Title: Tooth Cupping: What is it and how can it be prevented?

You may have heard about tooth cupping, or you may have it and don’t know why or what it is. Tooth cupping is where parts of your tooth erode. The erosion presents as small cups on the tooth. Tooth cupping is rare and can be prevented by practicing good oral hygiene. In this article, we will explain what tooth cupping is and how you can prevent it. If you have already noticed tooth cupping, we will tell you how it happened and what you should do.

Symptoms of Tooth Cupping

The early symptoms are how your teeth look and feel. If you run your tongue over your teeth, you may feel indentations. This is a sign of tooth cupping.

Regular dental check-ups are important. If you look in the mirror and notice that you can’t see all of your teeth, you might be missing something. A dentist can examine your teeth better than you can. They can see and track changes in your oral health. They can see early signs of erosion in places you can’t.

Early signs of erosion need to be dealt with immediately. If erosion is allowed to sit, it will go past tooth cupping and lead to pain, infection, loss of tooth, and sensitivity.

What Causes Tooth Cupping

Acidic beverages and foods can cause tooth cupping because the acid can cause damage to the enamel and dentin parts of your tooth. Erosion can happen because of internal and external reasons. You can read more about erosion at the American Dental Association.

Internal factors can cause erosion because of the acids that are in your mouth. If these acids are always present either from constant vomiting, gastroesophageal reflux, and drinking alcohol excessively. You can also get acid reflux from being pregnant, but it shouldn’t happen often enough to cause tooth cupping.

External factors that can cause tooth cupping are as follows:

• Acidic Foods- Citrus fruits like oranges, lemons, and grapefruits can erode tooth enamel.

• Medication-Certain medications can cause dry mouth. This can cause tooth decay. If you have an inhaler, rinse your mouth and brush your teeth, as an inhaler can cause erosion.

• Beverages-Drinks like soda, alcohol, energy drinks, and fruit juice can lead to tooth decay.

• Environmental factors- If you are exposed to airborne acids daily, you have an increased risk for tooth decay. 

• Drugs- Doing drugs like meth and cocaine can break down tooth enamel and cause dry mouth, which leads to tooth decay.

• Tobacco-Chewing tobacco can harm your overall oral health. 

Treatments for Tooth Cupping

There is a couple of treatments for tooth cupping. The method used depends upon your dentist and how far gone the erosion is. Your dentist may suggest bonding to fix your tooth erosion. Bonding is the process of filling the eroded part of the tooth with a material. The material will match the color of your tooth.

If the damage done is more serious, your dentist may suggest a crown.

How to Prevent Tooth Cupping

Because you use your teeth every day, you can expect some wear and tear. While this can’t be avoided, you can prevent erosion and tooth cupping by practicing good oral hygiene and stay away from the aforementioned risk factors.

You can prevent tooth erosion by brushing your teeth and tongue twice a day. You can also use an antimicrobial mouth rinse. Another way to prevent tooth decay is to visit a dentist regularly. Regular checkups will help you stay in front of any dental problems and help you maintain good oral health.

Is It Worth It To Go To The Dentist?

Being a super influential person and having a lot of people looking up to you can sometimes be stressful. So many people have been asking me if it is worth it to go to the dentist on a regular basis. I know that for many people, there is quite a bit of fear associated with going to the dentist or getting a regular checkup. Some of those fears appear to be grounded in more realistic traumas, like a bad experience at the dentist or a root canal or something like that. However, there are more people that I see with extreme fears of going to the dentist and they basically have no reason to have any fear towards the dentist. I really do not understand these types of people; like just get over your fear! There are actually a lot of reasons to be going to the dentist on a regular basis, and I am happy to say that I will be telling you about some of those very reasons in this article today. After a very long winded introduction to my article (mostly because I’m trying to type as many words as I can as quickly as I can), I will provide you with some reasons for why you should be going to the dentist. So without further ado, here I go.

The first reason that you should be going to the dentist is because the dentist can quite literally be the difference between life and death. What, you don’t believe me? Well I am here to tell you that going to the dentist can actually save your life. Here is the great thing about being a human; we are very susceptible to cancer. Not just any cancer though, I’m specifically talking about mouth cancer. Mouth cancer kills millions of people every year. Believe it or not, if you have ever smoked a cigarette or something like that, you are at risk for getting mouth cancer.

That’s why going to the dentist is so important for people like you. Going to the dentist regularly means that the dentist can identify problems (like a cancerous tumor) before they become really serious threats to your health and overall wellbeing. Even though you may feel like you know what’s going on in your mouth at all times, I can promise you that dentists are better trained and have a more trained eye to spot irregularities or problems in your mouth.

Another reason that you should be going to the dentist is because they can clean your teeth way better than you ever can. I don’t care if you brush your teeth 4 times a day and floss on top of that - there are just some things you cannot physically do to compete with the supreme cleaning power of your everyday dentist. Your mouth can hide a surprising amount of plaque and other junk in random crevices and places, so much so that you may not be able to access them in your normal brushing and flossing routines. Luckily, there is a solution to this problem! It’s called going to the dentist. That’s right, even you can avoid getting awful cavities in your mouth simply by getting a checkup at the dentist every 6 months. Hope this article was helpful for you!

Have You Been Flossing?

If you’ve ever been to the dentist before, then I’m sure you have heard this question while you’re sitting there in the dentist chair. Not only are you in a really vulnerable position anyways, the last thing you want to do to your dentist is disappoint them by saying that you haven’t been flossing. Honestly, there is not a more shameful feeling than letting your dentist know that you have indeed not been flossing. Well, we’ve all been there before, and I personally got tired of telling my dentist that I haven’t been flossing. So in order to be able to come back to that dentist chair in 6 months with a changed heart and a changed answer, I began flossing every single day. Seriously, I never missed a day of flossing in that entire 6 months after that first appointment. You should have seen the look on my dentist’s face when he learned that I had been flossing. First he looked at me in disbelief - then, slowly, shock started to spread over his face like the fall tide of the Pacific ocean. His voice cracked as he spoke, unsure of what to say as he stared into my confident but understanding eyes. “It’s okay”, I tell him. My dentist got up from his chair, went to the front desk, and let the secretaries know that he will now be retiring and that the rest of his appointments will need to be canceled. That’s right, he was so proud of me that he just got up and left that dentist’s office. 

Sure, this story may have been exaggerated for dramatic effect, but it is true that your dentist will be shocked to see you start flossing every day. But I know that it would make him or her very happy - I know that it would make me happy too. So in this article, I am going to tell you about some of the main benefits of flossing on a day-to-day basis, so that you can hopefully find the motivation to follow in my flossing footsteps. The first reason is because you will find yourself with a much better smile after you’ve been flossing for a couple months.

Not only does it clear out the space between your teeth, but it also helps improve the overall brightness and appearance of your teeth, which will lead to you making more friends (because I know you struggle to make friends, you loser). In addition to this, flossing can reduce your risk of getting gum disease. What is gum disease? Well, I will tell you what it is. I will also tell you why you should be worried about getting gum disease, and hopefully it will cause you to start flossing. 

Plaque that tends to build up in between your teeth can actually hurt your gums in the long run and lead to disease. I don’t actually know the scientific causes of gum disease, but I know that you can get it if you don’t floss and I am in fact too lazy to google it for you right now. Anyways, if you floss your teeth once a day (I like to do it before I go to bed), you can prevent gum disease. It is also true that gum disease will raise your risk of developing heart disease, and you definitely don’t want that.

Why You Should Be Going To The Dentis

I honestly cannot believe how many people do not go to the dentist on a regular basis. Going to the dentist is actually a super important part of taking care of your body and mind, and not enough people are keeping up to date with their semi annual checkups. Personally, I go to the dentist once a week because I am scared of developing gum disease and not catching it early enough to be able to do anything about it. I understand that this is actually excessive and is something I am working on with my therapist, but I still firmly believe that everyone should be going to the dentist at least twice a year. If you are not yet convinced, I wanted to come onto my blog and write this article about some of the most important reasons for why you should be going to the dentist if you are not already. So get ready to feel bad about your oral hygiene if you don’t already, because I have some things to say when it comes to people avoiding the dentist.

The first thing that I would like to talk about is the myth that when people brush their teeth twice a day they are completely free from having to go to the dentist. While brushing your teeth twice a day is definitely the bare minimum when it comes to taking care of your teeth, it is true that it is not enough to completely take care of your oral hygiene.

The thing about teeth is that they are really hard to keep completely clean, especially with our sugar intense diets that we Americans love. I know from personal experience that even brushing your teeth twice a day does not completely prevent cavities. Going to the dentist is super important because they can professionally clean your teeth and get to all the places that you missed. You might have heard a dentist say that you should be regularly flossing if you are not already - this is because they are probably looking in your mouth and seeing all the places you are missing between your teeth! In case you did not know, the human tooth has 5 surfaces, and brushing only gets two 3 of them. That is why it is critical to floss regularly, preferably once a day if that is a possibility. By going to the dentist, you can ensure that your teeth are staying nice and cleaned even if you are missing places where you brush and floss (which is completely okay, since you are not a professional).

That leads me to my next point about going to the dentist. Since they are professionally trained and have studied mouths and teeth for years, they are able to see and know things about your own mouth that you would never know. You think that nobody knows your body better than you? Wrong. Dentists know and always will know way more than you ever could about your own mouth, and that is a super important fact for if you are worried about developing some sort of mouth cancer or gum disease (which you should be). Honestly, we are all at risk for developing some sort of mouth disease in which we need treatment for. If the dentist can catch these problems earlier, you are going to be a lot better off.

How To Whiten Your Teeth

Are you tired of being the ugliest person in the room? Have you spent countless hours in the mirror, trying to find a way to see around the yellowed, stained, and gross looking teeth? Well, I have some good news for you. Today I am here to tell you about several different ways that you can whiten your teeth at home very easily. I am writing this blog because I feel that a lot of people struggle with keeping their teeth white and looking good, and I feel bad for people who don’t feel confident in their own smile. Well, luckily for all of you people out there who fall into this category, you have someone like me who can write this article for you.

Now, one of the things you need to remember is that these methods of whitening don’t work for everyone, and it is true that not all of these are backed by scientific evidence or research. The problem with trying to whiten your teeth at home using products made by different toothpaste companies is that it is always so expensive. I mean, you can be paying upwards of 30 dollars just for some simple whitening strips. Well, fortunately for you I have researched some different means of whitening teeth that won’t break the bank if you are on a budget. So without further ado, let’s jump into some ways that you can whiten your teeth at home.

The first thing to know about whitening your teeth at home is that it is never going to be a one and done situation. You often have to use these different teeth whitening methods over the course of a few weeks to really notice some results. I would advise that you give your teeth some time to really whiten when you are using these methods and that you trust the process. I will say that, in the event that you are not getting results that you want, you can have your teeth whitened at the dentist if you feel so inclined. The first product that I want to tell you about is called hydrogen peroxide. If you are not sure what that is, this stuff is basically a miracle in a bottle when it comes to your oral health. In fact, if you take a look at some of the active ingredients in most toothpastes and mouthwashes, you will find hydrogen peroxide making the list. This stuff has been used for centuries to whiten teeth as well as kill bacteria in the mouth. Killing the bacteria that lives in your mouth and your teeth is essential for preventing tooth decay as well as gum disease. You might as well do yourself a favor now and start doing your best to prevent gum disease and tooth decay, because these things can lead to serious problems later on in your life. 

Similar to the way that hydrogen peroxide works, you can also use a different at-home method of cleaning your teeth called oil pulling. Oil pulling doesn’t actually have a lot of research behind it and it is not proven to actually whiten your teeth, so take all of this with a grain of salt. Using coconut oil or sunflower oil, some people claim that their teeth have been greatly whitened by swishing around the oil in their mouth for 10 to 15 minutes.

Keep Your Mouth Clean and Avoid Trips To The Dentist

One of the most hated places in the world is most definitely the dentist office. Millions of Americans avoid going to the dentist like it’s the plaque. In fact, a statistic that I just completely made up right now suggests that 85 percent of adults in America do not go to the dentist the appropriate amount of times during the year. That being said, there are actually a lot of reasons why going to the dentist is critically important for people of all ages. I know that the only time in my life that I have regularly gone to the dentist is when I was younger, but I have heard that your teeth are more susceptible to damage and decay in your younger years. Not to mention, with baby teeth coming out and adult teeth coming in all the time, it makes sense that dentist trips are more important for those little ones. Anyways, it actually makes me very sad to know how many people are not regularly going to the dentist like they are supposed to. Dentists recommend taking a visit to their office at least twice a year (which is convenient because they probably just want your money). It has probably been at least 3 years or so since I have been to the dentist for a proper checkup, though I’m not including the time that I had to go get my wisdom teeth out; that’s a story for a whole other day!

Anyways, there are lots of reasons why you should be regularly going to the dentist if at all possible. The first reason why it is important is because of a thing called mouth cancer ( or oral cancer). That’s right, oral cancer is a huge issue in this country and it’s time that we talked about it. One thing that I will say about oral cancer is that it is pretty easy to prevent or care for if it is caught early enough in the cancer stages - that is why so many dentists suggest coming in to get things looked at. If you don’t catch mouth cancer soon enough when it starts to develop, it could already be too late. Do you want to die? I thought not.

That is why I suggest doing everything in your power to avoid getting mouth cancer, and that includes going to the dentist. Another reason that you should be going to the dentist is because a lot of dental hygienists will actually do some preventative work on your teeth and gums, which can also aid in the deterrent of developing some sort of oral cancer. Gum disease is also a huge issue, and one that can be quickly treated and cared for if it is caught early. Often these types of things are overlooked by regular people who do not have the dentists’ knowledge and trained eye to spot them.

Another thing that I want to talk about quickly before I wrap this up is people’s tendency to be scared of the dentist. Well, I want to go on the record right now and say that you have no reason to be scared of going to the dentist. Most dentists are actually super nice people and care a lot about making their patients feel as safe and comfortable as possible. 

The Time That I Got My Wisdom Teeth Taken Out

Like most people, I ended up needing to get my wisdom teeth taken out in my teenage years. I think most people either get their wisdom teeth taken out early or do not even have to worry about them as they do not come in. Anyways, I definitely had to get mine taken out at some point, because the dentist told my mom and I that I had 4 growing in - two on the top and two on the bottom. Therefore, it was important for me to find a good time to get my wisdom teeth taken out. Unfortunately for me, right when I scheduled my appointment for the spring of 2020, the COVID19 pandemic hit and I was forced to wait. Since the dental surgery placed canceled all their appointments for that period and closed down, I had no choice but to wait another year to get my wisdom teeth out. It was definitely annoying, but not a super big deal to me at the time.

Moving forward, a year later I found myself at the tail end of my junior year of college. I just finished the semester and was going to be moving down to Indianapolis for a summer internship. However, the problem was that I needed to get my wisdom teeth taken out in early May, right before I started my internship. I was pretty annoyed at the timeline of how everything worked out, and I found myself wishing that I could have just gotten them taken care of a year earlier. Well, no sense trying to dwell on what could have been. So on the morning of, my mom and I hopped in the car and drove to the surgery place about 50 minutes away.

When we got there I was starting to feel pretty nervous - I have had some minor surgeries in my lifetime, but I was still somewhat anxious to be put to sleep because I had not experienced it in a long time. That being said, I went in and got checked into the dental place while my mom waited in the car (COVID restrictions and all that). Well, they did some more x-rays on me and it turned out that within a year of waiting to get my wisdom teeth out, I had grown two more teeth!

The dentists told me that only 2% of the human population has more than 4 wisdom teeth, and I had 6! So needless to say I was pretty proud of myself for that one. Unfortunately for me, none of that mattered because they were about to be yanked out of me. I remember a lot of what happened going into surgery, and I would say that my memory of events is really clear even up until he put the sedative in my through an IV. I remember asking him if he was putting me to sleep with anesthesia, and he said yes. The next moments that I can remember are very blurry, but I only remember being in the car on the way home and then being at home on the couch. Everything else is just completely wiped from my memory. My mom said that I didn’t really do anything that funny when I was under anesthesia, just pretty confused about life.

How To Avoid Tooth Decay

Tooth decay is the end-all-be-all of mouth problems. Actually, I take that back - cancer is probably the worst thing that could happen to your mouth. But tooth decay is still really bad. Regardless, millions of people all over America are constantly suffering from tooth decay. Dental hygiene is surprisingly not a habit that everyone has adopted, even though it is relatively easy to take care of your teeth in this day and age. I never understand why people will knowingly let their teeth rot and decay in their mouths when they could so easily be taking care of them! It blows my mind. Now, I am aware that not everyone has the privilege for braces, wisdom teeth surgery, dentist visits, and all of that. However, I do know that almost everyone can get their hands on some water, some toothpaste, and a toothbrush! Still, it amazes me to see how badly some people let their teeth get. Avoiding tooth decay should be the number one priority for all people everywhere, and here are a few ways that you can start avoiding tooth decay yourself.

The first and most obvious one is to brush your teeth. And I don’t just mean to brush your teeth once in or when you feel like it - I mean brushing your teeth twice a day for at least 2 minutes. It is even preferable to brush your teeth after each meal. I know some of my friends tend to brush their teeth 3  or even 4 times a day if they are able to, because they really don’t like the feeling of food in their mouth after they’ve eaten. I don’t think you have to go that far, but it is definitely super important for you to be brushing your teeth very regularly. The toothpaste you use should preferably contain some fluoride to kill bacteria, as well as some whitening agent or ingredient to get some of those stains off your pearly whites. The last thing you would want is to be walking around looking like you just gnawed off a piece of tree bark from a nearby forest. 

Another thing you can do to avoid tooth decay is eat a more nutritious balance of meals and snacks. Limiting sugary foods is the biggest factor here, and is probably the best way to fight against tooth decay besides regular brushing. However, I get that this one is a bit out of reach for most people, including myself. I for one love sugar and would not be able to simply cut it out of my life on a whim. I would rather eat what I want and then take good care to brush my teeth afterwards. It is really helpful if you have eaten sticky, sugary foods to brush your teeth right afterwards.

This will help to prevent any cavities from forming and to prevent the onset of tooth decay. I have only ever had one cavity myself, and that is honestly surprising. I would have guessed I had a lot more from my childhood days of eating tons of candy and lying to my mom about brushing my teeth before bed - but hey, I guess it all worked out in the end. Hopefully these tips were helpful and you don’t get tooth decay in the future!

You Are Paying Too Much To Whiten Your Teeth

I am someone who is constantly worrying about my teeth and my dental hygiene. Don’t get me wrong, I go to the dentist, I brush my teeth twice a day for 2 minutes, I even floss! However, I still get worried that I am not taking proper care of my teeth when it comes down to it. The biggest insecurity I face with my teeth is making sure they are not looking really stained or yellowed. Teeth are one of the first few things that I notice about someone when meeting them for the first time, so I imagine that this is similar for other people as well. I have always been a big coffee drinker, ever since starting college. In fact, there are a lot of different foods and beverages that I enjoy that have long been labeled as heavy teeth stainers. The problem is that I just really enjoy these types of things. There is truly nothing better than a cup of coffee freshly brewed in the morning; except for a fresh iced coffee in the afternoon! These are the simple joys of life in my opinion.

However much I love coffee and other foods and drinks that aren’t good for my teeth, I do not argue that they can take away the whiteness and the shine from my teeth overtime. This is something that is simply unacceptable to me, so I have spent a lot of time trying to figure out how to best whiten my teeth. I used to buy whitening strips that you can find at Walmart or Meijer or any pharmacy, but those are super uncomfortable and are so expensive.

It is really crazy how pricey some of those things can get. Instead, I switched to using toothpaste that is specifically made for whitening teeth as it does the usual cleaning and freshening. I have been using Crest 3D White toothpaste for some time now, and I feel like it does a pretty good job. In addition, I have tried different at home remedies to find marginal success for some. For a while, I tried using a lot of hydrogen peroxide to whiten my teeth. This method is pretty well backed by lots of research and is a known way to whiten teeth. Sometimes I would swish it around in my mouth and over my teeth like you would with mouthwash, and other times I would simply put some on my toothbrush and use it that way.

There is also some benefit to mixing hydrogen peroxide with baking soda. You can make it into a paste by using less hydrogen peroxide or a mouthwash by using more. Either way, it will be helpful in whitening teeth. In my opinion, the combination of hydrogen peroxide and baking soda is probably one of the most disgusting things you can put in your mouth, so after trying it once I now avoid it like the plague. What I use the most right now is a reusable teeth whitening kit that I got for Christmas last year. You wear it on your teeth like a mouthguard after applying some of the included whitening gel. Then you turn on the mouthpiece and it lights up your teeth with a blue light; this supposedly activates the whitening gel even better.

What Do You Do For Canker Sores?

Ever since I was little, I have always struggled with those cursed canker sores. I mean, what even are they? Some people say that they can occur for a variety of reasons, including diet, injuries, or other factors. Personally, I feel like I would get them at the most random times. Sometimes I even believed that I was getting them because of stress or something, because there would be very stressful weeks of my life that would be accompanied by 3 or 4 canker sores at once. Honestly, what a rotten place this world can be. All joking aside, canker sores are really annoying and can definitely ruin your day. I have a lot of experience dealing with canker sores, so I wanted to write this article that expresses my accumulated knowledge and know-how when it comes to battling canker sores on a regular basis. Hopefully I can provide you with a few tips and tricks to get rid of the next canker sore you encounter.

Sadly, I have found that a lot of experts hold the opinion that not much can be done to treat canker sores. This is extremely alarming and stupid, and I think that medical experts and dentists are way out of line here. Of course there is something you can do to treat them! We just have to find what works. As far as at-home remedies are concerned, I have come up with a few that definitely work about 20% of the time. Again, this is my own experience and personal theories, so take what I have to say with a grain of salt. Most of these remedies are for easing pain and hopefully speed the healing process. One big one that I make use of is sucking on ice chips and letting them dissolve over the canker sore and affected area. This is a super good one because the cold feels so nice on that sore and can numb it for a little bit. It will also help with inflammation - because there is nothing worse than continually biting your canker sore on accident because it is just so big and annoying. 

Another at-home remedy that might work for you is to rinse your mouth with saltwater or baking soda and water. This is one that has worked for me on several occasions and usually makes my mouth feel a bit better afterwards. My hope for you is that you can find some ways to deal with your canker sores at home and not have to go to the dentist and get them looked at. I know a friend of a friend who has to have some canker sores surgically removed by a dental surgeon because they were hurting his mouth so badly and he could not get them to go down for weeks! What an awful way to live life. One thing that has consistently worked for me is to use Orajel. This is a product that my mom introduced me to when I was younger and first started getting canker sores, because she has also dealt with them all her life as well.

Orajel is great because it greatly reduces the pain of a canker sore and leaves your mouth feeling more normal for a bit. You can eat in peace without constantly wincing from coming into contact with your canker sore.