What Sixty Years in Dentistry has taught us about Dental Fear Part Two
In Part One of this article, we highlighted the fact that the Australian Dental Association (ADA) reported that only 60.7%* of Australians visited a Dentist in the past twelve months, and only 55%* completed a dental examination and professional cleaning or active maintenance as we, at Medland Dental, know it.
These rates are concerning given the direct correlation between oral health and overall health.In light of this information, and with more than sixty years caring for patients, we reflect on what we have learnt about why people may choose to avoid the Dentist. Part one of this artic…
Focus on: School Lunches
Coming up with healthy, tasty and kid-friendly lunches can be a challenge, as every parent knows. Keeping these lunches tooth-friendly as well can make it even more of a challenge!Be careful of so called health bars, muesli bars, fruit roll-ups and dried fruit as they contain large amounts of concentrated sugar in the form of raw sugar, glucose, honey or a combination. The sugar in these products tends to stick to teeth and get trapped between teeth, just like confectionary, and put teeth at risk of tooth decay. As a general rule starchy biscuits/crispbread are better for teeth than sweet bis…
Gut Health Boosting Drinks and their effect on Oral Health
As health practitioners, we love to hear our patients telling us they are looking after their bodies with diet and exercise. Lately, a lot of our patients have been talking to us about their efforts to improve their gut health. Good gut health can contribute to a stronger immune system, heart and brain health, improved mood and sleeping, effective digestion, and could help to prevent autoimmune diseases and cancer.
With benefits like these its no wonder that people are turning to gut health-boosting foods and drinks. You can improve your gut health by increasing the amount of plant-based food…
Dentistry for Coeliacs
The incredible advancement of technology has allowed for many discoveries in health care, resulting in improved understanding of previously unrecognised diseases and eased suffering of countless people. Coeliac Disease is one particular example of this, where people who may have endured unexplained or misdiagnosed symptoms for years without relief, can now manage their condition far more successfully.
The term ‘Coeliac Disease’ (CD), associated with the common food ingredient, ‘gluten’, is an autoimmune disease that causes a multitude of uncomfortable gastrointestinal and extraintestinal symp…
Are antibiotics the answer? Why you should always consult a healthcare professional before taking antibiotics.
What do you do if you have a splinter in your arm that is causing redness, swelling and pain? Would you see your Doctor expecting they would write you a script, or would you prefer they removed the source of infection? There are times when taking antibiotics is not the final solution, and the following article discusses how this is relevant to dentistry, and why our Dentists at Medland Dental take the time to address the sources of infection, instead of doing a ‘quick fix’ and offering a script.
Antibiotics are a drug used to treat bacterial infections. They can work in different ways and…
Tooth Erosion: Are you washing away your teeth?
These days we are more aware of what we eat and drink and what we feed our children. We are more conscious about eating healthy, natural and nutritious foods and we have cut down on sugary soft drinks and replaced them with sugar free or “diet” drinks and healthy fruit juices and drinks. However, some of the healthiest foods for the body have a low pH i.e. are acidic.
Tooth erosion is now the most common chronic disease of children’s teeth ranging from 5 to 17 year olds, but it can affect any age group.
A recent study of Australian children showed that 75% of children had erosion of at leas…
Focus On: The Jaw Joint – Clicking, Locking and Pain
The jaw joint (as known as the temporomandibular joint or TMJ) is a very hard working part of our body. It is involved with all aspects of our life – talking, eating, breathing, swallowing and laughing (not to mention grinding, clenching, fingernail or pen chewing….) The joint can absorb a surprisingly large amount of force when chewing with the average bite force being around 50-70kgs, and potentially up to 200kg with night time clenching and grinding!
The jaw joint is quite a complicated joint. Like many joints it contains a cushioning cartilage disc. It also contains many supporting …
Focus on: That Sugar Film
With Easter on our doorstep, maintaining a balanced and nutritious diet often hops out the window along with the Easter bunny!
The Australian Dental Association (ADA) urges all Australians to watch “That Sugar Film”, which aims to raise awareness of the effects of a high sugar diet on a healthy body.
“That Sugar Film” sees Damon Gameau embark on a 60 day experiment to consume the equivalent of 40 teaspoons of sugar each day – the average amount of sugar consumed by Australians daily. However, he must consume foods that have ‘hidden sugars’ – that is sugars found in commonly per…
Focus On: Reflux
Do you, or someone close to you, regularly suffer from heartburn or reflux? Do you regularly use antacids? You may have a condition called Gastro Oesophageal Reflux Disease (GORD).
What is GORD?
Gastroesophageal Reflux Disease (GORD) is a digestive condition affecting the lower ring of muscle that acts as a valve connecting the oesophagus with the stomach. In those suffering from GORD, the ring of muscle opens spontaneously or doesn’t completely close, and the stomach’s content including food and digestive juices rises up into the oesophagus and the mouth.
Occasional reflux is common, ho…
Focus On: Diets and Your Mouth
Have you started a diet as part of your New Year’s Resolutions?
The holidays are traditionally a time to relax. We all eat more and exercise less. It is surprisingly easy to put on weight – more so as we get older. Research undertaken by the Australian Bureau of Statistics reveals that 63% of Australian adults over 18 years and 25% of children aged 5-17 years are classified as overweight or obese.
The risks of being overweight are well documented – Increased risk of cardiovascular disease, high blood pressure and type two diabetes.
In response, health and weight loss industries have gr…