Cleaning Your Retainers

If you’re wearing a retainer, congratulations! Your orthodontic treatment has ended and you are on your way to having straight teeth for years to come. Dr. Cynthia Wong hopes you are wearing your retainers for the maximum amount of time, and if you are, they may seem cloudy or foggy in appearance. Here are some tips and tricks for cleaning them and bringing them back to life.

If you’ve been told that cleaning your retainer with a toothbrush will scratch it – this is a myth. In fact, brushing your retainer with a toothbrush is the only way to remove tartar that naturally builds up. Regardless of what type of retainer you have, it’s always best to keep them moist – either in the mouth or soaking in distilled water. You should never use harsh chemicals or boiling water to clean your retainers as this will damage them. If you feel like the at-home care routine isn’t cleaning them enough, bring them to our office and we’ll h help you clean them!

If you have questions or concerns about orthodontic treatment, please give us a call. To learn more about the services we provide at our office, visit www.drcynthiawong.com for more information. To schedule an appointment with Dr. Cynthia Wong in Orland Park, IL, call 708-444-8341.

Drink More Water

A healthy smile is just a sip away if you drink more water for your oral health. Our bodies are 60% water, so by consuming sugary beverages, we aren’t doing anything to improve our overall health. Sugary beverages like juice or soda pop may wash away food particles but they leave unwanted sugar behind on teeth.  Water cleans the mouth with every sip and Dr. Cynthia Wong is here to tell you why.

The cavity-causing bacteria in your mouth feed off sugars and produce acid that wears away enamel. Water dilutes these acids to keep your smile cavity-free. Additionally, human saliva has 99% water content, so when drinking water, you are preventing yourself from experiencing dry mouth and reducing your risk of tooth decay. Though drinking water helps you maintain a healthy smile, don’t forget to brush your teeth at least twice a day, floss at least once a day, and visit us for professional cleanings.

If you have questions or concerns about orthodontic treatment, please give us a call. To learn more about the services we provide at our office, visit www.drcynthiawong.com for more information. To schedule an appointment with Dr. Cynthia Wong in Orland Park, IL, call 708-444-8341.

Brushing and Flossing with Braces

The staff at Dr. Cynthia Wong Orthodontics wants patients to remember that brushing and flossing are important no matter what stage of orthodontic treatment you are in.  But how do you get the best clean with braces? Here are some tips!

• ·        Holding the head of the toothbrush at a 45 degree angle to the gum line will help the bristles clean around the brackets most effectively.


• ·        Floss threaders and orthodontic floss help you thread floss underneath the wires of your braces.  Once you thread the floss underneath each wire, wrap your pointer fingers around each end of the floss. 


• ·        Rub the side of each tooth up to the gum line, and once you’ve removed the plaque and food particles, remove the floss the thread it underneath the next wire. 


• ·        If you feel flossing between your braces does not remove all the lingering food particles, you may be more effective with a water flosser.  Water flossers use a stream of water and pulsing pressure to clean between your teeth and any brackets or appliances.

To learn more about oral hygiene and all the services we provide at the practice, visit www.drcynthiawong.com for more information. To schedule an appointment with Dr. Cynthia Wong Orthodontics in Orland Park, IL, call 708-444-8341.

What is TMD?

The tempromandibilar joint is a hinge that connects your jaw bone (mandible) to the temporal bones in your skull, in front of each ear.  A general term for any problem or issue with this joint is temporomandibular disorder, or TMD.  Dr. Cynthia Wong Orthodontics can help patients prevent and recover from negative effects of TMD.

Patients that grind or clench their teeth often end up with a sore jaw.  Other patients experience injuries with facial trauma that cause jaw pain or result in the patient feeling their jaw gets stuck or ‘locked’ in either an open or closed position.  A custom night guard keeps the jaw in a neutral position during sleep, and this helps many patients find relief from TMD symptoms.  For any pain, your dentist may recommend an over-the-counter painkiller or warm and cold compresses.  To prevent further discomfort, you may be assigned stretches for your jaw. 

Whatever your symptoms, you don’t have to suffer discomfort in your jaw.  To learn more about TMD and the services we provide at the practice, visit www.drcynthiawong.com for more information. To schedule an appointment with Dr. Cynthia Wong Orthodontics in Orland Park, IL, call 708-444-8341.

How Sugar Affects the Teeth

Foods that contain sugars of any kind contribute to tooth decay. Though Dr. Cynthia Wong understands that we can’t eliminate sugar from our diets completely, reducing the amount of sugar we consume can go a long way. The mouth is full of bacteria, many of which are beneficial to your oral health. However, certain harmful bacteria will feed on the sugars we consume and destroy tooth enamel.  

Soda, energy drinks, chocolate milk, and fruit juices are beverages that contain an abundance of sugar. For example, a glass of apple juice can contain as much sugar as a can of soda. Dr. Wong suggests opting for better choices such as water, unsweetened tea, milk, or diluted juice. If your sweet tooth is just too strong, there are other ways to protect your teeth. For starters, brush your teeth after you eat to eliminate the acids that stick to the enamel and floss to remove any excess carbohydrates.

If you have questions or concerns about the status of your oral health, please give us a call. To learn more about the services we provide at our office, visitwww.drcynthiawong.com for more information. To schedule an appointment with Dr. Cynthia Wong in Orland Park, IL, call 708-444-8341.

Why Not to do Orthodontics Yourself

It was nearly a year ago that the American Association of Orthodontists released a public service announcement warning people not to attempt to do orthodontic work on themselves. That warning is back in the news following a study by the Association, released in February of this year, finding that thirteen percent of its members have treated a person who tried to straighten their own teeth through unprofessional methods. These practices are much more likely to do severe damage to a person’s teeth than they are to help them.

One of the purported benefits of DIY orthodontics is that it works faster. But the reason professional orthodontics is slow is not because the patient is being milked for money, but because there is a careful balance to maintain in moving teeth through other bones without making them come loose. Teeth that are moved very quickly could easily migrate back or fall out completely. DIY guides also frequently encourage people to use bonds without cemented brackets to keep them from sliding into their gum pockets. The bonds are also frequently of a biodegradable material which will rot in the user’s mouth while strangling their teeth.

Our office offers free initial exams and consultations. Orthodontic treatment is an investment—it prevents a lifetime of dental problems resulting from a bad bite, but only when overseen by an expert.

Cynthia Wong, DMD, operates at 15614 S Harlem #B, Orland Park, Illinois, 60462. To contact her office, call 708-444-8341 or visit DrCynthiaWong.com and send a message.

 

Nighttime Oral Care

You may brush your teeth in the morning to eliminate rancid morning breath, but what about brushing your teeth before bed? Brushing your teeth before hitting the hay is very important and Dr. Cynthia Wong would like to explain why. When we sleep, our saliva flow slows down and saliva is what’s used to wash away food particles that cause bad breath and tooth decay. If you currently don’t brush before bed, it’s never too late to implement a nighttime oral care routine.

After we eat, plaque sits on our teeth, and if this plaque sits on your teeth all night, it can potentially lead to gingivitis and even more severe forms of periodontal disease. Each time you brush your teeth you should be using fluoride toothpaste that has the ADA seal of approval. You should always go to sleep with a clean mouth, because this will reduce morning breath odor when you wake up. Dr. Cynthia Wong understands that sometimes we are too exhausted to brush, floss, rinse, etc. which is why she recommends keeping a toothbrush near your nightstand and give those pearly whites a quick sweep before your head hits the pillow because a dry brush is better than none at all.

If you have questions or concerns about your oral hygiene routine, please give us a call. To learn more about the services we provide at our office, visit www.drcynthiawong.com for more information. To schedule an appointment with Dr. Cynthia Wong in Orland Park, IL, call 708-444-8341.