SmileCentre Blog

At The Smile Centre, we offer in-office teeth whitening with Zoom! During Zoom! treatment, a whitening gel is applied to the teeth and then activated with a special light. This helps to maximize the effectiveness of the bleaching solution. 

After your Zoom! treatment at The Smile Centre, we will provide you with a take-home kit that can be used as needed to maintain your results. We can provide more teeth whitening solutions for at-home maintenance as needed.

Keeping Teeth Bright and Beautiful

Using the touch-up kits provided by our office can help extend the results of your teeth whitening treatment. These come with customized application…

July is National Ice Cream Month and there are some great options, both from national chains and local favorites, in and around Sarasota. Just remember, if you plan on enjoying an icy treat this month, be sure to take steps to protect your teeth from the harm that can follow.

Dairy products can be good for your teeth. Research has shown that caseins, found in dairy products, help to protect the teeth from decay while minerals such as calcium and phosphorous help to strengthen enamel. Ice cream has the minerals and caseins found in all dairy products, but it also has sugar, a lot of sugar, and this plays a direct role in how the product impacts oral health.

Sugar encourages the rapid formation of plaque bacteria. These bacteria feed on sugars, producing an acidic…

Gums that bleed easily, such as when you brush your teeth or eat crunchy foods, are showing symptoms of gingivitis, a mild form of gum disease. In its beginning stages, gingivitis may respond well to an enhanced at-home routine. This includes:

• Using a soft-bristled toothbrush and nonabrasive fluoride toothpaste to brush your teeth after every meal
• Flossing in between every tooth before you brush at least once a day
• Using an oral rinse designed to kill bacteria underneath the gum line

With diligent effort, these steps may be all it takes to restore health to your…

Chronic headaches are a common symptom of TMJ. A condition marked by the misalignment of the jaw, TMJ places pressure on the trigeminal nerve, the largest of the cranial nerves, which can result in pain that may seem unrelated to your jaw. Due to this pressure, TMJ may also result in ear pain and pressure or pressure and pain behind the eyes.

TMJ headaches are similar to migraines in that they are powerfully uncomfortable and have the potential of impacting work, family, and social life. However, TMJ headaches and migraines are not the same things, and treatment designed for one will not help, in the long term, with the other.

Treating TMJ

Treating TMJ involves…

Porcelain veneers are placed over the front of cosmetically unappealing teeth. This may include teeth that are chipped or cracked, crooked or misshaped, gapped or unevenly spaced, or even severely stained underneath the enamel. Shaped, sized, and shaded to look and feel like natural teeth, dental veneers offer an effective option for addressing even the most pronounced cosmetic imperfections.

Why Consider Porcelain Veneers?

Porcelain is an extremely durable substance. It is also translucent, moldable, and entirely safe. What’s more, porcelain reflects light in the same manner as tooth enamel, allowing veneers to…

May is National Dental Care Month, a time to rethink your at-home routine and re-commit to professional dental care. If it has been longer than six months since your last dental visit, get in touch today to schedule an appointment and let us help you maintain peak oral health and beauty.

Daily Care

Daily care is the foundation of a strong, healthy, and attractive smile. Be sure to:

• Brush. Use a soft-bristled toothbrush and fluoride toothpaste to brush after every meal
• Floss. Floss in between every tooth, from root to crown, at least once daily

Flossing is best done…

Missing teeth may seem like an aesthetic problem alone. Indeed, depending on their location, missing teeth can have a negative impact on the overall appearance of the smile. This is, however, not the most pressing concern when one or more teeth are missing.

Even a single missing tooth can allow adjacent teeth to shift out of position or slide out of place. Missing teeth can change the strength and tension of the bite, hasten additional tooth loss, increase risks for tooth decay, gum disease, and infection, alter speech, and impact eating abilities. Over time, missing teeth can also allow for structural changes to the jaw, resulting in modifications to the shape, size, and density of the jawbone and permanently altering the structure of the face.

Fortunately, by replacing missing teeth, all of these issues can be avoided.

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Orthodontics is used to correct malocclusion, the medical term for bite irregularities. When necessary, orthodontic services such as braces and Invisalign® work to align the bite, helping to prevent facial malformation, bite dysfunction, and other issues that can follow an uneven, crowded, or otherwise imperfect smile. In some cases, orthodontic treatment is the only option to restore comfort and alignment.

Affixed braces, including traditional wire-and-bracket braces, lingual braces, and ceramic braces, can become damaged by certain foods. As such, affixed orthodontics will come with dietary…

It is estimated that 50 to 70 million adults in the United States suffer from obstructive sleep apnea, the most common form of this sleeping disorder. Marked by periods of breath cessation and often accompanied by loud snoring, obstructive sleep apnea comes with several symptoms, including:

• Waking at night to chokes or gasps
• Frequent morning headaches
• Persistent dry mouth
• Excessive daytime fatigue

Symptoms of obstructive sleep apnea may also include mood swings, cognitive difficulties, and an increased risk of developing metabolic syndrome – a cluster of medical conditions that heighten risks for…

If you are looking for a great New Year’s Resolution, consider a commitment to optimizing your oral health routine. Maybe you brush twice a day. Maybe you floss. Maybe you visit our office for routine cleanings, but there is always room for improvement. Here are some easy ways to begin improving your oral health that can have a profound impact on the look, feel, and strength of your smile.

Brush More Frequently

Brushing twice a day is acceptable, but not optimal. Consider instead brushing your teeth after every meal and snack. It is typically a good idea to allow 30 minutes to pass between consuming food or drink and brushing your teeth. This gives enamel that may have been softened time to harden back up before the teeth are brushed.…