Quirt Family Dentistry loves ways like this to get the look you want while protecting the health of your teeth. If you’re not satisfied with the look this trick gives you, give us a call and we can talk about safe techniques to whiten your teeth without causing sensitivity.

Red Lipstick

So which colors do this? A general rule is to try to stick with those that have blue undertones which will contrast with the yellow tints of your teeth and make them appear brighter and whiter. When looking for a specific color, try in the deeper reds and maroons. Stay away from nudes, peaches, neutral pinks, and frosted lipsticks, which can make your teeth look the same color as the lipstick.

Also important to remember is the sheen of the lipstick. Glossy, wet looks reflect light off your lips, adding depth and making your teeth shine as well. Matte finishes will make your smile look darker, bringing out any stains you may have. Some brands even have specific lines devoted to teeth-whitening lipstick, so check it out the next time you are in the makeup aisle.

Lipstick on Your Teeth

How about getting lipstick on your teeth? One way to avoid this is with careful application followed by pouting your lips and poking your finger in your mouth to remove any excess color. Another great way is to keep your teeth as clean as possible so that the lipstick has nothing to cling to. Also, you should avoid activities like smoking, smacking your gum or biting your nails. Believe it or not, smiling keeps the lipstick off your teeth more than a straight face or a frown. So smile more!

If you find the perfect shade of lipstick but are still unhappy with the color of your teeth, talk to your Quirt Family dentist about any number of cosmetic procedures that can give you the smile you deserve. We are here to help anyone in Wisconsin get the beautiful smile they’ve always wanted!

The presence of the human papillomavirus (HPV) is now found in up to 50% of new cases of oral cancer, and brings this devastating disease to a new part of the population. Quirt Dentistry wants to give you all the information and tools you need to get your mouth and overall systems as healthy as possible.

Leading Cause of Oral Cancer

April is National Cancer Control Month, a time dedicated to creating awareness in the hopes of preventing all variations of cancer and for our Quirt Family dentists, it is a chance to educate people in Wisconsin about HPV, oral cancer’s little-known risk factor. Shockingly, in people between the ages of 20 and 39 those who have had an HPV infection are 32 times more likely to develop oral cancers. 32 times.

HPV and Oral Cancer

HPV is most commonly thought of as a sexually transmitted infection (STI) that causes genital warts and can lead to cervical cancer, but it is much more complicated than that. There are over 40 different types that can present in a variety of ways; however, in a whopping 90% of cases the body’s immune system clears the infection without any symptoms whatsoever.

According to the Center for Disease Control, approximately 20 million Americans are infected with HPV right now and another 6 million new people are infected each year. They also estimate that at least 50% of sexually active men and women contract it at some point in their lives.

HPV Vaccines

Unfortunately, the vaccines Gardasil and Cervarix are targeted to the types of HPV that lead to cervical cancer, and do not protect against those that lead to head and neck cancers. Even worse, standard STI tests do not screen for HPV, and people often don’t even know they have it until something worse develops. Right now, the best way to detect oral HPV is through a salivary diagnostic test such as the OraRisk test from Oral DNA Labs.

Oral Cancer Screenings

There are also several technologies that your Quirt Family dentist may use to help screen for oral cancer such as the tissue fluorescence devices VELscope and ViziLite, which allow detection to be quick, easy and painless. We may also use a simple brush biopsy, which lightly scrapes cells off a suspected lesion to be analyzed in a laboratory.

If you have any questions or concerns about HPV or oral cancer, please contact Quirt Family Dentistry today or mention them at your next appointment. [DR. NAME] and our staff want to do everything they can to prevent you from having to endure the disfiguring and deadly effects of oral cancer.

Mouth cancer, tongue cancer, tonsil cancer, throat cancer, and others are all considered different variations of oral cancer. We want all Wisconsin residents to learn how to reduce their risk factors for all of these diseases and protect themselves to live the longest, healthiest life possible. If you think you have symptoms, or are worried about any of your loved ones, please call Quirt Family Dentistry today to schedule an evaluation. Don’t wait!

This post is not meant to diagnose or treat anyone who has, or believes they may have, oral cancer. It is merely meant to serve as information. If you have any questions or concerns, please contact our office to learn more.

Oral Cancer Symptoms

Because oral cancer comes in so many varieties, there is a wide range of symptoms, and it is impossible to list them all here. However, some of the more common symptoms include:

• White or red patches on your lips, gums, tongue, or inside your cheeks
• Numbness or loss of feeling anywhere around your face, mouth or neck
• Difficulty swallowing, chewing, speaking, or moving your jaw or tongue
• Swelling, lumps, or bumps on your lips, gums, tongue, or inside your cheeks
• A change in the way your teeth or dentures fit together
• Hoarseness, chronic sore throat, or a change in your voice

Oral Cancer Risk Factors

There are many risk factors for oral cancer, but they don’t always determine who contracts the disease. However, risk factors can still be helpful in determining who should keep an extra eye out for symptoms. Risk factors for oral cancer include:

• Tobacco use, whether through smoking, dip, snuff, or chewing tobacco
• Excessive consumption of alcohol
• Family history of cancer
• Excessive sun exposure
• Exposure to human papillomavirus (HPV), also known as genital warts

Oral Cancer Treatment

If you think you or someone you love may have oral cancer, please contact Quirt Family Dentistry today. We will schedule an appointment for a quick, evaluation that will help you understand your specific situation.

If any of these symptoms or risk factors apply to you, don’t hesitate. Oral cancer has encouragingly high survival rates if detected and treated early, so make an appointment today!

Candy is bad for our teeth, and we all know it. But it’s just so delicious, sometimes we simply can’t help ourselves. Our Quirt Family dentists don’t want you to have to stop eating candy altogether, we just want you to make better choices about which candy you choose to eat and how you eat them. We really don’t want to have to tell you that your mouth is full of cavities!

I’m not going to stop eating candy!

This post is not to tell you to stop eating candy altogether, but rather to educate you on what it does to your teeth and help you choose the right kinds. Easter is the second largest candy-buying season of the year in America, following just Halloween in the amount of money we spend on sugary treats.

Every March, dental professionals across the country seek to promote the importance of dental hygiene and the connection between a healthy, balanced diet and good oral health. There are several preventative measures that can be taken to ensure this Easter season will help minimize the risk of tooth decay or damage.

Frequently eating chocolates, candy, and other sweets can create an ideal environment for decay-causing bacteria, which contributes to toothaches, sensitivity, and cavities. This also leads to plaque, a sticky substance made of bacteria that thrive on sugars and carbohydrates and produce harmful acid that attack your teeth. This attack by bacterial acid, lasting 20 minutes or more, can lead to a loss of tooth mineral and, eventually, to cavities, the American Dental Association explains.

What candy should I eat?

Candy that is sticky or hard tends to remain in the mouth for a longer period of time and can be more harmful than softer candy, like chocolate, which washes away easier with saliva. Choosing treats that are sugar free is one way to help reduce the amount of harmful bacteria your mouth is fighting. Hard, sticky candy can also wreak havoc on your dental work, including orthodontics, bridges, and crowns, and you should always exercise caution in those cases.

If you have any questions about candy or any other dental hygiene issue, always feel free to call us or send us an email. And don’t forget to follow Quirt Family Dentistry on Facebook (Click the button on the right to find our page)!

Our Quirt Family dentists want to make sure you understand why the alignment of your teeth is such a big deal, and the options you have to fix any problems you may have. Always be sure to bring up any questions you may have with our Wisconsin dental staffs, whether you have an appointment or call us up on the phone.

Are Your Teeth Aligned?

Malocclusion is when teeth are not aligning properly, and it can be caused by a number of things both in and out of your control. Often, malocclusion is hereditary, which means if your parents’ teeth didn’t align properly, chances are yours won’t either. This could be from the shapes of your jaws, overcrowded or unevenly spaced teeth, or an abnormal bite pattern.

Changes in your mouth can also have a dramatic effect on the alignment of your teeth. These can include:

• Loss of teeth, naturally or through extraction
• Chipped teeth
• Jaw injury
• New fillings, crowns, bridges, or dental appliances
• Braces or retainers
• Tumors of the mouth or jaw

Malocclusion Symptoms

Most people have some degree of misalignment in their teeth, but it doesn’t always cause problems. The Quirt Family Dentistry staff will always check to make sure everything looks right, and you should make sure to let us know if you have any pain or discomfort.

Symptoms of malocclusion include tooth pain, jaw pain, sensitivity to cold or heat, discomfort while biting or chewing, jaw popping, and mouth breathing due to an improperly closing mouth.

Align Your Bite

If your Quirt Family dentist discovers that your bite is not aligned and that it is causing problems for you, there are a number of options available to fix the issue. A simple light filing of protruding points may get rid of any pain or discomfort, or we may readjust any new dental work you have in your mouth. In more troublesome cases, we might recommend braces or other appliances to straighten your teeth. The treatment for your mouth depends on your individual variables, and we will always make sure to find the best solution for all of our Wisconsin patients!

This February, our Quirt Family dentists are working with doctors and dentists around the country to celebrate American Heart Month, hoping raise awareness about cardiovascular disease, the leading cause of death in the United States. Our office wants everyone in Wisconsin to have both a healthy heart and a healthy mouth.

Jailbreak Bacteria

When you eat or drink, your mouth becomes populated with the bacteria that cause plaque. This sounds gross, but it’s not necessarily a bad thing. As long as you take care of your teeth, brush and floss them every day, the plaque will be regularly cleaned and won’t cause problems.

However, if bacteria accumulate in your mouth they irritate your gums, causing them to bleed. The bacteria then “jailbreak” into your bloodstream, where they can create blood clots. If these clots travel to your heart, they greatly increase your risk of heart attack.

Heart Disease Statistics

Unfortunately, most of us know a friend or family member in Wisconsin who has died of heart disease or a stroke; these conditions account for one out of every three deaths in our country.

Each year, Americans have more than 2 million heart attacks and strokes, and our Quirt Family dentists want to work with family doctors, to lower these numbers in our area.

Decrease Your Risk of Heart Attack

There are many ways to keep your heart healthy:

• watch what you eat
• check your blood pressure
• monitor your cholesterol
• exercise regularly
• see your doctor every year

We want everyone in Wisconsin to remember the importance of adding oral check-ups to this heart healthy regimen. Brush your teeth twice a day, floss every day, and just pay attention to what your mouth is telling you.

Everyone deserves to live a long, healthy life, and we hope American Heart Month will help you learn more about how Quirt Family Dentistry can help you do that!

In our last post, we talked about how dry mouth causes bad breath, and this time we want to give Wisconsin residents ways to make their mouths smell great. A regular oral hygiene routine is always the best option, but if you are somewhere that makes brushing and flossing impractical, there are a number of other options available.

Mouthwash

Our Quirt Family dentists recommends that you use a mouthwash as part of your daily teeth-cleaning system, and you can also rinse your mouth anytime you feel a bout of bad breath coming on. You have to be very careful when selecting a mouth rinse, however: many are simply cosmetic, briefly covering up smells without getting at the root of the problem.

When you are trying to choose a mouthwash, there are a few things to look for. Pay close attention to the alcohol content, because more than a 20 percent concentration can actually increase bad breath by further drying out your mouth. Also, pH balanced products are better, which includes anything with a pH of about 5.5 or higher. Brands that fit within these guidelines include CariFree®, Cepacol®, and Act®.

Mints and Gums

If you would prefer to use a mint or a gum, you should make sure that the first ingredient is xylitol, a natural sweetener that does not harm teeth the way common sugar does and may actually prevent cavities from forming. Here at Quirt Family Dentistry, our favorites are Tic Tac® Chill mints, Spry® mints and gums, and Trident® gums.

Don’t forget that while it is not bad to cover up foul-smelling breath, you need to make sure that your Quirt Family dentist is aware of this problem so that we can rule out any serious diseases that may cause this condition.

Not to worry! Quirt Family Dentistry is here to explain dry mouth, its causes and how to fix it. We want all Wisconsin residents to have a perfect Valentine’s Day, however they choose to spend it, and a great way to start is with fresh, healthy breath!

Dry Mouth = Bad Breath

There are many things that could contribute to a dry mouth, such as how long it has been since you’ve eaten or drank, what you last ate or drank, the amount of physical activity you’ve participated in, or even what time of day it is. Other factors can include medication, systemic diseases, body chemistry, and overall health.

Halitosis affects nearly everyone in the population at some point in their lives and is estimated to be the third leading cause for dental appointments. Our Quirt Family dentists are certainly no stranger to discussing this issue, so don’t be afraid to mention it at your appointment. Bad breath is not a new problem either: there are historical records mentioning it dating all the way back to 1550 BC.

How to Know if You Have Bad Breath

A huge problem with bad breath is simply figuring out whether or not you have it. If you are too scared to ask your dentist or hygienist at our Wisconsin locations, you can also check with a trusted friend or family member. If that is still too intimidating, try licking your wrist or scraping the back of your tongue with a plastic spoon, waiting a minute for it to dry and then smelling the results. Keep in mind that self-tests only give approximations and that your breath changes hundreds of times throughout the day.

If you have breath that is extremely foul or persistent, it may be a sign of a serious underlying medical issue. At your appointment our Quirt Family Dental staff will be able to rule out any life-threatening causes and help you discover ways to treat the problems.

So You Have Bad Breath

You have officially figured out that you have bad breath. Now what? The best solution is, as always, to maintain a proper dental hygiene routine, but you can’t brush your teeth all day every day. When you brush your teeth, don’t forget to clean off your tongue, where 80-90% of all bad breath issues reside.

Sipping water is the perfect way to keep your mouth from drying out and it encourages salivary flow as well. Stay away from offending foods such as garlic, onions, fish and cheese. If you do eat one of these, or find that your breath is suddenly stinky, use a mint, mouthwash, or gum. See our next blog post for which brands our Quirt Family dentists recommend the most!

What is Hydrogen Peroxide?

Hydrogen peroxide is a common household product that can be found for very cheap at your local pharmacy or grocery store. Chemically, it is two oxygen molecules with two oxygen molecules, and it appears as a clear liquid with about the consistency of water. In the solution you can find in stores, it is diluted with water to only 3%.

1) To Ease a Toothache

If one of your teeth starts to hurt and you can’t make it to one of our Wisconsin offices right away, try putting a capful of hydrogen peroxide in your mouth and holding it there for ten minutes, then spitting it out. This can be repeated several times a day until the pain subsides.

Much of the pain people experience in toothaches is caused by swelling and infection, which hydrogen peroxide helps fight. However, remember that this should only be used as a short term solution and you should see your Quirt Family dentist as soon as possible.

2) To Help Treat Gingivitis

Hydrogen peroxide is a great way to kill germs, and germs are the force that leads to gingivitis. After you floss and brush your teeth, vigorously swish with an ounce of hydrogen peroxide, making sure to get all of the gum lines, including behind the upper lip. Swish for 5 or 6 seconds, then spit the chemical out and rinse with water.

3) To Clean Your Toothbrush

Once a week or more, soak your toothbrush bristles in a freshly poured cup of hydrogen peroxide. After about five seconds, watch it bubble as it kills the germs!

Leave your toothbrush in the cup for a few minutes to ensure it is properly cleaned, then rinse it off with water. Make sure to always use a fresh cup of hydrogen peroxide, as the chemical degrades when it’s exposed to light.

4) As a Toothpaste Substitute

Ever forget to buy toothpaste and find yourself without even that last little bit? Mix together one part hydrogen peroxide to four parts baking soda and brush your teeth with that. It may be a little grittier than you’re used to, but it works in mostly the same way.

Don’t forget though, that hydrogen peroxide degrades with light, so you can’t make large batches of this solution to store for later use.

5) To Propel a Rocket

Okay, so you can’t actually do this with the diluted, 3% concentration of hydrogen peroxide that is sold at stores. And you certainly shouldn’t put rockets in your mouth. But the chemical was used at 70-98% concentrations to propel rockets during World War II, and is still used for some satellites. How cool is that?

This Quirt Family Dentistry post is just to help you take care of your teeth by protecting them from stains and ridding them of any discoloration as safely as possible.

Why does coffee stain teeth?

Coffee is one of the leading causes of stained teeth in our area, and the discoloration can be as unsightly as those from tobacco. So why does coffee stain?

Unlike other drinks such as tea and red wine, coffee does not contain the chemical tannic acid, which is responsible for staining teeth. Coffee simply passes on its dark color to your teeth, as it does to porcelain cups, sweaters, and white carpet.

Protect Your Teeth from Coffee Stains

The most effective and easiest way to protect your teeth is to rinse with water when you finish your cup of coffee. Water is a great, healthy drink anyway, and using it to follow coffee helps rid the caustic chemicals from your mouth.

Another piece of advice that may seem strange is to drink your coffee as quickly as possible. This will minimize the time your teeth are in contact with the staining liquid, which will help prevent and diminish the damage to your enamel.

Whiten Teeth

If your teeth are already stained from coffee or any other substance, whitening may be an option. You should always check with our Quirt Family dentists before whitening your teeth, and our Wisconsin dental staff will recommend the treatment that is right for you.

There are many whitening options available, whether you choose to use an in-office treatment or buy strips or gels from the store. We can help you find the perfect choice that will get rid of stains without damaging your teeth

Coffee and Caffeine

Of course, both for your teeth and your general health, it is best to limit the amount of coffee you drink each day. Too much caffeine, whether it’s from coffee or Red Bull© or Pepsi©, can affect your heart and stomach and lead to serious health problems over time.

Here in our Wisconsin offices, we want to do everything we can to protect and maintain not only your oral health, but your overall health as well. If you have any questions about coffee stains, teeth whitening, or anything else, please contact Quirt Family Dentistry today!