Broken Baby Tooth in Douglasville? Yes, It Matters!

Those first baby teeth are an important milestone in your child’s development. They’re important to help her start to talk and chew food, and be a placeholder for her permanent teeth. Losing baby teeth is a natural process, but accidents will happen, especially as your baby becomes a toddler.

Despite your best efforts, baby teeth can crack or chip, or even be knocked out in a fall or accident. Don’t ignore it, even though it will be replaced by a permanent tooth. If it’s badly cracked, chipped, or lost completely, get to the dentist right away. You might want to use some ice covered with a cloth to prevent swelling.

If your child damages or loses a permanent tooth, find the tooth or fragments if you can and bring them with you to your dentist in Douglasville. If you can’t get to a dentist right away, put the tooth in milk until you can. If the tooth is intact, you could try rinsing it gently (don’t scrub) and try to place the tooth back in the socket until you can get to the dentist.

Don’t panic! A baby tooth will soon be replaced with a permanent tooth and damage to a permanent tooth can be repaired with a crown or dental bonding and look as good as new!

Your family keeps you busy, but don’t neglect your own dental care! Call us at our dental office in Douglasville at 855-410-2757 for all your dental care needs. We want to help keep everyone in your family healthy and well!

Wise Up About Wisdom Teeth, Douglasville!

Wise Up About Wisdom Teeth, Douglasville!

Wisdom teeth come in during our late teens or early 20s. They can cause problems, such as coming in unevenly,partially, or not at all. When this happens, they’re called partial or fully impacted wisdom teeth. Most of the time, the solution is to extract them, and at Jim Williams, DMD in Douglasville, we are here to make the experience as comfortable and relaxing as possible.

There are some interesting facts about wisdom teeth that you might not know.

• In some regions in the world, the population never develops wisdom teeth, and in others nearly 100% of people do develop their wisdom teeth! Scientists don’t know why although the phenomenon is being studied.

• Wisdom teeth can grow in at almost any angle, towards the next tooth, towards the back of the mouth, even at a right angle to other teeth!

• Impacted wisdom teeth are an ancient problem. The oldest known impacted wisdom tooth belonged to an unfortunate European woman who lived roughly 15,000 years ago.

The most important fact about wisdom teeth is that if you experience any pain or soreness, call our dental office in Douglasville at 855-410-2757 as soon as possible. Additionally, keeping up with regular dental visits can help us determine if there are any potential problems with your wisdom teeth and if extractions are necessary. If you’re due for a dental checkup, give us a call today!

These Teeth in Douglasville Were Made For…

…biting and chewing food, talking, giving your face its structure. Period! Tooth enamel seems like a hard surface, but it’s not made to withstand excess pressure or habits that erode it.

At Dr. Jim Williams’ dental office in Douglasville, we hear a lot of bad habits! Do any of these actions sound familiar?

●      Crunching and sipping

Now that may sound like what teeth are made for, but we’re talking about crunching things like ice cubes, or even popcorn kernels. Bite down on them the wrong way, and you could end up with a cracked tooth.

Sipping? Yes! Soda (even diet), tea, and other acidic beverages can eventually erode your teeth, especially if you habitually consume them.

●      Using teeth as tools

Teeth aren’t nutcrackers or bottle openers! Or any other tool!

●      Tooth grinding

If you grind your teeth, even in your sleep, you can wear them down without even noticing! You may need a night guard or other appliance to help stop grinding, and if your teeth are worn down, you may need further dental treatment.

●      Hard-bristled toothbrush

A toothbrush with hard bristles might seem like a good idea, but it’s better to use a soft- or medium-bristled brush, and brush regularly and longer! Set the timer for two minutes to make sure you are brushing long enough to get your teeth clean.

●      Not brushing or flossing enough

Brush and floss your teeth at least twice a day, in the morning after breakfast and before bedtime. If you can’t brush during the day, try to drink plain water so you can at least “rinse” out any food particles or acidic drinks.

If you have any of these habits, it’s never too late to change! If you have any tooth or gum pain for any reason, please call our dental office in Douglasville as soon as possible!