In our Westfield dental office, our patients generally come to us already understanding that they should brush and floss regularly to avoid cavities. It is our goal as dentists to then help our patients understand why and how dental decay progresses, so that they not only know what they should do to keep their teeth healthy, but also why they should do it. This educational component of our practice allows patients to take more control over their own teeth, and keep a healthier smile between dental check-ups.

Many patients think of cavities as dark spots on otherwise white teeth. Dental decay is much more than a cosmetic concern, however, because if left untreated cavities can infect the inner core of a tooth and cause irreversible damage to a patient’s smile.

The white outer layer of a tooth is called the dental enamel (this is the dental layer that many of us associate with healthy teeth). Dental enamel is hard and less porous than the other layers of the teeth, so it is the first line of defense in protecting the tooth.

Below the dental enamel is a layer of dentin, which is slightly yellower or darker than dental enamel. Dentin is also a protective layer for the tooth. However, dentin is more porous than enamel, meaning that disease and decay can more rapidly through dentin than the outer enamel layer.

Both the enamel and dentin protect the inner core of the tooth—the dental pulp. Dental pulp is comprised of nerves, tissues, and blood vessels that feed the tooth and keep it healthy. The dental pulp, once infected, is incredibly painful, and can cause further infection of dental tissues and bone.

Preventing surface cavities (those on the dental enamel), therefore, is important to the overall health and wellbeing of an affected tooth. Preventing cavities and treating dental decay in its earliest stages can prevent tooth loss and painful infections. Give our Westfield dentists a call if you’d like more information or to schedule an appointment. Your dental health is our priority!

Many of the teenagers our Westfield cosmetic dentists speak to report that they would love to achieve perfect, straight smiles, but they can’t imagine suffering through the months and years in metal braces that it takes to achieve a perfect smile. Unfortunately, this keeps many young patients from pursuing cosmetic treatment, and they spend their teen years trying to hide their teeth from the world.

We’re here to tell you that there’s a better way to get the beautiful smile you’ve always wanted. Invisalign clear aligners are an innovative alternative to traditional braces. Patients simply wear a series of clear plastic aligners. These aligners gradually and progressively move teeth into their ideal positions. Invisalign aligners have a number of advantages over metal braces.

Many patients are initially drawn toward the Invisalign system because the aligners used are made of clear plastic. Consequently, these aligners are practically invisible when worn by the patient. You can transform your smile without anyone noticing! Rather than paying attention to the metal brackets and wires in your mouth, people will be noticing your increasingly perfect smile!

Beyond aesthetics, Invisalign can actually help you keep your teeth and mouth clean. Because these aligners are totally removable, you can take them out to clean your teeth and aligners normally. You’ll be able to brush and floss as usual, and the smooth aligners are easy to keep clean with regular maintenance.

Invisalign is also more comfortable for patients, because there aren’t any abrasive metal wires or brackets to irritate oral tissues. Patients report less tissue sensitivity when using these smooth plastic aligners.

As you can see, Invisalign aligners are largely preferable to traditional brackets and wires. If you’ve been considering cosmetic dentistry, Invisalign may be the ideal solution for you. Give our Westfield Invisalign office a call for more information or to schedule an appointment.

If you’ve been chewing gum, chomping on breath mints, and inhaling oral sprays in an effort to conquer bad breath, you aren’t fighting the problem at its source. The key to fighting bad breath is to minimize oral infections, cavities, and gum disease. Bad breath is generally caused by oral infections, because bacterial tartar and plaque emit bad odors.

The first step to controlling bad breath is controlling plaque and tartar accumulation. You’re probably already taking steps to defeat bad breath if you’re brushing at least twice a day. Along with brushing it’s important to floss every day in order to eliminate plaque between teeth. You may also benefit from incorporating an antimicrobial rinse into you oral hygiene routine.

Along with cleaning your teeth, you can minimize bad odors by controlling what you eat. Foods high in sugars and starches contribute to bad breath—these are ideal substances for oral bacteria. If you do consume foods with a lot of sugar and starch, try to clean your teeth quickly after eating, or at least rinse with water. Better yet, replace some of those harmful treats with helpful foods such as fruits like oranges and kiwis (both high in vitamin C) or healthful vegetables like broccoli.  Crunchy vegetables are a great choice because they can help clear plaque of teeth as you chew.

The trick to maintaining fresh breath is to treat bad breath at its source. Don’t try to mask bad breath with products like mints, gums, and sprays. These products may ultimately make chronic bad breath worse, since many of them are high in sugar. Rather, treat the root cause of bad breath, and eliminate plaque and tartar build-up.

If you’re fighting chronic bad breath, give our Westfield general dentists a call. The team at our Westfield dental office can help you develop an oral treatment plan that will keep you smiling confidently for years!

If you’ve been searching for a tooth replacement solution, you probably want the same things that many patients want. It’s important that dental restorations appear natural, fit comfortably, and last for the long-term. One of the best tooth replacement options that meets all of these needs is the dental implant.

Dental implants are designed to be permanent—meaning immovable—tooth replacements. The dental implant is a titanium rod that is surgically implanted into the jawbone—filling the space where the natural tooth root used to sit. The titanium root is then left to heal, and over a period of months the titanium actually bonds to the natural bone, forming a stable foundation for the dental restoration that is attached on top of the root.

Our Westfield dental implant dentists want you to know that in order to maintain the strength and health of your dental implants it’s important to follow some simple dental hygiene rules:

Keep your mouth clean

When caring for dental implants, you need to brush and floss at least twice a day—just as you do with your natural teeth. Regular dental hygiene helps maintain gum health, and prevent gum and jawbone infections. Remember to visit your dentist at least twice a year—your dentist can help you determine if you need more frequent visits.

Watch what you chomp

If you have a habit of chewing on ice or hard candies, you’ll want to discuss this behavior with your dentist before you get dental implants. Chewing on hard foods and ice can weaken your dental restorations, eventually causing them to crack.

With proper care dental implants can last for years. Because dental implants look and feel like natural teeth, many patients find that they fit seamlessly into daily life. If you’d like more information about dental implants give our Westfield dental implant dentists a call at (908) 543-3215.

Our Westifeld general dentists hear the same question from patients again and again, “How can I get my teeth to look white and bright again?” This common question has a number of answers—patients today have more options than ever to whiten their teeth and take years off of the appearance of their teeth. If you’ve been wondering about teeth whitening and bleaching options, read on—I’ll be explaining how whitening options work and exploring which options are right for different patients.

Although we commonly refer to professional teeth “whitening” products, most of these products are actually teeth bleaching formulations. Teeth bleaching options include hydrogen or carbamide peroxide to bleach dental enamel. Consequently, these products are able to whiten dental enamel beyond its natural level of whiteness.

Most of these products are applied as gels on the teeth. They can be held in place by mouth guards, strips, or they may sit on exposed teeth and be cured by a laser. Both professional and at home products use hydrogen to whiten teeth, but professional products include higher concentrations of the active whitening ingredients.  This makes professional product faster acting, ultimately more effective, and more potent—which is why they are administered by a dental professional.

If you want to have a lot of control over the final shade and appearance of your teeth, professional teeth whitening may be for you. Your doctor will be able to closely monitor your whitening session to help you achieve an optimal whiteness with minimal sensitivity and irritation.

Patients who choose to whiten on their own may like that home products can be used whenever it’s convenient for them. Additionally, at home products are usually a little less expensive than professional treatments because they take longer and do not deliver the same level of whitening.

Depending on your desired goals and timeline, you may choose to use professional or home whitening treatments. Generally the most effective whitening plan involves having professional teeth whitening treatments, and then getting a take-home maintenance kit from dentist to keep your smile white at home. Give our Westfield general dentists a call at (908) 543-3215 if you have questions or you’d like to schedule an appointment.

Most patients know that they should be brushing their teeth at least twice a day. Our Westfield general dentists have been finding that for many patients brushing is so routine that patients are not paying very close attention to how they’re cleaning their teeth. Consequently, many people aren’t getting as much as they could out of their daily oral hygiene routine. Today I’m going to review some useful tips that will help you brush more effectively.

Choose the Correct Toothbrush

The first step to maintaining a sparkling smile is to gather the right materials. Take some time when choosing your toothbrush to make sure it fits your needs. The head of the toothbrush should be small enough to fit into the back corners of your mouth so you can clean your back molars. Look for a brush with softer bristles. Stiff bristles are not necessary for most patients, and they can actually damage your gums and wear down dental enamel.

Brush Efficiently

Your goal when brushing is to thoroughly remove plaque and debris, so you want to make sure that you cover all of your dental surface area. Begin brushing by angling your toothbrush at 45° at your gumline. Then proceed to clean your teeth using small circular motions. When cleaning the tops of your teeth use a back and forth motion to get in the dental enamel’s pitted grooves.

Pay Attention to More Than Just Your Teeth

Every time you brush remember to clean your tongue and surrounding oral tissues. Clean your tongue by moving your brush back and forth across the top and sides of the tongue.

Keep these simple tips in mind the next time you brush. Many people find that over the years they stopped brushing correctly or started using the wrong toothbrush. By making these few simple adjustments you can keep a whiter smile between dental check ups. Give our Westfield dentists a call at (908) 543-3215 if you have any questions, as always we’re here to help!

A regular patient of ours, Marcy, came in recently for her regular cleaning complaining of jaw pain and tightness. She told us that previously she had sometimes felt her jaw was a little tight in the morning, but now the problem has become more pervasive. She was suffering from headaches, jaw pain, and limited jaw mobility. Our Westfield TMJ dentists determined that Marcy was suffering from TMJ disorder. Although these problems can be uncomfortable and disruptive, the good news is that there are treatment options available to help patients regain full functionality and comfort.

TMJ disorder refers to a dysfunction or malfunction of the temporomandibular joint. This joint connects the lower jaw to the skull—allowing you to talk, chew, and move your mouth from side to side. When this joint is inflamed or irritated, it can become painful to talk and chew—additionally; it may become difficult to actually open the law. Over time patients my find that their jaw “locks” or gets stuck as they try to open it.

TMJ disorder can be caused and exacerbated by a number of conditions. Patients who grind their teeth at night often suffer from TMJ complications. Bite misalignment and uneven teeth may also contribute to TMJ jaw problems.

With our modern understanding of dentistry, bite function, and the temporomandibular joint we can treat TMJ without resorting to extreme measures such as surgery. Our Westfield TMJ dentists correct TMJ dysfunction with comfortable, non-invasive dental appliances, which fit easily into the patient’s mouth when he or she sleeps. There’s no reasons to continue living with disruptive, painful TMJ disorder. The sooner you seek treatment the less likely it is that you’ll have lasting, long-term complications. Give our office a call if you or someone you know is suffering from TMJ disorder—

(908) 543-3215.

Sometimes patients are looking for a cosmetic treatment that can completely transform the appearance of their smiles. These patients often have structural complaints about the shape or size of their teeth. For whatever reason their teeth appear disproportional to their face or the rest of their smile. It used to be that altering the shape of teeth was very difficult in cosmetic dentistry. However, now our Westfield veneers dentists are able to use porcelain veneers to improve the balance of a patient’s smile.

Dental veneers are thin layers or porcelain that are applied over existing teeth. Porcelain veneers can be used to close gaps between teeth, or straighten the appearance of a crooked smile. Importantly, veneers are also used to reshape teeth that appear too long, too short, or simply out of balance with the smile as a whole.

Porcelain veneers are ideal for this type of cosmetic work because porcelain closely mimics natural enamel aesthetically. And porcelain, once bonded to enamel, has similar flexibility and strength as teeth. Veneers can be used to lengthen and reshape enamel, while maintaining the integrity of adjacent healthy teeth.

With dental veneers dentists are able to far surpass conventional cosmetic treatments such as teeth whitening and orthodontics. Veneers can be used to correct multiple cosmetic problems at once. So if you have teeth that aren’t proportionate and are also looking dull and discolored, for example, veneers may be the single solution to whiten teeth and reshape them. If you have any questions about cosmetic dentistry in general or dental veneers specifically give our Westfield veneers dentists a call at (908) 543-3215.

Since you were young, you’ve probably been reminded by your parents, babysitters, and health care providers, that it’s important to maintain a rigorous daily oral hygiene routine. You probably brush and floss at least twice a day, and you may use additional products such as mouthwashes and teeth whitening treatments to keep your smile sparkling and white. What you may not realize, however, is that no matter how diligent you are, at-home care simply is not enough to prevent dental decay and serious oral diseases. In order to maximize your oral health you need to combine your daily cleaning routine with semi-annual professional cleanings.

What Can a Dentist Do That I Can’t?

Dental cleanings use the latest technology and the expertise and experience of dental professionals to diagnose dental problems quickly, and treat them effectively and completely.

You brush plaque—a layer of bacteria-laden film—off of your teeth every day. But the plaque that you cannot reach turns into a substance called calculus. Calculus attracts more bacteria and it is mineralized on the teeth, leading to gum disease and cavities. Calculus can only be removed by a professional dental cleaning, no matter how much you brush and floss you won’t be able to get rid of it on your own.

Additionally, gum disease is often undetectable to patients until become a serious infection. A dental professional, however, can diagnose gum disease in its earliest stages, because it causes tooth and bone loss.

Another important service included in professional cleanings is an oral cancer screening. Our Westfield general dentists test for early signs of oral cancer including lump and bumps in the mouth, patches of diseased tissue, and tender mouth sores. Catching oral cancer early greatly improves a patients’ prognosis.

By partnering with a dentist, you can prevent dental decay and disease from destroying your smile and your health. Give our Westfield general dentists a call for more information or to talk about your situation in greater detail— (908) 543-3215.

Our Westfield general dentists are committed to providing dental care that not only improves the appearance of your teeth, but also makes your smile healthier and stronger. Most patients know that preventing cavities and dental decay is a vital part of maintaining oral health. What many patients don’t realize, however, is that gum health is equally important if you want to stay healthy.

Periodontal problems occur when bacteria infects gum tissue and connective tissue in the mouth. Advanced periodontal problems can cause tooth loss, painful gums and teeth, and bone loss. It’s important to stay vigilant and look for the signs of gum disease during your daily hygiene routine. Alert a dental professional if you notice any of these common symptoms:

Swollen, painful gums

Red gums—they may bleed during brushing, flossing, or eating

Receding gums

Shifting teeth—you may notice a change in your bite alignment

Mouth sores

Bad breath that is difficult to treat

Only a dental professional can determine for sure if you’re suffering from gum disease. Periodontal problems are insidious because they can progress asymptomatic for months or years, meaning that many patients don’t know they have an infection until it is quite serious.

By maintaining your schedule of regular professional dental cleanings and notifying your dentist of any changes to your dental health, you can stay on top of this common problem and prevent long-term complications. Give our Westfield general dentists a call if you have any questions about gum disease, or you’d like to discuss your situation in more detail— (908) 543-3215.