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Here is some surprising yet worthwhile advice you might be hearing for the first time: Brushing after a meal can be incredibly bad for your teeth if you do it after eating certain foods.

Enamel is an extremely hard mineral on the exterior of each of your teeth. It’s actually the hardest substance in the human body: It’s even stronger than your bones! Its only weakness is that acids in the food we eat can easily destroy enamel.

Healthy teeth thrive in an environment that has the proper pH balance. That ensures your mouth doesn’t start the process of demineralization. That’s what happens when alkaline turns into acid, which attacks and softens the enamel on the surface of your teeth. Pores and fissures form, and that’s when the harmful bacteria go to work.

Our mouth’s pH level fluctuates depending on what we eat throughout the day. Examples of the most common highly acidic foods include citrus fruits, soda, and sugary foods. Highly acidic foods tip the balance of pH in your mouth from a healthy alkaline to a dangerous acid.

Can brushing your teeth immediately after a meal lead to even more damage? The answer is yes!

Eating highly acidic foods causes your teeth to be more susceptible. If you brush your teeth when they have been weakened by acids, even more destruction can happen to your enamel. Your toothbrush’s bristles will actually wear away some of your enamel. So it’s healthier to wait at least an hour after eating or snacking to brush.

Good preventive measures to take instead of brushing after you eat include:

• Rinsing or drinking water
• Chewing sugarless gum
• Consuming dairy or non-acidic foods to conclude your meal

These practices help produce saliva, which in turn restores a healthy pH level in your mouth and coats the teeth with minerals they need.

Once you’ve allowed time for your mouth to be restored to a healthy pH level, you may brush your teeth as you normally would. Keep in mind that acidic foods can weaken the enamel on your teeth and take the right measures to prevent spiking pH levels.

Most important, don’t forget to wait to brush at least one hour after you eat!

Still have questions? Call our Worcester office and schedule an appointment with Drs. Manzoli, Russo, Pauk, Desrosiers, Sahakyants.

Your first endodontic appointment at our Worcester office establishes an essential foundation between you, Drs. Manzoli, Russo, Pauk, Desrosiers, Sahakyants, and our endodontic staff. It involves completing paperwork, discussing your condition, and may include treatment.

Paperwork

The first visit begins with obtaining important contact, insurance, and medical history information. There is paperwork to complete in the form of a medical history, and various consent forms. In addition, we ask that you bring a list of all the medications you take on a regular basis, whether prescriptions or over-the-counter, you are taking with you. Further, if you have a referral document or X-rays that your primary dentist gave to you, please bring them with you as well.

Meet with Assistant

Once all the required paperwork is completed, you’ll meet with an assistant who will ask you about your pain and dental issue that prompted a visit to us. The assistant will take a set of X-rays for the endodontist to review.

Meet with the Endodontist

After the x-rays are complete, your endodontist will review them with you, in addition to talking to you about your symptoms. The endodontist will test the affected tooth or teeth, along with adjacent teeth. This will often include mild tapping which patients tolerate well.

Once all of the testing is done, your endodontist will make a diagnosis, and discuss the treatment options with you. These may include a root canal and a crown to protect the treated tooth. As with any treatment, your endodontist will discuss the benefits and risks along with each option.

The goal of endodontics treatment is to:

• Relieve your pain
• Save your tooth
• Protect surrounding teeth and gums from further damage

Endodontic Treatment

If you decide to receive the endodontic treatments, in many cases, the treatment is started that same day. However, prior to beginning the treatment, a local anesthesia is applied to numb your tooth, gums, and nerves to any painful sensations you might otherwise feel without local anesthesia.

While a root canal, which is a common endodontic procedure, has received a bad rap for being extremely painful, the reality is that with modern dental technology and medications, most patients report no significant discomfort during a root canal.

In order to determine the results of the treatment, further X-rays will be taken once the treatment is complete. You will receive post-endodontics treatment instructions and you learn what you might feel or see in your treated area over the next several days to a week. This may include tooth sensitivity and mild swelling in the gums and jaw.

Patients are typically able to drive after their procedure, and go back to work, or resume regular activities immediately following their endodontic treatment.

Most people hear the word root canal and panic. With today’s state of the art equipment and improved local anesthetic devices, and some knowledge, a root canal does not have to cause panic. Root canals are a common dental procedure, done quite often at our Worcester office.

Why do I need a root canal?

There are several reasons why Drs. Manzoli, Russo, Pauk, Desrosiers, Sahakyants may suggest a root canal including:

• An infection in your tooth that has reached the nerves
• A deep cavity that cannot be filled because the pulp and nerves are also effected
• Injury to the tooth
• A deep cracked tooth
• Broken tooth
• Repeated fillings of the effective tooth

What is a root canal?

A root canal is a dental procedure that is used to prevent the loss of a tooth and relieve pain. Inside your teeth is pulp which consists of soft tissue blood, connective tissue, blood vessels, and nerves. When the pulp becomes infected, swollen or diseased a root canal is necessary to save your tooth. During a root canal, Drs. Manzoli, Russo, Pauk, Desrosiers, Sahakyants will remove the infected pulp. The tooth’s root canals and pulp chamber of your tooth will be cleaned, so all the diseased pulp is removed and then your tooth will be sealed.

What to Expect During a Root Canal

Your root canal will start out just like any other dental procedure. We will go over any questions you may have, and then numb the area surrounding the tooth. After the area is numb the root canal will begin.

The amount of time it takes to do your root canal varies depending on number of roots that need to be cleaned. Most teeth have one root canal, while others have between two and four. For a single canal, the procedure usually lasts less than an hour. The more canals your tooth has the longer amount of time it will take and in some cases, you will require more than one visit.

How much pain will I have after a root canal?

Once the local anesthesia wears off, your pain can be controlled by over the counter pain medications such as Ibuprofen, Naproxen, or Acetaminophen. In some cases, Drs. Manzoli, Russo, Pauk, Desrosiers, Sahakyants may prescribe a prescription dose of pain medication. Within two days you should be feeling much better and able to return to your regular lifestyle.

Five words no one welcomes: “You need a root canal.” But if you are delaying treatment because you are worried about pain and an uncomfortable day in the dentist’s chair, please think again! Modern root canal procedures are designed to repair your damaged tooth gently and efficiently, and leave you with a restored natural tooth that can last a lifetime.

• Why might you need a root canal?

First, a little tooth biology. Each tooth has a crown (the part we see above the gums) and one or more roots (the part of our tooth below the gum line that is attached to bone in our jaw). The tooth has three basic layers: the hard enamel and cementum that cover the outer crown and root, the softer dentin beneath that layer, and, on the inside, the pulp. Pulp is made of living tissue, and contains the blood vessels and nerves that nourish the tooth and keep it vital.

Even with the protection the enamel and dentin provide, sometimes the pulp can be infected or damaged. If you have suffered an injury to your mouth or jaw, or an infection has developed from an opening in the tooth caused by a deep cavity or crack, you may need a root canal to prevent further infection, pain, and even tooth loss. Call our Worcester office immediately if you feel pain with chewing or pressure, prolonged sensitivity to heat or cold, swollen, and tender gums around a tooth, or tooth discoloration.

• The Root Canal Procedure

If a root canal is necessary, the procedure is very straightforward. After the area around the tooth is numbed, we will make an opening in the crown to allow access to the pulp inside. Very small instruments will be used to clean the inner tooth and removed bacteria and dead or dying tissue. The area will be thoroughly disinfected, and the inside of the tooth shaped and then filled and sealed. A temporary filling or crown might be placed on the tooth to prevent bacteria and food from entering the site if a permanent crown needs to be created. The entire process usually takes from one to three visits.

If we suggest a root canal, it is because this is the best way to save your tooth. Please feel free to talk to us about your particular needs and concerns. Which tooth is affected, how many roots are involved, what type of filling or crown might be best—we will work with you to provide all the information you need and all the options you have available.

Common Concerns

• Are you concerned about pain?

The most painful part of a root canal is often the severe discomfort your tooth causes before treatment. And infections and damaged nerves can affect not only the injured tooth, but the gums, tissue and even bone surrounding it. With our modern dental techniques, a root canal procedure is often no more uncomfortable than a regular filling. The local anesthetic we use will prevent you from feeling any pain during the procedure, and, while the area around your tooth might be a bit sensitive following treatment, the pain caused by the infection or injury should be gone.

• Are you anxious about the procedure?

If dental treatment causes you anxiety, please let us know. There are several sedation options we can pursue to make this procedure less worrisome. Our goal is to make your treatment as gentle and comfortable as possible.

No one welcomes the news that a root canal is necessary, but with today’s procedures, this treatment can be just what you need to relieve your pain and keep your natural tooth where it belongs for many years to come. And that is welcome news, indeed!