Do you or your children have fears or anxieties about seeing a dentist? You know that dental care is essential to keeping you healthy, yet you still avoid going. You're not alone; around 22% of Canadians avoid the dentist due to anxiety.

What is Dental Anxiety?

Put simply, dental anxiety is “fear related to seeking or receiving dental care.” Many people don’t particularly like to go to the dentist, but they’re not necessarily afraid to go. Dental anxiety, meanwhile, steps into the category of fear.

Most people who suffer from dental anxiety tend to avoid the dentist altogether. This avoidance of dental visits often results in a higher incidence of cavities, which can then turn into missing teeth or more complex dental problems. This can leave you with feelings of inferiority and shame and cause further avoidance of dental care.

You don't necessarily have to have had a bad experience for your anxiety to still be overcoming. A lot of people are more anxious about what may happen, than what has happened.

How to Manage Dental Anxiety

Managing your dental anxiety can be a lifetime struggle for some people. Here are some of our top tips to help you feel more comfortable when visiting the dentist:

• Identify your fear. Once you know exactly what you’re fearful about, you can start working towards a solution.
• Build a good relationship with your dentist or hygienist. The more trust you have with them the more comfortable you will be at each appointment.
• Don’t be afraid to ask for sedation if you think it may help.
• Learn about mindfulness, meditation and breathing techniques. There are many apps available that can help you with this.
• Listen to music that relaxes you during appointments, or talk with your dentist or hygienist if you don't like the silence or sounds.
• Ask one of our staff for a blanket to help you feel comfortable, our office offers weighted blankets as well.
• Find out if you qualify for a service animal to help manage your anxiety, Sherwood Dental is a service animal-friendly office.
• Look into the benefits of CBD oil, some studies suggest this may help calm some anxieties (blog post to come on this).

Dental anxiety is a complex issue that can take a lot of patience and practice to manage. The most important thing you can do is try to keep on top of your regular visits.  In fact, seeing your dentist regularly can actually make the entire process – from making an appointment to sailing through it – easier on many levels.

If you do suffer from dental anxiety give us a call, and we can sit down and talk to you about the options we have at Sherwood Dental. We will walk you through your options from oral sedation to nitrous (laughing gas) or both. Bring a list of questions you may have so that we may address all your concerns. Depending on your needs we may suggest a referral to one of our trusted IV sedation centres. Sometimes just meeting our friendly team, touring our calm environment and understanding ALL your options is enough to get you through something you have been very stressed about.

We look forward to working with you to help understand what your concerns are and how we can help.

The post How to Manage Dental Anxiety appeared first on Sherwood Dental.

We are always trying to make home care as effective as possible for our patients; especially our patients who suffer from sensitivity or have high cavity risk. This is why we have introduced new kits and products designed specifically for these issues. We believe that preventative care is the most important type of dental care. 

Sensitivity Kit

Our Sensitivity Kit contains three products to help reduce everyday sensitivity.

• X-Pur Remin Toothpaste – the toothpaste contains hydroxyapatite, a calcium phosphate compound that can penetrate below the surface of the tooth to re-mineralize enamel.
• Curaprox Toothbrush – this ultra-soft ultra-compact toothbrush contains over 5000 individual filaments to achieve an optimal, gentle cleaning.
• Opti-Rinse 0.05% - a grape flavoured sodium fluoride rinse that helps re-mineralize and is anti-caries.

Zero Cavity Kit

The Zero Cavity Kit contains three products that will help fight against cavity fighting bacteria.

• X-Pur Cario Toothpaste – natural 25% xylitol toothpaste that can reduce cavity causing bacteria, re-mineralize, and reduce plaque formation.
• Curaprox Toothbrush – this ultra-soft ultra-compact toothbrush contains over 5000 individual filaments to achieve an optimal, gentle cleaning.
• Opti-Rinse 0.2% - a high intensity mint flavoured sodium fluoride rinse is anti-caries and helps to re-mineralize teeth.

All these items are now available to purchase at our office in kits as well as individually. Contact us if you have any questions or you ask your hygienist or dentist what they think is best for you at your next appointment.

The post New Kits For Sensitive or Cavity Prone Teeth appeared first on Sherwood Dental.

Sugar - People consume an estimated 130 pounds of sugar per year. That's a lot of sugar! But what's not to like about sugar anyway?

• An expanding waistline
• Coronary heart disease
• Type II diabetes
• Metabolic syndrome
• High blood pressure
• Cancer
• and Cavities. That's what!

All sugar has the same effect on your teeth - tooth decay. Yes, sugar and cavities go hand-in-hand. However, the total amounts of sugar you eat have less of an impact on your teeth than how often you consume the sugar. When you eat small amounts of sugar often versus eating large amounts not very often, you increase your possibility of cavities. That means a 12-oz can of soda is not as harmful to your tooth enamel if you drink all of it in a few minutes versus sipping those 12 ounces over a few hours. Here's why:

Plaque, a sticky substance, is always forming on your teeth and gums. Plaque contains bacteria. The bacteria contained in the plaque feeds on the sugar in foods you eat or drink. Acids are created in about 20 seconds and last for about 30 minutes. Those acids can destroy your tooth enamel over time. Any acidic environment can promote tooth decay, so be sure to avoid eating anything sour or acidic. Sour plus sugar is especially harmful to your pearly whites!

The forms of sugar you consume matters as well. For example, whether you drink your sugar or eat it makes a difference in the impact sugar has on your teeth. Natural Gumption: Sound Oral Health Advice wrote, "The forms of sugars you ingest are also a significant factor in your overall oral health. A sugar that you drink and a sugar that you chew are both bad for your teeth but for different reasons. Sugars that come in liquid forms, such as sodas or juices, wash over your entire mouth and get into every nook and cranny of your teeth. This is harmful because, even with regular brushing, those sugars can sit in hard-to-reach places and allow bacteria to grow. Sugars that you chew are harmful because they can leave a larger than normal amount of residue on the teeth. This residue will not wash away with saliva; again, it creates a more than normal amount of substrate for bacteria."

Tooth decay is the erosion or destroying of your tooth's enamel. It's kind of a big deal because it can lead to:

• changes in your bite or the way your upper and lower teeth come together
• a large reduction in the size of your back teeth
• tooth loss and/or extraction of unhealthy teeth
• the need for replacing dental work
• undergoing gum surgery
• the consideration of dental implants

Sugar, in one form or another, is in almost everything we eat, every day, all year long. So, how does someone prevent tooth decay? It's easy.

• Brush and floss your teeth regularly
• Rinse with mouthwash
• Have your teeth checked and cleaned at least once a year, or better yet, twice a year.
• Avoid foods high in sugar

If you're interested in reducing the amount of sugar you consume regularly, add the following steps to each day:

• Eat a variety of proteins (beef, poultry, eggs, fish, legumes, nuts and seeds), fresh fruits, whole grains and dairy. When you eat enough protein, you curb your desire for sweets.
• Drink lots of water. The rule of thumb is "drink half your weight in ounces of water daily." Drink even more on excessively hot days and when you exercise. (If you weigh 200lbs, aim for 100 ounces of water. That's about 6 16-oz bottles of water.) Water is crucial to your health. Read The Importance of Water in the Diet.
• Avoid drinking soda, pop, soft drinks (whatever you call carbonated beverages). Drink water, flavored water or green tea instead.
• Avoid eating candy and desserts or limit them to a small serving once or twice a week at least.
• Watch your snacking. It is recommended by nutritionists that five or six smaller meals be eaten throughout the day. Eating small meals more often provides optimal energy and health. Choose healthy snacks like raw vegetables, fruits, cheese, nut butters or nuts.
• Eat cheeses as cheese stops the acid attacks from sugar on your teeth.

Be aware of the controversy about the potential health risks associated with artificial sweeteners. "Low-sugar" or "sugar-free" products use artificial sweeteners. Research shows they can still create an acidic environment in your mouth.

If sugar has impacted your oral health with severe tooth decay or tooth loss, know this. You have options. Call Sherwood Dental at (780) 464-4166 today to find out about the options available to you. Ask about a free consultation.

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