14
OctFear of Going to the Dentist?

It may not be easy for everyone to simply go to the dentist. Fear is one of the main reasons people keep away. Don’t let your fear of the dentist hold you back from regular checkups and cleanings. Your oral health is an important part of your overall health.

If you are fearful, just know you are not alone. Some common dental fears can include:

• Association with a negative past experience. Some patients had traumatic childhood treatment or treatment in another country that may not be the same as we do here in Canada. Asking some questions about procedures or freezing options may help ease your fear.
• Fear of the noises of the tools either the dentist or hygienist may use. Unfortunately, these tools do make some noise, but bringing noise-cancelling headphones with some music often helps.  We do have tv’s mounted in each treatment room as a good distraction. Choosing a less busy time can minimize the noises in the office.
• Fear of Pain.  With the many advances in dentistry today, many procedures are substantially less painful and often can be done with little to no freezing or just topical anaesthetic.
• Fear of injections or fear that the injection will not work. Needle phobia is a real thing. We will do our very best to make you as comfortable as possible…we are very good at what we do. We will hold your hand. It is true
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04
AprEaster Egg Hunt

Some egg-citing ideas

With the kids being home so much these days, constant snacking is turning up to be a bigger issue than before the COVID lockdown or school at home. Today's kids are definitely not treat deprived. Easter seems to be so much about chocolate and candy that it is almost not a treat anymore. Instead, we should consider filling big plastic eggs with things that are not candy.  Here are some great ideas I have heard of from my patients over the past few weeks.

• Eggs filled with notes for a special outing or walks with Mom or Dad, ie: some one-on-one time
• Eggs filled with jewellery, lip balms, nail stickers, toy cars,
• Eggs filled with sugarless gum
• Puzzle piece scavenger hunts
• Eggs filled with money
• Eggs filled with glow in the dark stars to decorate kids rooms
• Nail polish or certificates for a home spa day
• COCO Floss , coloured floss sticks or travel size toothpaste ( had to put in a dental suggestion..lol)
• gift cards  like Roblox or Vbucks
• Air pods...that's right Air pods

Hope everyone enjoys their long weekend and stays safe. The weather is beautiful to get outdoors.

Happy Easter from your friends at Innovation Drive Dental in Woodbridge.

11
JanTik Tok trends to "NOT" try at home

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13
NovWisdom teeth issues as an Adult

Most people associate wisdom teeth with late teens and young adults. They start to develop and grow-in between 18 and 25 years of age. Patients feel that if they have had no issues by the time they turn 30 they are "out of the water ".  As dentists, we know that this is just not the case. We see patients with wisdom tooth concerns at all ages. These teeth are very far back in your mouth and keeping them clean is very difficult. Wisdom teeth are more likely to get cavities than other teeth just due to the fact that cleaning them may be close to impossible. As dentists we struggle to get a successful filling in the wisdom teeth as well, so often they are recommended to be removed rather than restored. For those patients that have decided to keep their impacted wisdom teeth, it is important to follow them with regular xrays, as widom teeth can burrow a hole into the tooth infront of if from underneith the bone. This will ultimately result in the unfortunate loss of a healthy tooth, which could have been prevented.

Contrary to popular belief, wisdom teeth can just start hurting even later in life. Many people get misdiagnosed with

22
SepWhy do I need to tell my dentist that I have lip or cheek fillers?

Dr. Shulman and the whole team at Innovation Dental in Vaughan feel that it is very important for dental treatment to be individualized to the patient's needs.  We spend our first appointment with you getting to know you and finding out what exactly your needs are. This is why we have a very detailed new patient form and ask a lot of questions and discuss many aspects of your oral and medical health at our New Patient exam. One of the questions we may ask is if you have or have had any dermal fillers in your lips or cheeks, or around your nose. Please know that we are not trying to reveal any secrets or question your choices. There are very important medical reasons for that question. Canadians are embracing this noninvasive method of turning back the clock on youth. It is a highly sought-after procedure and very successful.  Thus, as dentists, we are seeing more and more of our patients that have had this done or are planning on doing so in the near future.

Many dental procedures involve pulling or retracting the lips and cheeks for visual access to treatment sites as well as protection of the tissues from dental instruments. Most dermatologists or certified injectors will recommend delaying your dental appointment for at least 2 weeks after having dermal fillers placed to reduce the risk of moving the fillers from the site of injection. Of course, this is only for elective dental treatment. An emergency dental issue should not be delayed but be

13
AugHow Dental Professionals feel about mask- wearing

What do Dentists and Dental Professionals think about mask-wearing?

For as long as I can remember Dentists and Dental Hygienists have been wearing masks to work on patients. It is our normal. What is new for us is the type (or level) of masks we are now wearing. As well, we used to remove the mask after each patient and only wear a mask during the treatment, not in the office common area. With the new Covid-19 Pandemic currently going on now we wear a mask at all times while in the office and change the second layer of mask between patients. Some days we work a 12 hour day wearing a mask. We are getting used to this… it is what is. But the public seems to be having an issue with mask-wearing, even for a 20-minute shopping experience.  Here are our 2 cents on this as it pertains to dentistry.

1. Unless you have a LEGITIMATE health condition that prohibits you from wearing a mask for a 10 minute trip to Walmart or the one-minute walk to the dental chair from their car…Just wear it!  It is the policy at Innovation Drive Dental in Woodbridge and everywhere else! Do your part, otherwise, stay home.
2. Studies have shown that 50% of people brush their teeth better and more often since wearing a mask as it forces you to smell your own breath….ewe
3. We have had less cosmetic dental emergencies since we reopened as patients state they can just “cover up their broken front tooth with their
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29
MayWe are Reopening Soon

Reopening Coming Soon. There will be some changes.

21
NovWhat’s in your Prenatal Vitamins?

What’s in your Prenatal Vitamins?

When choosing a prenatal vitamin make sure you do your research. They are not all created equally. Recently a study was featured on CTV news that showed that women that took prenatal vitamins with higher doses of vitamin D had children with healthier teeth that were 50% less likely to discolour or have enamel breakdown.  Health Canada recommends pregnant women take between 600IU-4000IU per day.  Furthermore, women who take high doses of vitamin D during pregnancy have a greatly reduced risk of complications, including gestational diabetes, preterm birth, and infection

Make sure you read the labels and choose well. Some of the more common brands have the minimal requirements but some of the higher priced organic products do contain more, and some actually contain less. Centrum Prenatal has 600IU (https://www.centrum.ca/products/centrum-prenatal) , Jamieson Prenatal

12
NovWhat Are Tonsil Stones- and How do you get rid of them?

What are Tonsil Stones- and How Do You Get Rid of Them?

Tonsil stones, also called tonsilloliths, are areas of hard yellow-white calcification, located on or within the tonsils. Some people are aware of them but many people don’t even know they have them. They can range in size, and can cause the tonsils to swell or become infected. Patients main concern is that they often give off a bad odor, and cause bad breath.

Your tonsils are made up of crevices, tunnels, and pits called tonsil crypts. Different types of debris, such as dead cells, mucus, saliva, and food, can get trapped in these pockets and build up. Bacteria and fungi feed on this buildup and cause a distinct odor. Overtime the debris hardens. Tonsils stones are more common in patients with poor dental hygiene, large tonsils, chronic sinus issues or tonsillitis. Some symptoms of tonsil stones can include:  bad breath, difficulty swallowing, ear or throat pain, ongoing cough, swollen tonsils, or white or yellow debris on the tonsils. Here at Innovation Drive Dental in Vaughan, we have seen many patients who have tonsil stones and if they are

18
SepCan biting my nails affect my teeth

As with many habits, nail biting can be a hard habit to break. Some kids start this very young and continue into adulthood, and some people start only as an adult. Often it is the consequence of nerves, stress or anxiety. Not only is the habit problematic for the hands and nails it can also pose a problem for the teeth and mouth. Our hands harbour numerous bacteria as we touch things throughout the day…money, handrails, steering wheel, elevator buttons etc. If we are constantly putting our hands in our mouth we are more susceptible to catching viruses and bacterial infections. At innovation Dental in Vaughan we have seen many patients come into the office with worn, chipped or broken teeth from biting their nails. More surprisingly we often find slivers of nails embedded in the gum tissue or damage to the tissues from sharp or jagged nail edges. The habit can also lead to pain in the jaw joint or popping noises… or actually move teeth overtime.

It is best to try to

11
SepAthletes at Risk of Poor Oral Health

Just because someone is athletic and fit does not mean that they are healthy. Healthy is defined in many ways and there are many systems in the body that need to be healthy, including the mouth. Here at Innovation Dental in Woodbridge we see many healthy patients that do not have a healthy mouth. According to a recent study many elite athletes have oral and dental issues. As much as 49% of those studied had untreated tooth decay and 77% had inflamed gums, even though they had very good hygiene habits.  Most reported regular brushing and flossing.  

What they discovered was that athletes consumed a lot of sugar in the form of sports gels, bars and drinks. Although these products can provide some needed energy during workouts and training, such products often contain up to 35 g of sugar. That is 9 teaspoons! Gatorade contains 21g, Powerade contains 21g, and these can be higher in the gels and some bars.  Make sure you check the labels and possibly choose the lower sugar alternatives.

What is more concerning is that the teens and children are starting to consume these products, sometimes it is even their drink of choice. Here at Innovation dental in Vaughan we discuss diet as a big contribution to tooth decay, and the diet contains a lot more than candy.  Sports drinks and sweet fancy coffees seem to be the new

22
MayWhat’s Your Toothbrush Telling You? How Often Should You Change Your Toothbrush?

Does your toothbrush look like this?

19
OctWhat Should Be Done When A Tooth Is Knocked Out

The other day we had a patient (who happens to be a teacher) running late for her dental appointment. When she arrived at the office she informed us that one of her students had their tooth knocked out during gym class.