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The grownups in your life help you with your dental care. After all, good dental health makes your life happier. Your teeth and gums feel great. You can eat crunchy foods. Your checkups and cleanings keep your smile healthy and bright.

And you want the same happy life for one of your best friends—your pet! Because February is Pet Dental Health Month, let’s talk about some ways you and your family can keep your dogs and cats healthy and happy, too.

• Feed Your Pet Healthy Food

The adults in your life make sure you eat a healthy diet. This includes serving foods filled with vitamins and minerals which are good for your teeth and gums. Pets also need to eat healthy meals, and there are special foods and treats made for their dental health. Some foods help keep teeth strong, and some tasty treats help clean the teeth.

Your veterinarian can help you find out the healthiest meals and treats for your dog or cat—and tell you which foods aren’t good for them!

• “Chews” the Right Toys

Dogs—and some cats—love chew toys, so we need to make sure those toys are safe for them and for their teeth.

Chewing on bones, sticks, and hard plastic toys can break even the biggest and strongest dog’s tooth. If a toy is harder than your pet’s tooth, it can damage your pet’s tooth. Toys should be tough enough not to break into little pieces when they’re chewed, and big enough not to be swallowed. Your vet is a good person to ask about the best and safest toys for your furry friend. And speaking of your vet . . .

• Take Your Pet to the Vet for the Best Dental Care

We talk about your pet’s veterinarian a lot, because veterinarians are both dentists and doctors for our four-legged friends. And just like you visit your dentist and doctor regularly to make sure you stay healthy, your pet sees the veterinarian for checkups, vaccinations, and dental exams. 

Checking your pet’s teeth regularly is important because, while dogs and cats don’t get cavities the same way we do, they often suffer from gum disease caused by built-up plaque—the same kind of plaque which causes cavities and gum disease in people.

If your pet is showing any of signs of a dental problem—a broken tooth, really bad breath, brown or yellow stains on the teeth, not wanting to eat, pawing at the mouth, or lots of new drooling—it might be time to visit the vet for a dental checkup.

February is Pet Dental Health Month, but your dog or cat is your friend all year long. You and your family can help your pets to have healthier teeth and gums by feeding them the right foods, seeing they have safe toys, and visiting the vet regularly. Your love and care will help your furry friend live a longer, healthier life. That’s happy news for both of you!

Kids are active, and with lots of activity comes the potential for mishaps. Before an emergency occurs, you’d be smart to stay informed about the problems your child may encounter.

Here are a few things you should keep in mind about teething pain, loose baby teeth, and other common dental issues.

Teething Pain

Discomfort while teething is common for babies from the time they are four months until they are about two and a half. Teething can cause drooling, tender gums, and irritability. To help relieve your child’s discomfort, gently rub his or her gums with wet gauze or offer a cold teething ring.

Loose Baby Tooth

It is normal for a child’s first set of teeth to become loose and fall out. If a tooth is knocked out by a forceful blow, however, you should make an appointment with our office to determine whether any damage may have occurred. You should also book an appointment if the baby tooth that’s on its way out develops a crack but doesn’t fully fall out.

Issues with Permanent Teeth

Sometimes, permanent teeth can come in before the baby teeth have fallen out. In this event, schedule an appointment with us even if your child does not report discomfort or pain. Dr. Maryam Azadpur will need to determine if the permanent teeth are coming in correctly to avoid problems later on.

Bleeding Gums

Bleeding gums can have multiple causes: periodontal disease, rough brushing, or an injury to the gum tissue. If your child experiences heavy bleeding, it’s vital to call our office immediately. Wash the youngster’s mouth with warm salt water and put gentle pressure on the area to soothe it before your appointment.

Dr. Maryam Azadpur and our team are always here to address any concerns you may have regarding your child’s dental health. Contact our Simsbury, CT office for emergency services 24 hours a day, seven days a week.

Happy New Year! We also want to take a moment to wish a happy birthday to our fabulous hygienist Kay, who celebrated her birthday on Jan 12. Her patients love her so much! She sings to them and keeps them laughing throughout their visits. Make sure to wish her a Happy Birthday next time you see her!

After all the changes 2021 has brought, we plan to change as little as possible in 2022! The status quo is the new normal! We are all trying our best to stay safe and healthy and hope our patients are doing the same. Although, we are happy to announce that we are looking to hire a dental associate this year. If you or someone you may know is interested in the position, give the office a call at 860-658-7548 and ask for Pat, our Office Manager.

I’m sure a lot of our patients are looking to get the smile of their dreams this year. We highly recommend brushing your teeth at least twice a day and flossing at least once a day. Limit consumption of sugary snacks and sticky sweets. If your child plays sports, look into getting a mouth guard to help protect their teeth from injury. We also can make night guards if they grind their teeth at night. By doing all of this, you can easily achieve your smile goals.

We continue to send out appointment reminders and expect all appointments to be confirmed. Text and email reminders will be sent out 5 and 2 days before your appointment and will contain "Click to confirm" links. Please click to confirm and save us a phone call. If your email or mobile number changes, or if you are not receiving notifications, please let us know so we can update your profile. Patients 18 and over will be given a HIPAA form to complete. They can choose whether to allow us to talk with their parents/guardians. Also, we can add their cell phone number to the profile so that they can start receiving text reminders for their appointments.

Please note, we have not relaxed any of our COVID protocols. We continue to provide hand sanitizer and check everyone's temperature before coming in, even the UPS guy! Our clinical staff wears masks, gowns, face shields, gloves, etc. If your child has been exposed to COVID, please give us a call as soon as possible so we can reschedule their appointment. Most of our patients are too young for vaccinations so better safe than sorry.

As a reminder living in New England means snow will fall. Be sure to check the weather reports and plan accordingly. If a storm has the potential to impact appointments, we may call you to push your appointment or reschedule. Some of us live a fair distance away and need to make sure we can travel to work safely. Please be patient while we work to ensure we can all be safe.

With the start of a new year, comes new giveaways! We were so excited to give away $500 to Ski Sundown to a lucky family who referred a friend to our office. Our next promotion will be $500 to Dick's Sporting Goods! The drawing will be held April 1st, just in time for warmer weather. Keep those reviews and referrals coming and earn entries into our quarterly drawings.

We are grateful to everyone for the past year and can’t wait to see where this year takes us. We hope everyone had a wonderful holiday season and look forward to seeing you soon!

Here is some surprising yet worthwhile advice you might be hearing for the first time: Brushing can be incredibly bad for your child’s teeth if done right after eating certain foods.

Enamel is an extremely hard mineral on the exterior of each tooth. It’s actually the hardest substance in the human body: It’s even stronger than bones! Its only weakness is that acids in the food we eat can easily destroy enamel.

Healthy teeth thrive in an environment that has the proper pH balance. That ensures the mouth doesn’t start the process of demineralization—the process when alkaline turns into acid, which attacks and softens the enamel on the surface of your child’s teeth. Pores and fissures form, and that’s when the harmful bacteria go to work.

A mouth’s pH level fluctuates depending on what is eaten throughout the day. Examples of the most common highly acidic foods include citrus fruits, soda, and sugary foods. Highly acidic foods tip the balance of pH in the mouth from a healthy alkaline to a dangerous acid.

Can brushing your child’s teeth immediately after a meal lead to even more damage? The answer is yes!

Eating highly acidic foods causes your child’s teeth to be more susceptible. If your child brushes when the teeth have been weakened by acids, even more destruction can happen to the enamel. Your child’s toothbrush bristles will actually wear away some of the enamel. So it’s healthier for your child to wait at least an hour after eating or snacking to brush.

Good preventive measures to take instead of brushing after your child eats include:

• Rinsing or drinking water
• Chewing sugarless gum
• Consuming dairy or non-acidic foods to conclude a meal

These practices help produce saliva, which in turn restores a healthy pH level in your child’s mouth and coats the teeth with minerals they need.

Once your child’s mouth is restored to a healthy pH level, he or she may brush normally. Keep in mind that acidic foods can weaken the enamel on the teeth and take the right measures to prevent spiking pH levels.

Still have questions? Call our Simsbury, CT office and schedule an appointment for your child with Dr. Maryam Azadpur.