Weston’s First Family Dentist Explains the Importance of Back To School Check-ups

The Importance of Back To School Check-ups From Weston’s First Family Dentist

Guess who's going back to school in a couple of weeks?

Can you recall your dental health experiences from back in grade school? Can you remember a time when you had a cavity that hurt so bad you couldn't keep your mind on the class? You didn't want to tell your parents because that meant a trip to the dentist and in your 8 year old mind that was the same as a trip to a torture chamber.

Family dentist Stephen J. Pyle, "Weston's first dentist" wants to remind you that the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention estimates that 19% of kids age 3 to 12 have undiagnosed tooth decay.

Child dentistry has changed significantly since you carried a lunchbox to school. Today's technology and techniques are far more comfortable and the preventive care methods can make cavities a rare event. If you want to prevent your child from reliving your experience, we suggest you do the following:

• If your child is going to participate in any contact sports, this may be the time to have him or her fitted with a custom sports guard. Even if all their permanent teeth have not come in, a sports guard will protect their gums and the permanent teeth that have arrived.
• Some small children will benefit with time spent with Dr. Pyle educating them about oral health in a language and method that kids understand.
• Begin a tradition in your family and schedule your children for a back to school dental exam at our Weston dental office to deal with any issues before they head off to class.
• Our dental exam will seem like something out of Star Trek compared to your experience in grade school. We use digital x-rays, advanced sealants, Carifree cavity prevention and provide orthodontic evaluations.

Pick up the phone now and make an appointment at our Weston dental practice for your kids' back to school dental exam. Believe it or not, at some point in their lives your kids will thank you.

Family dentist : Mouth Guard : Youth Sports

What Youth Sport Has the Most Dental Injuries?

You might think that youth football or hockey generates the most injuries involving the mouth. After all they are both heavy contact sports both with other players and the ground or ice. But if you guessed either of those sports you would be wrong. What you may find surprising is that the sports with the most mouth injuries include baseball, basketball, soccer, field hockey, softball and gymnastics. Most pros in those sports don't wear mouth guards and as a result kids don't wear them either. That's not good news.

Mouth guards, even cheap stock models can help prevent broken, cracked and lost teeth as well as jaw and joint fractures. Any of those injuries can be extremely painful and all of them are expensive to fix. Protecting your active kid from mouth injuries by insisting they wear a mouth guard while playing sports is an easy, inexpensive way to guard your kid from injury.

There are Mouth Guards and then there are Mouth Guards

Like all pieces of sporting equipment mouth guards come in different grades of quality and features. Here are the three most common:

• Stock mouth guards. These are plastic and come in small, medium and large. They are cheap but if your kid won't wear them because they hurt you don't get any protection.
• Boil and Bite. This is an attempt to customize a plastic guard. It's an improvement but it is still not customized to the child's mouth.
• Customized sports guards. These are what Dr. Pyle provides at our Weston dental practice. These guards are not only customized to the child's teeth but to the width and shape of the mouth. They are by far the most durable and most comfortable. If your child has braces this is the way to go.

If you have an active child you want to make sure he/she has a mouth guard. If you want the most comfortable and most durable mouth guard, call us at our Weston dentist office and make an appointment for a fitting. Read more: