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Water picks, sometimes called “oral irrigators,” make an excellent addition to your regular home care regimen of brushing and flossing. Especially helpful to those who suffer from periodontal disease and those patients of ours undergoing orthodontic treatment with full-bracketed braces, water picks use powerful tiny bursts of water to dislodge food scraps, bacteria, and other debris nestled in the crevices of your mouth. Children undergoing orthodontic treatment may find using a water pick is beneficial if their toothbrush bristles tend to get caught on their wires or brackets.

When you use a water pick, you’re not only dislodging any particles or debris and bacteria you might have missed when brushing, you are also gently massaging the gums, which helps promote blood flow in the gums and keeps them healthy. While water picks are an excellent addition to your daily fight against gingivitis and other periodontal diseases, they are incapable of fully removing plaque, which is why Dr. Maryam Azadpur and our team at Simsbury Pediatric & Adolescent Dentistry want to remind you to keep brushing and flossing every day.

If you have sensitive teeth or gums and find it uncomfortable to floss daily, water picks are a good alternative to reduce discomfort while effectively cleaning between teeth. Diabetics sometimes prefer water picks to flossing because they don't cause bleeding of the gums, which can be a problem with floss. If you have a permanent bridge, crowns, or other dental restoration, you may find that a water pick helps you keep the area around the restorations clean.

So how do you choose the right water pick?

Water picks are available for home or portable use. The home versions tend to be larger and use standard electrical outlets, while portable models use batteries. Aside from the size difference, they work in the same manner, both using pulsating water streams. A more crucial difference between water picks is the ability to adjust the pressure. Most home models will let you choose from several pressure settings, depending on how sensitive your teeth and gums are. Most portable models have only one pressure setting. If you want to use mouthwash or a dental rinse in your water pick, check the label first; some models suggest using water only.

Please give us a call at our Simsbury, CT office if you have any questions about water picks, or ask Dr. Maryam Azadpur during your next visit!

Your darling three-month old is crying and fussy—can she be teething already? Or, your happy baby boy has just celebrated his first birthday—with only one tooth in that beautiful, gummy smile. Is this normal? Probably! While baby teeth do typically erupt (come in) in the same order for all babies, and around the same time, there is still a lot of flexibility in the time it takes for a full, healthy smile to develop.

Baby teeth actually form before your baby is born, and those 20 teeth are there under the gums waiting to come out and shine. And even though there are no firm and fast dates for each of these primary teeth to erupt, it’s helpful to have a general overview of typical teething patterns so you know what to look forward to.

Incisors

These little teeth create a charming baby smile, and, if your finger has been in the wrong place at the wrong time, a very sharp one as well! That is because these tiny incisors are made to bite into foods. You might notice this when you introduce solid foods, even if the majority of your child’s “chewing” is done with her back gums. These teeth are the earliest to arrive.

• Six to ten months old: The lower central incisors (bottom front teeth) are often the first to come in.
• Eight to 12 months old: The upper incisors (8-12 months) are the next to show.
• Nine to 13 months old: The upper lateral incisors on each side of the front teeth arrive.
• Ten to 16 months old: The lower lateral incisors appear.

First Molars

Because these are larger teeth, babies often experience another bout of teething pain at this time. The large flat surface of each molar helps your child to chew and grind food, so he can handle a wider variety of foods and develop his chewing skills.

• 13 to 19 months old: You can generally expect to see the upper first molars arrive.
• 14 to 18 months old: The lower first molars appear.

Canines (Cuspids)

Fitting between the first molars and the incisors, the strong, pointed shape of the canine teeth allows your child to grip food and break it apart more easily.

• 16 to 22 months old: The upper two canines make their way into the space between the incisors and the first molars.
• 17 to 23 months old: The two lower canines appear.

Second Molars

By the age of three, most children have a full set of baby teeth.

• 23 to 31 months old: The second pair of bottom molars start erupting—you are in the home stretch!
• 25 to 33 months old: The upper second molars come in—completing that beautiful set of 20 teeth!

Baby teeth are extremely important, as Dr. Maryam Azadpur will tell you when you visit our Simsbury, CT office. They help your child eat and chew, develop face and jaw muscles, assist proper speech formation, and provide space for the adult teeth to come in properly. Now that your child’s smile is complete, keep providing him with the same care and attention you have been giving those little teeth since the arrival of the very first incisor.

It seems that so much of new parenthood is scheduling—when to feed her, when to put her to bed, how many hours between naps. But we soon find out that every baby is not on the same schedule, and the same is true for the arrival of their teeth. We should see your baby when that first tooth comes in, or by his or her first birthday. And if you ever have concerns at any time about your child’s teething schedule or teething delays, always feel free to give us a call.

Let’s talk about the science of our teeth for a moment. Our enamel has a very high mineral content, making it extremely strong.  In fact, enamel just happens to be the hardest substance in our bodies.  But, unfortunately, it is not indestructible! Certain foods we eat can actually damage the surface of our teeth. Some simple and entertaining experiments can show children how our teeth can be affected by things we eat and drink, and how we can help protect them.

If you have a science-minded student at home, there are many activities you can do together, using educational websites, common household products and lots and lots of eggs. (Why eggs? Eggshells are a great substitute for teeth in these experiments. Not only are they various shades of white--like our own teeth, they are also calcium-rich—like our own teeth.) You can find any number of experiments using uncooked eggs, hardboiled eggs, whole shells with the contents blown out, or eggshells alone, so you can find just the right activity for whichever egg treatment works best for you.

Examine Enamel Erosion

One of the ways we protect our teeth is with healthy eating. The bacteria in plaque use the sugars and starches in our foods to produce acids. These acids are the substances that break down the minerals in our enamel and leave the enamel weaker. Weaker enamel is more easily attacked by bacteria and acids, which leads to cavities.

With eggs or eggshells and some carefully selected food products, you can see just how acidity affects teeth. Different websites suggest a variety of acidic liquids to dunk your eggs in, such as vinegar, soda, or citrus juices, so it’s easy to find an experiment that works with your pantry. Always use a plain water sample when you submerge eggs or shells to act as a control to measure differences against. How do the egg shells soaked in acidic liquids differ from those in plain water? It’s also fun to add simple sugar water as a test liquid to see what happens. Is it sugar or acid that causes more damage? And why might that be?

The Fluoride Fix

Fluoride is well known as a mineral that protects the structure of our teeth and helps prevent cavities. And there are actually experiments out there to test the protection fluoride provides using your egg stand-ins.

In some experiments, a hardboiled egg is coated with fluoride toothpaste or rinse for a specific amount of time and then dunked into vinegar. An untreated egg also gets a vinegar bath. You are asked to observe what is happening to each egg as it sits in its vinegar bath—are there bubbles on one egg and not the other? What do the bubbles mean? Other experiments require longer exposure to fluoride and then to vinegar—what happens to the shells of the treated and untreated eggs? What could this mean for our teeth?

Staining Studies

Our diet can do more than help create cavities. Enamel is very strong, but it is not stain-proof! Dark colored foods and drinks can make our teeth appear darker or more yellow. (And teeth that have suffered enamel erosion can pick up stains more easily.) How does food affect the brightness of our smiles?

If this question interests you, find experiments that use favorite beverages as a soak for your eggs. Choose liquids with a range of color, such as coffee, soda, and apple juice. Or choose an experiment that uses different varieties of soft drinks. Will foods the same color cause the same amount of discoloration in your egg volunteers? Do you want shorter or longer soaks in each liquid? Do you want to make use of a recycled toothbrush to see if brushing that discolored shell makes a difference? With toothpaste or without?

Even though these activities are designed for older children, they still require adult supervision. You can find detailed instructions for any of these experiments at many science and educational sites online. With some household supplies, plenty of extra cups, and a quantity of eggs, you and your child can demonstrate some of the basic effects our food choices have on the health and appearance of our teeth. It’s a wonderful way to promote healthy eating and brushing habits, scientific curiosity, and shared experiences!

Don’t forget to let Dr. Maryam Azadpur know how your experiments turned out the next time you visit our Simsbury, CT office!

Wow, we are so close to finishing up this year and we can thankfully say that Simsbury Pediatric & Adolescent Dentistry is finishing the year out strong!

We have some exciting news! We are working on setting up online bill pay to make it easier for patients to pay their bills. This will have the added benefit of saving on postage and phone calls. Stay tuned! Also, please be sure to confirm all appointments. When that reminder comes 5 and/or 2 days prior, just type C or click the link to confirm and save us a phone call!

In addition to looking forward to our new services, we also want to take a moment to highlight the current services we offer. Since we are a pediatric office, our focus is hygiene! Our hygienists do a wonderful job with their little patients, educating them (and their parents) on good oral health, proper brushing, and flossing techniques. When additional care is needed, Dr. Azadpur and her assistants do extractions, fillings, sealants, and more, including emergency care. When more work is required than can be done in the office, she can see them in the OR at a local hospital. Sealants are a great way to prevent cavities on permanent molars, so once they come in, be sure to schedule sealants for your child.

We have had a great year this year and have accomplished so many things. In May, we launched our new patient management software system. It is so much easier to use and very comprehensive! It comes with a brand-new Patient Portal. The Portal link is on the home page of our new website, also launched this spring. However, we do want to note that the link from the previous one is no longer valid. If you need a new link, please give us a call or check the 14-day appointment reminder email/text you will receive before all appointments.

We also celebrated our 20th anniversary in October. We had a booth at Septemberfeast and gave out lots of fun giveaways. One lucky family will win an iPad once they bring their child in for their first visit.

Speaking of giveaways, our quarterly drawing for $500 to Ski Sundown ends December 31. Write a review of our office and/or refer a friend for entries.  Check out our socials for more information on the drawing! We will be announcing a new one in the new year so stay tuned for it.

We want to hear what everyone is doing for their holiday. During the month of December, we like to close early on a Friday so that the team can enjoy a holiday party, usually at a local restaurant. We exchange gifts (secret Santa style) and spend some time just hanging out with each other catching up on things outside of the office. This year, our party will be on December 10 and we will be closing at noon that day.

Of course, as many of you know, holidays come with lots of extra treats and sweets so be sure to step up the brushing after meals. Chew some xylitol gum to help in between meals too. And please try to keep all appointments. Our schedule is fully committed through the end of the year so any cancellations will be rescheduled in mid-January or beyond!

We are so grateful for all of our patients and especially the over 450 new patients we welcomed in 2021! Please keep referring your friends and family members to our office. When you do, you will be entered into our quarterly drawing for a fabulous prize worth $500. A huge shout out to our entire team. The clinical team does such a fantastic job with their little patients in chairs and our administrative team crushes it with the phone calls, scheduling, and financial matters! Well done, team!

We wish all of our patients, their families, our team, and our families good health and peace in the coming year. With everyone's help and commitment to safety, we will hopefully be looking at COVID in the rearview mirror soon. Best wishes for a joyful holiday season.