Battling the Sugar Coma on Halloween

Many of us run into the notorious sugar coma on Halloween for obvious reasons: because candy is abundant during this time! It doesn’t even have to be candy from trick-or-treating, but simply from leftovers due to overestimating the amount of trick-or-treaters you believed you would get this year. In any event, your family dentist of Las Vegas, Floss Dental & Orthodontics, provides you with a bit of advice to follow this Halloween in order to fight the real monster: sugar.

1. Pawn It Off

It’s a very hard thing to pull off, but we suggest giving your candy away to various sources. If you brought leftover candies or unwanted candies into work for your coworkers, then you would undoubtedly become a star.

2. Eat This, Not That

Here’s our little spin off of the popular dieting solution that helps you eat healthier options. There are plenty of other alternatives that we can suggest over candy, but our best one is fruit. Fruit is often regarded as “nature’s candy” because it’s natural and contains many valuable vitamins – an aspect that candy simply does not offer.

3. Moderate Your Intake

Another simple suggestion, but can prove very effective is eating in moderation. It’s OK to eat candy, just not in exorbitant amounts. Set yourself a reasonable hard deadline on how much candy to allow yourself per day and actually try living up to your own standards. Not only will your mouth thank you for it, but also you’ll feel a sense of accomplishment when you look back weeks later and say to yourself “wow, I did very well this year”.

Why do we worry about sugar so much?

Great question. Excess sugar that is left on the surface of our teeth works with the bacteria in our mouth to create a specific type of acid that causes harm to our teeth in the form of tooth decay. Avoiding sugar is very hard to do as we naturally seek to indulge it. The best thing you can really do besides avoiding it is to brush and floss your teeth. It may also help to drink water after consuming sugar to help wash it out of your teeth.

Have a fantastic Halloween from the team at Floss Dental & Orthodontics!

Talking With Braces: Do You Get a Lisp When You Get Braces?

Many orthodontic patients are concerned and bothered with the possibility of talking funny with braces on, as if a lisp is present. The concern can become so bothersome and embarrassing to many that they are afraid to speak at all, even amongst their friends. Your Las Vegas orthodontist specialists at Floss Dental & Orthodontics respond to negative information surrounding the Internet on this pressing topic.

Yes, There Will Be Pain

Unfortunately, pain is something that is natural for all wearers of braces. It cannot be dodged, only masked by over the counter medication such as ibuprofen or Advil. The thing is, when we first receive a set of braces, our mouth doesn’t know exactly how to react to this new phenomenon – so it compensates by responding in the form of soreness or pain as your braces work towards bringing your teeth closer together. Once you become used to this, you will begin to feel more comfortable speaking, eating, etc.

So Will My Speech Be Affected by Braces?

Yes, it probably will – for a short amount of time. As your mouth adjusts to the orthodontic appliances, you will become more and more comfortable opening up again. Some people have sore lips and so any amount of talking results in an annoying pain that would rather be avoided. Once the pain has subsided, then the talking begins.

It Could Be Your Tongue…

Your body is great at preventing you from discovering pain. It’s instinctual. For many people, braces cause their speech to change simply because they are afraid to move their tongue around when pronouncing certain syllables or words – in turn causing them to speak abnormally. Once you realize that your tongue will not get thrashed from talking, and then you will begin speaking normally again.

It’s All Temporary.

To reiterate, any lisps or abnormal talking patterns inherited from receiving braces is all temporary. It’s short-lived and some people are not even bothered by new braces at all. It depends on how comfortable you feel with your braces, something that is more easily achieved when you receive a set that is custom-tailored to your mouth. Different braces options may affect speech differently as well. The choice is yours. Ask us about the braces we offer.

Please visit our website for more information on tips for new braces.