exam for you, you hear me call out numbers which my MP3 player is recording for me: three, two, three; four, two, three, etc. These measurements are in millimeters. Three millimeters (3mm) or less are the healthy numbers. However, 3mm or less “with bleeding” still means gingivitis is present.

We refer to these measurements as “pockets.” Depths of 4mm and sometimes 5mm are warning-sign numbers. The gums are saying “Warning! Gingivitis is taking hold! Take action now!”

Those few millimeters of tooth that have gums leaning on them (gingiva) are really important to clean. That’s how you win the game of gum health.

Brushing etiquette for healthy gums:

Hold brush at a 45 degree angle at the gum line Brush in small circular motions The bristles are sweeping under the gum as it leans against the tooth = gingivitis defense!

So, when it comes to Gum Disease, the game is won or lost in millimeters of space. Most of the work I do takes place under the gums, in these millimeters of space. That is my greatest service to you.

Set a Dental Hygiene Appointment Today!

For remarkable dental hygiene services in Fort Collins, CO, trust none other than Dental Hygiene Haven. Schedule a consultation with our dental hygienist today! You may reach out to us via phone, email, or this website. Rest assured that we can deliver the dental care results you’re looking for.

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