A Foundation for Healthy Adult Teeth

A teenage smile is meant to last a lifetime.  You're leaving childhood behind, entering the most exciting time of your life!  It's now up to you--more than your mom or dad--to remember to brush and floss, and come see us at Bright Smiles of Winter Haven at least twice each year.  If you want a rock star smile, you've got to care enough to care for your teeth and gums.  Bright, white, straight healthy teeth, fresh smelling breath, and a healthy mouth...That's what every teen wants, and you can have it!

What you eat, what you drink, what you do.

teen-groupThe teenage years are the time when we develop eating habits, adopt new adult hygiene protocols, and begin to explore the greater world around us and a whole, new adult world of choices...almost too many choices!  As you set the course for your life as an adult, don't forget about your teeth. The choices you make about not only brushing and flossing, but choices about what and how much you eat, caffeine, sugar, sports participation, alcohol, smoking and recreational drug use will all impact the health of your teeth and gums and the brightness of your smile.  Make smart choices, get the facts, and care for and about yourself...it's a very adult thing to do.

Sports Protection for Your Teeth

BS-web-pages-3Do you play sports?  Do you wear a mouthguard? Would losing one of your front teeth be ok?  Whether you play baseball, football, basketball, soccer, field hockey, or lacrosse, you should be fitted for and wear a custom-fitted mouthguard.  In addition, non-contact sports like skateboarding, mountain biking, motocross, skiing and snowboarding can still provide a risk of injury to your teeth.  Be smart. Be cool. Wear a mouthguard.

Peer Pressure and Your Great Smile

It's your body. It's your mouth. Be strong and powerful and make decisions that are right for you and your teeth.  Peer pressure is a fact of life, and you'll be under very strong influences to fit in. In ten years, you'll look back and laugh at how unimportant all that foolishness was. You'll see friends who made bad choices and now regret them.  In the end, what you'll want as an adult is good health and well being, a great smile and fresh breath.  Only you can make that happen.  Good dental health is a marathon, not a sprint.  And your race starts today.

Did You Know?

Some of us are born with perfect smiles. Some less so. But anyone can now have a healthy, movie star smile. Advances in orthodontic braces, brackets and aligners, as well as implants for missing teeth, can transform your mouth, and make brushing and flossing easier, for an even healthier mouth!

Who's Hungry?

Cheese: Cheese may neutralize plaque acid and increase saliva production, which can wash some of the bacteria out of your mouth.

Raisins: Naturally sweet, raisins don't contain sucrose, or table sugar.

Crunchy foods: Chewing may disturb dental plaque, and serve as a cleansing mechanism.

Vitamin-rich foods: Foods containing calcium, such as cheese, almonds and leafy greens,  and foods high in phosphorous, such as meat, eggs and fish, can help keep tooth enamel strong and healthy.

Sugarless gum: Chewing boosts saliva secretion, clearing away some bacteria.

White Milk: White milk neutralizes some of the acid produced by plaque bacteria.

Cranberries: Cranberries contain polyphenols (just as tea does), which may keep plaque from sticking to teeth.