General Dentistry

At Hammond Aesthetic & General Dentistry in Provo we are sometimes asked about Xylitol. What is it, exactly? Is there really a sweetener that helps prevent cavities?

The answer is not a simple yes or no. Xylitol is a natural sweetener that was first discovered in birch tree bark, but is also found in many fruits and vegetables. Unlike most other sweeteners (natural or synthetic), xylitol is actually beneficial for your teeth. It is used in many products, including chewing gum.

Clinical studies have established that xylitol impedes the growth of the bacteria that initiates decay. It also reduces plaque and strengthens tooth enamel.

Xylitol has other benefits, as well. Because it is low on the glycemic index, many patients with diabetes enjoy it as a healthy alternative to sugar. For those who live with frequent dry mouth, xylitol gum or mints can stimulate saliva production while preserving against cavities.

Is xylitol gum as effective as brushing your teeth and seeing the dentist regularly? Absolutely not! If you cannot brush your teeth after a meal, chewing xylitol gum for five or ten minutes is probably a good idea. However, you should still brush your teeth thoroughly (with a soft brush) after meals and get twice-yearly exams and dental cleanings.

Of course, xylitol-sweetened products are no substitute for brushing and flossing. Patients from American Fork and Lehi come to Hammond Aesthetic & General Dentistry in Provo. Our goal is to keep your smile healthy and beautiful for life by preventing dental problems before they start! Services include general and cosmetic dentistry. Schedule an appointment today.

Contact Hammond Aesthetic & General Dentistry:

801-374-0070

Location (Tap to open in Google Maps):

3575 N 100 E Ste 200
Provo, Utah
84604

 

It’s easy to become a little complacent about your dental health. At Hammond Aesthetic & General Dentistry in Provo, we know that all too well! Our goal in this blog post is for you to evaluate where you stand and consider how you can improve things.

Brushing

Good: Brush teeth once a day.
Better: Brush teeth right after each meal.
Best: Brush after each meal and floss correctly before bed.

Dental Checkups

Good: See us if you get a toothache.
Better: See us once a year even if you don’t notice any dental problems.
Best: Twice-yearly, have a thorough dental exam and professional dental cleaning at our office.

A White Smile

Good: Use a whitening toothpaste.
Better: Use a whitening product at home.
Best: Schedule an in-office whitening treatment.

Missing Tooth

Good enough for some people: Ignore it. (We don’t recommend this.)
Better: Get a quality dental bridge.
Best: Restore your smile with a beautiful, durable, and natural-functioning dental implant.

Smile-Friendly Nutrition

Good: Eat a healthy diet.
Better: Eat a healthy diet and limit sugary snacks and beverages.
Best: Eat a wholesome diet, limit between-meal snacking, eat lots of calcium-rich foods, minimize sugary foods, abstain from energy drinks and soda, and sip water throughout the day to keep acid at bay.

At Hammond Aesthetic & General Dentistry in Provo, we are big advocates of preventative care. We want all our patients to enjoy excellent dental health. Find out why people from American Fork and Lehi trust us with their smiles! We offer general and cosmetic dentistry, and much more. Schedule a checkup with us today!

Contact Hammond Aesthetic & General Dentistry:

801-374-0070

Location (Tap to open in Google Maps):

3575 N 100 E Ste 200
Provo, Utah
84604

 

Gum disease is a leading cause of tooth loss among adults. Nearly half of Americans over the age of thirty have gum disease in some form. At Hammond Aesthetic & General Dentistry in Provo we help our patients maintain healthy teeth and gums.

What do your gums do?

Gum tissue has an important job. It protects the roots of your teeth and provides a barrier for the connective tissues and ligaments that hold your teeth in their sockets. It also protects the alveolar bone in which your teeth are anchored.

What is gum disease?

Gum disease is inflammation and infection of this soft tissue. It starts with inflammation. Gums become swollen and tender. Early stage gum disease is called gingivitis. If it progresses, the gums pull away from the teeth, developing pockets. This more severe condition is called periodontitis or periodontal disease.

Signs of gum disease include:

• Swollen gums
• Receding gums
• A change in the color of gums
• Loose or shifting teeth
• Pain and tenderness
• Changes in your bite

As serious as gum disease is on its own, it also puts you at risk of conditions like heart disease. The good news is that gum disease is 100% preventable with regular brushing and flossing, and dental checkups.

At Hammond Aesthetic & General Dentistry in Provo provide complete family dentistry. Patients come to us from American Fork and Lehi also come to us to improve their smiles with porcelain veneers. Please call to schedule your next checkup today!

Contact Hammond Aesthetic & General Dentistry:

801-374-0070

Location (Tap to open in Google Maps):

3575 N 100 E Ste 200
Provo, Utah
84604

 

This post from Hammond Aesthetic and General Dentistry in Provo focuses on a very serious matter—oral  cancers.

The medical community categorizes oral cancers as a subset of head and neck cancers.

Oral cancers can arise in the following locations:

• The tongue
• The roof of the mouth and under the tongue
• The inside of the cheeks
• The oropharynx (the part behind the soft palate)
• The salivary glands
• The lips

Oral Cancers Are Particularly Deadly

Over 50,000 people are diagnosed with a type of oral cancer every year, and 10,000 people die from it. They are more common in men than women. There is no disparity when it comes to race.

The prognosis is usually grim: statistics reveal that only 57 percent of those diagnosed this year will be alive in five years.

Warning Signs

Let’s consider the common, and the not-so-common, warning signs of oral cancer.

• Any sore or lump in the mouth or throat should be taken seriously.
• Any white or red patch could also be a symptom.
• Numbness of any oral feature
• Any type of lesion, cut, or canker-type sore that doesn’t heal within 14 days

Less-common symptoms include tongue pain and loose teeth. A hoarse voice that doesn’t go away should be a concern. Unexplained tooth discoloration is rare but not unheard of.

The link between any cancer and tobacco is by now well-established. Whay may not be widely known is that this includes vaping.

At Hammond Aesthetic and General Dentistry in Provo, oral cancer screenings are among the special services we provide at every checkup. We offer a full range of services, including dental implants. Call to schedule an appointment today!

Contact Hammond Aesthetic & General Dentistry:

801-374-0070

Location (Tap to open in Google Maps):

3575 N 100 E Ste 200
Provo, Utah
84604

 

Here is some essential news for anyone who cares about their dental health: gum disease is a principal cause of tooth loss among adults. There is also evidence that it is connected to heart disease. Fortunately, gum disease is treatable at Hammond Aesthetic and General Dentistry in Provo.

What warning signs should you be looking for?

1. Gums that bleed frequently
2. Gums that appear tender, swollen, or very red, or gums that have visible pus in between them when they are pushed
3. Your bite changes or your teeth suddenly don’t seem to fit together
4. Gums that are pulling away from the teeth
5. A bad taste in the mouth or chronic bad breath

We hope you are not suffering from any of these. If you are not removing plaque between your teeth, however, your gums are at risk. Brushing alone is not adequate—make sure you floss daily.

Regular check-ups are another critical weapon in the fight against gum disease.

At Hammond Aesthetic & General Dentistry in Provo, we take pride in caring for our patients and want them to have healthy and pleasing smiles. Services include family dentistry, and specialties like dental implants. Call for an appointment today!

Contact Hammond Aesthetic & General Dentistry:

801-374-0070

Location (Tap to open in Google Maps):

3575 N 100 E Ste 200
Provo, Utah
84604

 

At Hammond Aesthetic and General Dentistry in Provo, we say it all the time: see us twice a year for a cleaning and checkup. And happily, most of our patients are really good about making and keeping their appointments twice a year. It’s the best way to stay on top of their dental health.

As important as healthy teeth are, you should know that good dental health is also directly related to your overall health. Poor dental health has been linked to various diseases and conditions, such as heart disease, premature birth and low birth weight, and diabetes.

Furthermore, poor dental health leads to gum disease. With regular brushing and flossing, and twice yearly dental checkups, gum disease is 100 percent preventable.

More Reasons

The above should be enough to get anyone in to the dentist’s office twice a year. But if it isn’t enough, here are three more very good reasons why you should get a cleaning and checkup every six months.

• Plaque and tartar. Even with brushing and flossing twice a day, plaque can build up on the teeth and gums. Plaque hardens into tartar. Simply put, there are areas in the mouth that your floss and toothbrush just cannot reach. Professional cleanings, however, can.
• X-rays. By taking dental x-rays and updating them regularly, we can detect problems that a simple visual inspection won’t turn up. The sooner new issues are treated, the better: treatment will be easier, less painful, and less expensive.
• Oral cancer. It isn’t just smokers who need to be concerned about oral cancer; anyone can get it. Finding it in its earliest stages gives you the best chance for successful treatment and a full recovery. We can check for any symptoms, and if we find them, tell you what you need to do.

As you can see, there are lots of reasons why it’s important to visit Hammond Aesthetic and General Dentistry in Provo twice a year for a cleaning and checkup. We offer family and cosmetic dentistry. Schedule your next checkup today!

Contact Hammond Aesthetic & General Dentistry:

801-374-0070

Location (Tap to open in Google Maps):

3575 N 100 E Ste 200
Provo, Utah
84604

 

In this blog post from Hammond Aesthetic and General Dentistry in Provo, we are going to review the complexity and importance of your saliva.

You may pause, and think yuk. But there’s nothing to be squeamish about. Saliva is a finely balanced body fluid that not only maintains dental health but also aids in the digestion of your food.

So, without further ado, here are the main components of saliva.

1. Water. No surprise here! Your saliva consists of water, for the most part.
2. Enzymes. Enzymes are essential biological catalysts that speed chemical reactions. The enzymes in saliva begin the process of digestion.
3. Immunoproteins. These are powerful cells that fight invaders, such as bacteria. The immunoproteins in saliva curb the overgrowth of microbes in the mouth. This is critical for avoiding gingivitis and keeping the proper pH balance in the mouth.
4. Minerals. Saliva minerals help with maintaining the protective enamel surface of the teeth.

Most people produce enough saliva, but some suffer from dry mouth, which is a lack of saliva. This can be detrimental to your dental health, so be sure to talk to us if you are experiencing this.

At Hammond Aesthetic and General Dentistry in Provo we want the best possible dental health for each of our patients. Services include family dentistry, and specialties like dental implants. Schedule an appointment today!

Contact Hammond Aesthetic & General Dentistry:

801-374-0070

Location (Tap to open in Google Maps):

3575 N 100 E Ste 200
Provo, Utah
84604

 

Too often at Hammond Aesthetic & General Dentistry in Provo, we treat cavities and damage caused by the following:

1. Sports Injuries

Many parents send their kids out on the playing field with a mouthguard but fail to safeguard themselves when they participate in activities that put teeth at risk. Talk to us at Hammond Aesthetic & General Dentistry about custom sports mouthguards for every athlete in the family.

2. Ice Chomping

Many people love chewing ice, especially that irresistible pebble ice you can get in some fountain drinks. You may not even be aware that you chew on the ice when you have finished your beverage. Breaking this habit can protect your teeth from cracks, chips, and tooth sensitivity.

3. Oral Piercings

Are you someone who expresses your personality with piercings in and around the mouth? We strongly discourage this. In addition to the risk of cracking or chipping, infection and permanent nerve damage can develop.

4. Gummy or Sour Candy

Of course all candies are no friend to your enamel, but gummy candy packs a double punch because it is both sugary and clings firmly to teeth. Sour candy triggers even more acid production than sugary candy alone. If your sweet tooth is extremely persuasive, chew sugarless gum.

5. Eating Disorders

These complex disorders have a multitude of mental and physical ramifications and, for most affected people, cannot be simply wished away. If you suffer from bulimia or anorexia, we hope you are receiving the appropriate professional treatment. Be advised, however, that there are some things you can do to obtain a measure of protection for your teeth while you work through the healing process.

What If It’s Too Late?

If you have oral health issues due to one of these, or for any other reason, there are still ways to heal your smile. Virtually all tooth damage can be treated with advanced dentistry. We pride ourselves on providing answers to the dental issues caused by common smile wreckers.

At Hammond Aesthetic & General Dentistry in Provo, we offer dental implants, porcelain veneers, an a wide range of other services. Schedule an appointment today.

Contact Hammond Aesthetic & General Dentistry:

801-374-0070

Location (Tap to open in Google Maps):

3575 N 100 E Ste 200
Provo, Utah
84604