Yesterday ABC played a story in their “Hidden America” series entitled “Do Dentists Turn Children Away.” It’s an emotional piece, for sure. It features many adorable low income kids in various states of dental distress and it levels some pretty serious charges at government and the dental community. Chris Cuomo, the story’s reporter, ended the story with, “…we went after them 5 years ago, it didn’t get done. This time we will not rest. This is unacceptable.” Diane Sawyer replied “And what about the good dentistsout there that want to help the 60% [of children on Medicaid without a dentist] who are living their lives right now and can’t wait…” Chris Cuomo went on to mention that some dentists are “doing the right thing…” The take home message I get from this report is that “dentists don’t care about poor kids.”
"not acceptable!"
This report comes on the heels of ABC’s coverage of “dental x-rays causing brain tumors.” It seems that dentists are getting all kinds of help from ABC news to tarnish our images this month! Like we needed it! So why won’t dentists take care of these needy kids? Is it that they don’t care? Or maybe they’re just unwilling to make less money while helping poor people. Either way, dentists are clearly bad guys.
I can only speak for myself. I’ve discussed this with other dentists often and most tend to agree with my perspective, though. I do take limited amounts of Michigan’s version of Medicaid dental coverage for kids/adolescents/young adults. Why don’t I take more? Here’s a few of those reasons:
limited services: This is probably the main reason that I’m hesitant to get more involved with these programs. I have a toolbox that I bring with me when I treat patients. (Not literally…I actually have an office!) I have a lot of different treatments to offer for different dental problems. Some of these tools work better in some situations, some work better for others. In extensive problems, some of these just aren’t workable. One of the things that frustrates me is that Medicaid will pay for a root canal procedure to save a tooth, but they will not allow you to restore the tooth appropriately after the root canal treatment! A lot of teeth that end up requiring a root canal have lost a lot of tooth structure. A filling is inadequate for these teeth, but that’s what is covered. If I go ahead and do what I feel as appropriate, the program will not cover it and it becomes the patient’s responsibility. Most patients aren’t willing or able to pay for the appropriate treamtent. So, my toolbox gets much smaller for patients using these programs.
limited payment: The fees that the Medicaid programs pay are low. That’s what everyone knows. The news programs always say this, but they never dig any deeper than that. To be specific, Healthy Kids dental in Michigan reimburses my office at about 50% of my regular fee. People hear this and think that dental offices make 50% less when they see kids on the Healthy Kids program. That’s not accurate. Most dental offices are small businesses run to make a profit. A dental office needs to collect a certain amount of money just to pay rent, utilities, equipment costs, employees…the basics. This is called overhead, and every business has it. You need to average a certain number of dollars for each unit of time in order to keep the doors open. If you don’t average this amount, the office doesn’t make a profit. Some offices can change their overhead structure by working more quickly, seeing more patients, using less expensive materials or paying their employees less to make up this difference. I won’t do that. I don’t want to have to change the way I treat patients to be able to participate with the program. My patients expect amazing service and a certain atmosphere and I’m not willing to sacrifice that. You may think that makes me a snob, but I think my patients appreciate it. So, when I see Healthy Kids patients, I’m working for free. The good news is, overhead is figured on an average, so I’m willing to take a loss on some patients. But as I mentioned before, I limit the number of patients I will see on the program.
ethical traps: Medicaid programs give each provider dentist a particular menu of procedures and their associated codes that are covered benefits. It could be tempting for a dentist to “overuse” a code that they wouldn’t normally charge separately for. I’m not saying that it’s wrong to do so and I’m not saying that it is common. All I’m saying is the that the temptation to “overcode” can be there.
All kids deserve healthy teeth!
dental prevention: Most dental diseases, especially in children are 100% preventable. These programs are at their absolute best when they are used for prevention: specifically early childhood examination and education of good dietary and brushing habits. Unfortunately, most people end up in need of these services after a child has problems, often really bad problems. The horse is already out of the barn at that point. These programs become much less helpful for those patients, and they will often need extensive care that can only be handled by pediatric dentists.
This is where I’m coming from. I’m not sure it would be a satisfying answer for Diane Sawyer. It’s a lot better TV when you can point the finger of blame at a particular group, especially when a lot of folks are pretty anxious about that group in the first place. The news media plays a story that riles people up, and then they forget about it. In the mean time, people look at dentists as greedy and uncaring. If you feel like dentists aren’t doing good things for poor kids, you need to ask yourself: in the same position, would you be willing to work for free? How much work would you be willing to do for free?
The Michigan Dental Association will be sponsoring it’s first Mission of Mercy in June of 2013. These amazing events allow Michigan dentists to see around 2000 patients in a weekend for no charge. Next year’s Mission of Mercy will be held on campus at Saginaw Valley State University. I’m planning on being a part of the 2013 MOM. I think this kind of event is an effective way to help people who might otherwise not be able to get dental care. So Diane Sawyer might have it wrong about dentists!
Did you find this post frustrating? Thought provoking? Angering? I’d love to hear about it! You can share any Mead Family Dental post with a “Like” on Facebook, a “+1″ on Google+ or you can even “Tweet” it with Twitter! All you need to do is hover over the heart shaped button next to the title of the post. Or you can leave a comment by clicking on the balloon shaped icon next to the title.
If you’re looking for a dentist in Saginaw, we’re always happy to accept new patients! You can request an appointment online or call the office at (989) 799-9133. And, as always, you can email me at alan@meadfamilydental.com. I always answer my own emails!
I see it all the time. A look of concern on a mom’s face while their child is having their teeth cleaned. “Are there cavities?” they wonder. “Will they need braces?” Wouldn’t it be nice if you could relax in our comfortable waiting room knowing that your kid is going to have a brilliant dental check up? Here’s some things you can do to give your kids a really good shot at dental health!
Be a great example: Your kids see and hear everything that you do. And they somehow always repeat what you’ve said at incredibly bad times (think “daddy doesn’t like Grandma’s cooking” at Thanksgiving dinner). So they see how you take care of your teeth, too. They notice if you brush and floss often, or not. They’ll see you chew sugarless gum after meals and will probably want some, too!
Get your teeth fixed: tooth decay and gum disease are a bacterial infections. They are transmitted in a similar fashion to a cold. The bugs that cause tooth decay are almost always transmitted from mother to child, although anyone who is a prominent care provider (dads, grandparents) can also transmit them. What I’m saying is that your kids will have your bugs. What determines what kind of bugs you have? People who have lots of cavities, particularly lots of untreated cavities will have nastier bugs. So, if you’ve got a history of lots of cavities or you have work that you need to have done, you probably have nastier cavity bugs. And you’ll probably transmit them to your kids. The moral of the story…have your teeth fixed and your kids will have healthier teeth.
Bring ‘em in early, and often: The American Academy of Pediatric Dentistry (AAPD) recommends “first visit by first birthday.” Practically speaking, you should bring them in once they have their first tooth. And they should be checked every year after that until they start having their teeth cleaned, which is usually around the age of 4. Having a dentist look at your child’s teeth often can help find problems while they’re small. Since baby teeth are actually more susceptible to cavities than adult teeth, this is pretty important.
You brush their teeth, then let them brush their teeth: It’s great to raise independent children. It’s great that they want to take care of themselves. But you need to brush their teeth. An adult should brush first, then the kiddo brushes second. Parents, you’ll need to brush with a firm hold on your little cherub’s head. And you need to retract (pull apart) their lips with the hand that you’re holding their head with so that you can see the surfaces of their teeth. As one pediatric dentist once told me, “if you can’t see what you’re brushing, you’re not brushing it well.” Once you’ve scrubbed all the surfaces, then let the child have a chance to do the same thing. How long until they’re old enough to brush on their own? Well, my oldest is 4 years old and I’m thinking it’s going to be 6 more years of me using the “loving headlock” on him.
No bottles in bed!
Don’t put a baby down with a bottle: Don’t get in the habit of putting your baby down with a bottle. Once they get used to it, it’s much more difficult to break the habit, so don’t do it! Even if you’re giving them formula or breast milk, there are still sugars in them that can be turned into acid by cavity bugs. Pediatric dentists often times call the massive tooth decay found in very young children “baby bottle tooth decay” for a reason. If you have to put a baby to bed with a bottle, use only water!
Reduce the juice: When you think of fruit juice you think of “wholesome” and “healthy.” When I think of fruit juice I think “tons of sugar” and “high acid content.” Kids should have limited fruit juice intake. It’s really tough on teeth and almost always has a lot of added sugar. I know it goes against how fruit juice is marketed, but it’s true. Eating fruit = great! Drinking fruit juice = really bad for teeth. If you want to give your kids juice, do it at meal times…not snack time!
If you do these things the risk factors for cavities and other dental problems can be reduced significantly! So when you’re waiting for your baby to have their cleaning finished you can sit back, relax and know you’ve done your job. Ahhhh! Doesn’t that feel better?
Did you find this post helpful? Informative? Bone headed? I’d love to hear about it! You can share any Mead Family Dental post with a “Like” on Facebook, a “+1″ on Google+ or you can even “Tweet” it with Twitter! All you need to do is hover over the heart shaped button next to the title of the post. Or you can leave a comment by clicking on the balloon shaped icon next to the title.
If you’re looking for a dentist in Saginaw, we’re always happy to accept new patients! You can request an appointment online or call the office at (989) 799-9133. And, as always, you can email me at alan@meadfamilydental.com. I always answer my own emails!
Sooner or later, it’s probably going to happen. If you’ve got a tongue stud or a lip piercing, you’re going to break a tooth. Or maybe something worse.
Really, I don’t like being the square who tells you that your pierced tongue is a problem. I’d love to tell you that there’s no risk to your teeth and gums. But I’d be lying. It’s not that every single tongue or lip piercing is going to break a tooth, but you increase your risk significantly by doing it. Just like drinking a lot of pop increases your risk for cavities. In fact, oral piercings increase your risk of several dental problems.
"Doc, I'm terrified of needles!"
If you’ve ever been around someone with a new piercing, you’ll find that people play with them. It’s a new and different feeling and it’s your tongue’s job to make sure it checks everything out in your mouth. So you’ll clack that thing against your teeth. Or you’ll push it up against the roof of your mouth. You’re going to mess around with it. Worse than that is the fact that you have these two weighted masses (one on the top, one on the bottom) on either side of your tongue that can affect your tongue’s proprioception. Proprioception is a very fancy word that describes the way your nervous system just knows where it’s parts are. The reason that you can touch your nose with your eyes closed is because you have proprioceptive nerve cells that describe to your brain where your finger is compared to your nose. It’s like the body’s GPS system for it’s parts. Adding a tongue stud throws these proprioceptive nerves off the same way holding a barbell in your hand would throw off that little “touch your nose with your finger” exercise. The likely result is that you’re going to accidentally bite that thing or whack it against a tooth. Do this enough times and you’ll probably break a tooth.
an odd place for a tooth to break
I recently saw a patient who had a broken tooth that was sensitive. I see a lot of broken teeth, but this one was broken in an odd place. So I asked him if there was a great story…and there was. His answer, “I used to have a tongue piercing. It broke that tooth, so I took it out the day I broke it.” So, there you have it. He decreased his risk of another broken tooth by taking it out!
There are little strings that attach your lower lip to your jawbone. Look in a mirror while you pull your lower lip forward and you’ll see them. These things are called frena (singular: frenum). Some folks have a frenum attachment that’s pretty close to the gum line of their lower front teeth. If you add a lip piercing, you can get a pretty consistent tug on these frena. And sometimes, the gum tissue starts to recede around those front teeth.
It's all fun and games until your gum starts receding
This kind of aggressive recession actually causes you to lose the bone that supports those teeth. What can happen then? You could lose those teeth. Often the procedures needed just to hang onto those teeth (gum grafts and other reconstructive procedures) can be expensive and unpredictable. So again, having this kind of a piercing isn’t a guarantee that you’ll have these problems, but it increases your risk of problems significantly.
Finally, the piercing procedures themselves have a great risk of infection. I’ve been told that the people that do piercings take great care to make sure that they use clean and sterile instruments and I have no reason not to believe them. But even the cleanest and best procedures done by folks with high levels of training are at risk for infection. Most people wouldn’t choose to have surgery on their lip or tongue without a good reason. But oral piercings are essentially surgery, or at least the healing that you must do is the same. All surgeries have risk of infection, and piercings are no different. Worse than that, someone who’s gone through the decision to have a piercing and the procedure itself isn’t likely to take it out. Even if it’s the problem causing an infection!
"I didn't sign up for an infected tongue!"
What can I say? I’m a buzz kill. Oral piercings increase your risk of broken teeth, gum problems and infection. You shouldn’t do it. But if you do, realize that there are problems, sometimes expensive problems, that you may have to deal with! On the other hand, I want you to know that if you have a problem with a piercing, I’m happy to help. I’ve treated many people with complications from piercings and I can help if you’ve had a “piercing induced problem.” You can easily request an appointment on the website or call us at (989) 799-9133. We’re here for all of our patients…even those with piercings!
Did you find this post helpful? Silly? Earth shaking? I’d love to hear about it! You can share any Mead Family Dental post with a “Like” on Facebook, a “+1″ on Google+ or you can even “Tweet” it with Twitter! All you need to do is hover over the heart shaped button next to the title of the post. Or you can leave a comment by clicking on the balloon shaped icon next to the title.
If you’re looking for a dentist in Saginaw, we’re always happy to accept new patients! You can request an appointment online or call the office at (989) 799-9133. And, as always, you can email me at alan@meadfamilydental.com. I always answer my own emails!
It’s the time of year for resolutions again. The problem with resolutions is that they’re usually too hard to keep. We usually ask too much of ourselves or they don’t really fit into our lifestyle.
So instead of resolving to eat nothing but lettuce for the entirety of 2012 or reducing your carbon footprint by 95% you might try one (or all) of these.
Check your calendar and make sure you have a dental checkup scheduled. If you need one, give us a call at (989) 799-9133 or click on the button at the upper right of this page that says “make an appointment online.!” We can get you set up right away and you can feel good knowing you’re doing the right thing for your teeth!
Floss your teeth at least once every day. I know, I know. Everyone hates flossing, but everyone needs to do it. People who floss regularly almost never have cavities in between their teeth. Remove that biofilm and your teeth will thank you!
Start small. Make the whole resolution thing nice and easy. You’ll feel better about yourself and then maybe next year you can resolve to swear off using the letter “S”. Or whatever makes you feel good.
All of us at Mead Family Dental wish you and yours a wonderful and prosperous new year. If you’re looking for a dentist in Saginaw or just have any questions for me, feel free to drop me an email at alan@meadfamilydental.com. We’re looking forward to serving you in 2012!
I have a really cool opportunity to speak with the dental students at UDM in Detroit! My slides are available if anyone wants to see them at www.meadfamilydental.com/udm.
We hope you have a fantastic Halloween! We have a warm place in our hearts for this scary holiday here at Mead Family Dental. Last year we featured Kathy as an undead pirate. I can hardly wait to see what she’s come up with this year!
As a dentist, Halloween makes me think of two things. Scary Halloween teeth and all that candy.
First…check out some of the very cool, very scary Halloween teeth I’ve found.
For those of you who prefer the horrifying monster look we have “minion fangs” found at www.halloween-mask.com.
“Dental Distortions” (www.dentaldistortions.com) provides several terrifying options for vampire fans.
For those who prefer their fangs on canine teeth you can choose the “nightslayer” option.
My personal preference has the fangs on the lateral incisors on the “nightbreed” model.
If you prefer a more demonic look I highly recommend the “Lucius” model.
And finally, no discerning trick or treater would want to miss a sweet halloween grill (from www.halloweencostumeworld.com).
Now, on a more serious note, let’s talk about candy. Halloween is a huge candy holiday. Americans buy 600 million pounds of candy each Halloween. That’s a lot of candy. And that’s some serious potential for tooth decay.
There are some things that parents can do to reduce the risks of decay for their trick or treaters. Here’s a few ideas:
Help your children brush their teeth. Dr. Mead’s rule…12 and under should have a parents’ help with brushing. I know you think that’s crazy, but it’s not. 18 and under should have a parent monitor how they brush and check to see how well they’re doing. Good habits developed as a kid means my drill spins less. And that’s a VERY GOOD thing.
Use the Halloween candy extravaganza as a reminder to make an appointment for a dental checkup. If you need an appointment or are looking for a new dentist, we’d be happy to help! You can call the office at (989) 799-9133 or make an appointment online!
It’s tough being a dentist on Halloween. But it’s my duty to spread the word about how we can reduce the risk of cavities for our little ghosts and goblins!
Did you like this post? Do you have any questions I could answer? Feel free to email me at alan@meadfamilydental.com or call us at the office at (989) 799-9133. This Saginaw dentist is always taking new patients and we’d love to be your Saginaw dental office!
“Well,” you say, “it’s not like I eat acid or something. How does this happen? Where does the acid come from?”
That, my friend, is a very good question.
The acid in your mouth comes from two sources. Bacterial acids and dietary acids. Bacterial acids work kind of like this:
you eat something sugary
acid producing bacteria in your mouth grab some of this sugar as you’re eating it
they eat this sugary stuff and produce lactic acid as a waste product
the lactic acid lowers the pH in a local area and begins to break down/eat away tooth structure
The term dentists use for this eating away by acid is demineralization. The acid acts on the hard surfaces of your teeth and leaches out the calcium and other minerals leaving a little hole. This acid attack isn’t simply a one way street. Your saliva acts to repair this demineralization and in most cases is able to fix it before an actual hole in the surface of the tooth forms. However, in some cases where a lot of acid is produced, a hole in the surface of the tooth can form that cannot be fixed by saliva. Once a hole like this has formed it’s irreversible and must be fixed with a filling or a crown.
Dietary acids are the second source of acid in your mouth. Many foods contain acids. Citrus fruit, tomatoes, some beans and nuts can contain some acid. However, the biggest problem for your teeth is acid containing drinks. Sodas, energy drinks and other carbonated drinks contain carbonic and phosphoric acids. These drinks cause a huge whole-mouth drop in pH with every sip. The acid in pop alone can cause serious tooth problems, but many of them also include a LOT of sugar. And you remember what we just said about sugar above, right? (sugar–>bacterial yum yums–>acid production)
That’s why pop is a double whammy. It has a very low pH and it has lots of sugar, which the bugs in your mouth can turn into acid. So be careful with pop. It’s better to drink less of it (or none of it).
Are you a pop drinker and worried about your teeth? If you’d like to find out more or just need a dentist in Saginaw, we’d love help! In fact, we’d like to be your Saginaw dentist! Feel free to call the office at (989) 799-9133, request an appointment online or email me at alan@meadfamilydental.com.
Are you sick of getting cavities? Would you like to stop worrying about your next dental check up? Would you prefer to see your dentist in the check out line at Meijer more than looking up at them holding a drill in their hand?
Then read this list. And do them. Today.
1) Brush your teeth 3 times per day (morning, lunchtime, and right before bed) with a soft toothbrush. I’m a fan of the Oral B Cross Action Power. But really, any soft bristled brush will do. Also, only hold it with three fingers when you’re brushing. We humans have a tendency to substitute strength and speed for thoroughness. Just remember, these are teeth, not the bathroom tiles. If you’d like a toothbrush and some instructions on how to use it, come in and see us!
2) Chew sugarless gum for 5 minutes (no more) after every meal. Preferably, gum with xylitol as a sweetener.
3) Check your calendar. If you don’t have an appointment for a cleaning then make one. If you’re looking for a dentist in Saginaw, make one with us!
If you do these things, you will have less cavities. Period. If you do all of them and you’re still getting cavities, you may feel free to show up at the office and punch me in the arm as hard as you can.
Did you like this post? If you did, I would appreciate it if you’d share it with your friends! You can click on the heart shaped icon next to the title of this post and automatically share it on Facebook, Twitter or Google+! Or you can leave a comment by clicking the “balloon” shaped button next to the title. Or send me an email at alan@meadfamilydental.com. I’m happy to answer any questions and appreciate your input. If you are looking for a dentist in Saginaw, MI we would love to see you!
Just because you read all the way to the end of this post…I’m going to give you a bonus 6th thing to help you get less cavities.
The United States celebrates Labor Day today. Most of us celebrate Labor Day with a long weekend and a day off for the holiday on Monday. But do you know how Labor Day came about? I didn’t, so I did a little research…
Labor Day became a national holiday in 1894, under president Grover Cleveland. The holiday had been celebrated as a “workingmen’s holiday” by labor unions since 1882. Many states made the holiday official soon after, but only after the infamous Pullman Strike did the president and congress move to make it a national holiday. The holiday honors working people and labor unions as well as to memorialize their struggles in the past.
In many other parts of the world it’s the first day of May (May Day) that celebrates workers and labor unions. In the U.S., May Day became the traditional “beginning of Spring” holiday because during the Cold War era the Soviet and Eastern Block countries essentially annexed the holiday.
Labor Day is also a landmark time for football fans. The college football season usually starts the weekend prior to Labor Day and the NFL begins it’s regular season the week following Labor Day. (Miami University was drubbed by Mizzou and USC edged out University of Minnesota–Doc’s alma maters)
Michigan has a 54 year long tradition of walking the Mackinac Bridge on Labor Day. The governor leads the 5 mile walk across the Straits of Mackinac and if you’re lucky enough to be one of 400 names drawn you can run the 5 mile bridge run.
The Mackinac Bridge, where a Labor Day tradition lives
So there you have it. A short primer about Labor Day. That’s a lot of information for me to throw at you just to let you know that we won’t be open on September 5th. We will re-open on September 6th with our normal schedule. We hope that you enjoy your holiday weekend, and we hope you have a wonderful autumn 2011!
Did you like this post? If you did, I would appreciate it if you’d share it with your friends! You can click on the heart shaped icon next to the title of this post and automatically share it on Facebook, Twitter or Google+! Or you can leave a comment by clicking the “balloon” shaped button next to the title. Or send me an email at alan@meadfamilydental.com. I’m happy to answer any questions and appreciate your input. If you are looking for a dentist in Saginaw, MI we would love to see you!
