Pregnancy and Dental Care: Lake Lanier Smiles, Affordable Dentist

PREGNANCY AND DENTAL CARE

LAKE LANIER SMILES, AFFORDABLE BUFORD DENTIST

Regular Dental visits are important throughout the life but more so during pregnancy. A new survey of pregnant women by Cigna Dental Insurance found that 75% of them have an oral health problem and less than 50% of them visited a dentist despite the dental problem.

One of the biggest role our dentists at Lake Lanier Smiles play is to educate, advice and emphasize the importance of oral health during pregnancy. Two things every expectant mother should do is to have good oral hygiene habits at home and regular dental visits.

Pregnant women should visit the dentist to make sure there are no infections, as these infections can impact the health of the baby. Pregnancy is associated with hormonal changes which can make gums susceptible for periodontal disease (gum disease). Not only dentists recommend the importance of Oral Health during pregnancy but also the American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists highly recommends the importance.

COMMON DENTAL PROBLEMS IN PREGNANT PATIENTS

The most common oral health problems reported by pregnant women in the survey by Cigna in 2015 are 1. 33% Bleeding Gums, 2. 27% Increased Tooth Sensitivity and 3. 22% Toothache. The data from Cigna Study "Healthy Smiles for Mom and Baby" showed that 76% of pregnant women has one of the above oral health problem.

The most common reason for pregnant women not visiting the dentist is “COST”. Also patients without insurance are twice less likely to visit the dentist. At Lake Lanier Smiles we offer dental care at discounted prices. Check out our coupons on our specials page and use it for taking care of your Oral Health during pregnancy.

The Cigna study also found that the pregnant women without dental insurance are twice less likely to go to the dentist because of the cost. We at Lake Lanier Smiles, your neighborhood Buford Dental Office offers a great in house discount plan with no upfront cost and all the services are offered at 30-40 % discount on regular fee.

DENTAL HEALTH EDUCATION IS VERY IMPORTANT

This Study also found that pregnant patients are twice as likely to visit a dentist when they were explained about the importance of oral health by a healthcare provider. The survey also found that there is a 20 % jump in the new mothers visit to the dentist when the oral health was emphasized during the pregnancy by a healthcare provider. This clearly explains the important role a healthcare provider can play in a pregnant women’s dental health.

WHAT LAKE LANIER SMILES IS DOING!!

At Lake Lanier Smiles, we are trying our best to find the reasons why pregnant women are missing the regular dental visits and working hard to overcome those potential barriers. If patients have insurance and don’t know their benefits, the insurance coordinator at our office can call and find out your benefits for preventive and restorative dental care. Please call Lake Lanier Smiles at 770-831-0559 to get help with your insurance questions. Some dental insurance companies offer a third dental cleaning in a year for pregnant patients along with diabetics and other medically compromised patients.

LINKS FOR FURTHER READING

Here is a link about Oral Health during Pregnancy.
http://www.acog.org/~/media/Committee%20Opinions/Committee%20on%20Health%20Care%20for%20Underserved%20Women/co569.pdf?dmc=1&ts=20130724T0816301062

Here is the link for 2015 Cigna Survey "healthy smiles for mom and baby"

http://newsroom.cigna.com/images/9022/Cigna_Study_Healthy_Smiles_for_Mom_and_Baby_2015.pdf

If you have any questions about your Oral Health or to make an appointment to see us, Call us at 770-831-0559 or visit us at WWW. LAKELANIERSMILES.COM for Valuable Coupons and Specials. Our prices are 30-50 % Off Regular Prices. Call Us before Noon and we will see you the Same Day. We accept most insurances. We are conveniently located just off I-985 at 4965 Lanier Islands Parkway, Suite 105, Buford, Ga- 30418. LAKE LANIER SMILES provides Affordable dental care with outstanding customer service to patients in Buford, Sugar Hill, Suwanee, Cumming, Flowery Branch and surrounding areas.

ORAL HYGIENE INSTRUCTIONS UPDATED: FLOSS IS THE BOSS: LAKE LANIER SMILES, AN AFFORDABLE BUFORD DENTAL CARE

ORAL HYGIENE INSTRUCTIONS UPDATED

"FLOSS IS THE BOSS"

By

Lake Lanier Smiles, Buford Affordable Dentist

Every dentist or hygienist asks the same question every time they see a patient on a recall visit/ cleaning visit is "Do you floss every day?"  Or "have you been flossing everyday". Unfortunately only a few patients do floss, it is the most recommended method of inter proximal (in between teeth) cleaning. Flossing is the most common Benchmark of a patient’s dedication to Oral Hygiene.

Brush and Floss is the mantra of the dental professionals to all the patients but the effectiveness of the regular manual brush and thread floss is known to be ineffective in certain situations. Every dentist hands over a "goody Bag" with a brush, floss and a rinse without customizing to the patient’s needs. We at Lake Lanier Smiles recommend what’s best for your specific oral health condition.

A manual toothbrush is not an effective plaque removal instrument. We highly recommend an electric toothbrush because it's 10 times more effective than a manual brush. An electric toothbrush can move thousands of time in a minute and on the other hand manual toothbrush can only move hundreds of times. Lake Lanier Smiles recommends Oral-B and Sonicare powered tooth brushes.

A floss is an effective tool to mechanically remove the food debris and plaque when used properly. But it is ineffective on a concave surface which will be seen on roots of teeth where there is receding gums. This is especially true in the back teeth. In these instances a proxy brush would be more effective. Also it is better to use a waterpik water flosser or an air flossers than a thread floss to remove the pathogenic bacterial biofilm.

Floss is the difficult thing to get people to do of the two word mantra "brush and floss". People don't know the importance of flossing because they believe they brush twice a day and rinse with a mouthwash which will replace the flossing. But that's not enough, flossing removes the plaque in between the teeth where brush cannot reach and even mouthwash cannot reach.

Most people also say that flossing is cumbersome and hate it. I advise my patients to switch to water flosser or air flosser which is so easy and effective then a thread flossing. Some patients complain that flossing makes their gums bleed. I explain my patients that gums bleed because they are unhealthy due to infection and bacteria. Regular teeth cleaning at the dental office with regular Oral hygiene at home which includes flossing will make gums healthy and will not have any bleeding.

Other patients don't floss with an excuse that food never gets stuck in between my teeth. But we are not using floss to remove the food only but mainly to remove the plaque. One more reason some patients tell us is that they don't know how to floss. The team of dental professionals at Lake Lanier Smiles including the Hygienist, Doctor and Dental Assistant are here to teach you the proper way of flossing.

Some patients state that they don't have enough time or forget to floss. The best solution is to floss first and brush second that way you cannot forget. It only takes two minutes to floss and I don't believe that we don't have time for that when we know how important it is to floss. The key is to get time whatever convenient for you and I would suggest to store floss close to your brush. Most serious reason some patients say is that the gums hurt when they floss. It hurts because the gums have a disease called gingivitis or periodontitis. Please visit the dentists of Lake Lanier Smiles, an affordable dental care in Buford. We have special prices for regular cleanings and deep cleanings.

If you have any questions about your Oral Health or to make an appointment to see us, Call us at 770-831-0559 or visit us at WWW.LAKELANIERSMILES.COM for Valuable Coupons and Specials. Our prices are 30-50 % Off Regular Prices. Call Us before Noon and we will see you the Same Day. We accept most insurances. We are conveniently located just off I-985 at 4965 Lanier Islands Parkway, Suite 105, Buford, Ga- 30418. LAKE LANIER SMILES provides Affordable dental care with outstanding customer service to patients in Buford, Sugar Hill, Suwanee, Cumming, Flowery Branch and surrounding areas.