A healthy smile isn’t just about appearance. Dental health, sometimes referred to as oral health, plays a big role in your overall well-being. However, many people don’t visit a dentist regularly or take proper care of their teeth, which can lead to serious dental disease.

Receding gums are wherein the gum lifts or pulls away from the tooth and you see more of the root exposed. When someone smiles you can tell that on one tooth the tooth will look longer. The phrase “longer in the tooth” so to speak.

Many reasons this can happen. Sometimes we scrub our teeth too hard and that damages the gum. Other cases there’s a genetic predisposition; you have thin gums to begin with and normal functioning – eating, brushing, flossing – will actually cause trauma which the gums can’t withstand. They want to move away from the trauma to get away from the situation, the gums pull back. As that happens we weaken the tooth and esthetically it doens’t appear well; it makes you look a little older.

If there’s brushing that’s too difficult, too hard, heavy handed, we want to change the habits in the patient. Sometimes grinding or clenching can contribute because the tooth’s being rocked in the socket that is being maintainted. A nightguard can be made, your bite can be adjusted that can be done by your referring or restorative general dentist.

For health and esthetics we’d like to restore that tissue. We can graft a little bit of tissue, we take it from your palate and graft it to the root surface that’s been exposed. And not only does this esthetcially make the area look better healthwise. We’ve restore the attachment and it will make the tooth stronger over the long run.

Presenter: Dr. Dino Georgas, Periodontist, Vancouver, BC

NOW Health Network Local Practitioners: Periodontist

Braces are an orthodontic appliance that we use to straighten crooked teeth.Everybody’s familiar with the traditional metal braces, they’re cemented on the outside of the teeth with a stainless steel wire going through or a nickel titanium.Because of esthetic demands, a newer type of brackets were developed about 20 or 30 years ago, they’re called porcelain braces. They serve the same purpose and they look the same, they’re just kind of porcelain to improve esthetics.

And lastly, we have lingual braces, which are cemented on the inside of the teeth, and again they serve the same purpose. The only advantage is that they are well hidden, making them probably the most cosmetic.

Having braces cemented onto your teeth increase chance of food retention, which in turn increases chance of decay, so you better take care of your teeth, brush them properly, take care of them and they’ll take care of you.

Presenter: Dr. Sam Daher, Orthodontist, Vancouver, BC

Local Practitioners: Orthodontist