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The Effects of Autumn on Sensitive Teeth | Ottawa Dentist

Here we are – preparing ourselves for another autumn season. We swap out popsicles and lemonade for pumpkin bread and hot cocoa. For most of us, this is a welcomed treat as the weather begins to cool down. For others, this is a painful time of year for our mouths because of one reason – sensitive teeth. If you notice a painful zing in your mouth when you eat or drink anything cold or hot, you likely have sensitive teeth.

There are many reasons one could have teeth sensitivity, but it’s generally wear and tear that causes your gums to pull back, making your teeth sensitive. Tooth decay, gingivitis, and plaque buildup are various dental issues that make consuming hot or cold foods difficult. It isn’t what about the choice that you need to worry about – enjoy your favorite autumnal treats. It is the change of temperature in your choices that makes your teeth react.

Damaged teeth or worn teeth due to teeth grinding are also ways teeth can become sensitive. The sooner you fix these issues, the less likely there will be more damage caused because of the neglect. Use a mouth guard while you sleep to keep your teeth from wearing down. If you use teeth whitening products often, the chemicals can begin to wear down the tooth enamel. Acidic foods, like citrus fruit, can also contribute to wear and tear on tooth enamel. The key is to keep everything in moderation.

Wear and tear on your teeth are something not to be taken lightly. If you feel you have sensitive teeth, consult a dental professional for helpful tips so you can enjoy the warm and tasty treats this season has to offer.

Schedule your appointment today. Call Dr. Doumit in Ottawa, Ontario at 613-232-8000 or visit www.urbandentalcentre.com.

Dr. Katia Doumit proudly serves Ottawa and all surrounding areas.

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New Year, New Dental Hygiene Habits | Ottawa Dentist

Now that we have begun 2022, it is important to know that change is afoot for many of us. We all have some goals set for the new year, and many of them have to do with health. Unfortunately, many of us forget about our dental health when making these changes. But it’s true – dental health should be a top priority because our general health is directly linked to our dental one. And the first step? A clean toothbrush. 

The best way to limit the bacteria in your mouth is to brush your teeth. And what do we use to do this? A toothbrush. But if you’re neglecting your toothbrush, it begins to neglect you. The best way to keep those cavity creeps away is to replace your toothbrush on a regular basis. In fact, we need to swap out our toothbrushes every three to four months. If the bristles become frayed, you’re sick, or you have a weak immune system, it’s time to exchange our toothbrush. If you use an electric toothbrush, throw out the head as often as you’d discard a disposable toothbrush. 

As for habits, start and close each day with a clean mouth. Because every time you’re tempted to skip brushing and flossing your teeth, remember that bacteria lurk in your mouth – and that they cause gum disease, and decay, and bad breath. Make sure you’re brushing and flossing as often as possible to eliminate some of those bacteria. Rinsing your mouth with an antibacterial mouthwash before or after brushing can also help reduce plaque-causing bacteria that can lead to early forms of gum disease. It’s a new year – why not start with a healthy smile? 

Schedule your appointment today. Call Dr. Doumit in Ottawa, Ontario at 613-232-8000 or visit www.urbandentalcentre.com.

Dr. Katia Doumit proudly serves Ottawa and all surrounding areas.

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The Three Most Common Dental Problems in Canada | Ottawa Dentist

We all try to do our best to keep our smile as healthy as we possibly can, but we aren’t always the most
regimented of soldiers. And because of those slip-ups, we develop dental issues. The problem is, we
aren’t capable of diagnosing these types of issues – that is for the dental professional and why we need
to keep our dental appointments. Because the longer we delay getting treatment, the worse the
condition gets. The following are the most common dental issues Canadians currently have and how to
prevent them from happening:

Oral cancer. According to the Canadian Dental Association, 5,400 Canadians and 1,500 will die from the
affliction. Those are some scary odds. Because oral cancer can develop in the gums, lips, cheeks, tongue,
and roof & floor of the mouth, it can spread to the jaw and lymph nodes. Because regular use of
smoking and alcohol is a common cause, minimizing these bad habits will help, especially when you get
regular checkups.

Gum disease. Another very common dental issue is gum disease, something that affects 7 of every 10
Canadians within their lifetime. Gum disease generally develops from poor dental hygiene practices.
When you ignore your smile, you develop plaque which is where gingivitis occurs, and eventually leading
to tooth loss. Avoid this by brushing twice a day for two minutes, flossing and keeping your dental
cleaning visits.

Tooth decay. When it comes to the little ones, cavities are the most common dental issue. Bacteria is
formed and its acid eats away at your teeth, making the holes we know as cavities. Poor dental hygiene,
and copious amounts of sweets and carbohydrates are the main cause of this malady, so make sure to
look after your smile.

Schedule your appointment today. Call Dr. Doumit in Ottawa, Ontario at 613-232-8000 or visit www.urbandentalcentre.com.

Dr. Katia Doumit proudly serves Ottawa and all surrounding areas.

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Your Asthma May Be Giving You Dental Issues | Ottawa Dentist

Do you suffer from asthma? Don’t worry – this isn’t a judgement. Asthma is very common. It’s so common that roughly 339 million people worldwide suffer from this inflammatory disease that narrows and inflames your airways to the point that it is difficult to breath. But did you know that asthma can also lead to future dental problems? It’s true. And this is why you need to pay extra special attention to your dental health if you suffer from this affliction. Patients with asthma can experience a number of triggers, from weather conditions to airborne irritants like pollen and pet dander. When it causes issues breathing, it is likely you will use an inhaler. These inhalers are repressing salivary glands and limiting saliva production, causing you to experience dry mouth. Dry mouth allows for damaging bacteria to remain in our mouths and cause damage, like plaque build-up – and plaque is the beginning stages of bad breath, tooth decay and gum disease. Don’t worry – asthma isn’t the end of your great smile. But it is the beginning of an improvement to your daily dental hygiene routine. After you use your inhaler, rinse your mouth out with water. Not only will you kickstart saliva production, but you will rinse away any sugar your inhaler may be sweetened with to make it easier to use. In fact, drinking enough water and snacking on fruits like apples are great for increasing saliva production and reducing dry mouth. But above all else, keep up with your dental hygiene. Brush for two minutes, floss and rinse with fluoride mouthwash daily, but most importantly, keep your dental appointments. They are the only ones that can ensure you’re doing a good job. If you would like more information about the effects of asthma, call Dr. Katia Doumit in Ottawa, Ontario at 613-232-8000 or visit www.lesplanadedental.com. Dr. Doumit proudly serves Ottawa and all surrounding areas.
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Improve Your Smile with a Picnic | Ottawa Dentist

As the world slowly begins to open up again and we are delving into the warm summer months, it is a good idea to grab a blanket and head outside to soak in some vitamin D. Not only does the sunshine improve your overall health but having a bit of a picnic while soaking it all in can also improve your smile. After all, June 18th is International Picnic Day – why not celebrate with a healthy smile? Here are just a few of the picnic foods you can enjoy that will simultaneously brighten your smile: Traditional. If you are going for a more family-friendly option, there are lots of choices that can benefit your dental health. Cheeses and proteins can help strengthen your teeth, fruits and veggies can help scrub them and encourage saliva production, which is key to rinsing cavity-causing bacteria while you eat. Wine and cheese. If you have a more sophisticated palette, you may opt for a nice wine and cheese pairing. Well, you’re in luck – cheese is full of calcium, which strengthens your teeth enamel, and red wine also had dental benefits. But be careful – too much acidic red wine will begin to break down your tooth enamel and begin to stain your teeth. When you’re out and about, it is important to maintain some type of hydration at all times so make sure to pack plenty of water in your picnic basket. And while you may not have a toothbrush handy, popping a piece of sugar-free gum after your snacks will also help keep your mouth clean while you bask in the warm summer sunshine. Enjoy your picnic! If you would like more information about improving your smile, call Dr. Katia Doumit in Ottawa, Ontario at 613-232-8000 or visit www.lesplanadedental.com. Dr. Doumit proudly serves Ottawa and all surrounding areas.
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Quit Smoking for Your Smile | Ottawa Dentist

We all know that smoking is bad for our health. It causes various cancers, heart conditions and other maladies. After all, our mouths are the first line of defense to our overall health. When we smoke, we are breaking down our immune systems, and that is how we are susceptible to other health issues – because our immune system is compromised. And we know that smoking will begin to cause our teeth to yellow, but there’s more to it than a dingy smile. Using tobacco products can cause other dental issues. Not only will it break down your immune system, but it also kills the good bacteria in your mouth, allowing the disease-causing bacteria to invade, take hold and flourish. In honor of World No Tobacco Day, lets take a look at how the use of tobacco products are hurting your smile. Tobacco products damage your gums by affecting the way your teeth are attached to the bone and soft tissue. When this happens, your gums will begin to recede, giving bacteria access to the tooth’s roots. If left untreated, you will begin to lose your teeth. Gum disease will affect most adults at some point in their lives. If you’re a smoker, you are raising those doubling those stakes than that of a non-smoker. And because smoking causes your blood vessels to shrink, it will also be more difficult to heal the gum disease you have developed over time. We know it is difficult, but smoking is one habit that has so many adverse effects, it is important that you make an effort to quit. So, celebrate World No Smoking Day by cutting tobacco out of your life. Your smile will thank you. If you would like more information about quitting smoking, call Dr. Katia Doumit in Ottawa, Ontario at 613-232-8000 or visit www.lesplanadedental.com. Dr. Doumit proudly serves Ottawa and all surrounding areas.
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Keeping Your Routines Is Important | Ottawa Dentist

If there is anything that we know at this time, it’s that we don’t know very much. Our daily lives are changing every day, but there is one thing that remains clear – to remain healthy, keep your hands clean. The second rule? Don’t touch your face. The thing to remember here is that germs love to invade our bodies through our mouths, so keeping our mouths clean and healthy is very important right now. When you think about how much time you spend on your teeth, it is important that you don’t take things lightly. Brushing your teeth roughly for a few seconds each day isn’t properly taking care of your teeth. Choose a soft bristled toothbrush and gently brush your teeth in a circular motion for two minutes, making sure to take time in each quadrant of your mouth (tops and bottoms, left and right sides). Flossing is a step many of use think of as a chore, but it is doing the extra steps to ensure nothing is allowed to set up camp inside our mouths. Choose your own variation, but make sure you floss at least once a day to get in between our teeth the way brushing can’t. The more places bacteria have to set up camp inside your mouth, the easier dental issues will arise later on down the line. Rinsing with mouthwash is a thirty second journey that will disinfect our mouths the way brushing and flossing can’t. Using it beforehand to loosen things before you brush is an option, and a rinse afterwards will add a nice finish to what a great job keeping our mouth clean. Prevention is the best way to keep ourselves healthy, and our dental health is on the frontlines of the health of our whole body. If you would like more information about dental hygiene, call Dr. Katia Doumit in Ottawa, Ontario at 613-232-8000 or visit www.lesplanadedental.com. Dr. Doumit proudly serves Ottawa and all surrounding areas.
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Becoming Aware of World Diabetes Day | Ottawa Dentist

Every November 14th we celebrated World Diabetes Day, a day created by the International Diabetes Federation and the World Health Organization to help promote the awareness of a disease that remarkably affects over 400 million people worldwide. And because diabetes took 5000 lives in 2015, any education we can give to the public can only help improve the chances of decreasing this devastating disease. But diabetes isn’t just a disease affecting our overall health, it is a disease that can also affect our dental health in a number of ways. This is why it is not only important to maintain proper dental hygiene, but to also get regular dental visits in order to ensure that everything you are doing will keep you and your smile at its healthiest. These are just a few ways your diabetes can affect your smile:
  • Dry mouth
  • Gum inflammation (gingivitis) and periodontitis
  • Thrush
  • Burning mouth or tongue
  • Slow healing of oral tissues
In order to keep dental issues at bay, there are some simple tips you can do at home between dental visits: Maintain your blood sugar levels. Not only does this include changes to your diet, but also taking the required insulin when levels get too low. Keep your diet low-sugar, low-cholesterol and high fiber by choosing more vegetables, whole grains and lean meats. Proper dental hygiene routine. Brushing twice a day for at least two minutes, flossing and rinsing at least once are just the basics. If you feel like you may not be doing things correctly, ask your dental professional. Regular checkups are the easiest way to prevent poor dental health. Quit smoking. Smokers are 20% more at risk for developing gum disease. It also impairs blood flow to the gums, which may explain why healing takes more time. If you would like more information about diabetes and dental health, call Dr. Katia Doumit in Ottawa, Ontario at 613-232-8000 or visit www.lesplanadedental.com. Dr. Doumit proudly serves Ottawa and all surrounding areas.
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Let Your Smile Enjoy the Day | Ottawa Dentist

It’s springtime – the sun is finally breaking through the winter clouds and shining lots of vitamin D love down on us! Have you gone out and enjoyed the day? You really should. Not only does getting some exercise improve your overall health, but it can also improve your dental health as well.

We all know that it’s important to keep fit in order to maintain a healthy life and body. So, we take ourselves to the gym or the great outdoors in order to get some type of workout done. And this is great – regular exercise reduces the risk of heart disease, osteoporosis, hypertension and many other health conditions. But Dentistry News published a study done by Case Western Reserve University that shows it also reduces the risk of periodontitis.

Periodontitis is an inflammatory gum condition that not only causes tooth loss but afflicts one-third of our population. And in this study, the individuals who maintained a healthy lifestyle reduced their risk by 40%. Quite the decrease made simply by subtle changes in their lifestyles. Regular exercise and a healthy diet aren’t the only ways to prevent gum disease – those who were non-smokers increased their chances of prevention even higher.

When considering how much exercise is required, it really depends on you. This case study suggested five or more moderate activities or three intensive activities a week was the minimum. What you choose to do is entirely up to you, so enjoy yourself.

It could beg to say that if you have a healthy lifestyle, you take the time to care for all aspects of yourself, including your dental health. Make those subtle lifestyle changes and watch your dental visits improve.

If you would like more information about gum disease, call Dr. Katia Doumit in Ottawa, Ontario at 613-232-8000 or visit www.lesplanadedental.com.

Dr. Doumit proudly serves Ottawa and all surrounding areas.

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Take Care of Those Baby Teeth | Ottawa Dentist

February is known as National Children’s Dental Health Month and this year’s theme is “Brush and clean in between to build a healthy smile”. Now, when we think about our little human’s teeth, we hardly think there is any reason to fret about them. But taking care of them now will also ensure the next set will come in healthy. As we settle into the second month of 2019, let’s focus in on the tiny smiles in our family and make sure they have the best year as well…

Fruits and veggies. The good thing about fruits and vegetables is that not only are they good for our bodies, but they are crunchy and full of water, two things that are ideal for a healthy smile. Saliva production helps to cleanse our mouths of cavity-causing bacteria naturally.

Stay away from the 3 S’s. There are three culprits in our dental health we should be aware of – sugars, starches and sticky foods. These three options for foods are always going to be a bad idea for your smile because not only does the sugar cause cavities, but sticky foods can cause these sugars to grab hold of your teeth. If you eat these foods, make sure to brush or rinse afterwards.

Daily dental care. We all know dental hygiene is necessary on a daily basis, regardless of the age. So, teach good dental habits early in order to ensure a lifetime of health smiles. Visiting the dentist early will also help to teach your little one that there is nothing to fear. It’s a family affair.

If you would like more information about National Children’s Dental Health Month, call Dr. Katia Doumit in Ottawa, Ontario at 613-232-8000 or visit www.lesplanadedental.com.

Dr. Doumit proudly serves Ottawa and all surrounding areas.