Cancer treatment can consisted of chemotherapy and radiation therapy. There may be side effects from cancer therapy, some of which can be devastating, but preventable or manageable with proper precautions and care. The most common side effects for head and neck cancer patients who undergo radiation therapy are: Dry Mouth,  Post Radiation Tooth Decay, Inability to open the mouth wide, Necrosis of soft tissue and bone and Impaired ability to heal from wounds in the oral cavity.  When fighting cancer you should talk you your dentist and make sure your are receiving proper dental care.

Making Informed Choices for Dental Insurance

Many state laws mandate that consumers with dental coverage receive a fully detailed patient information handbook  a Description of Benefits  that clearly outlines coverage, deductibles, co-payments, limitations and exclusions.

The law mandates that consumers with dental coverage receive a fully detailed patient information handbook  — a Description of Benefits — that clearly outlines coverage, limitations and exclusions.

Although there has not yet come out with a  study that states whitening your teeth during pregnancy is harmful to your child, waiting until after the baby is born to whiten your teeth may still be a good idea. The concern  is that the chemicals used in teeth whiten products could be swallowed during the whitening process and the effects that may have on your baby.

Some dentist will encourage you to wait until after pregnancy and even some teeth whitening produce recommend not to using during pregnancy.  However if whitening your teeth is important to you the consult your doctor and a dentist before having your teeth whiten, in order to go about it in the safest way possible.

Since most Family or General dental office do not see children under the ages of five or six, many people take their younger children to see a Pediatric dentist.  However many times Pediatric dentist are either not covered under their dental benefits or they are but at a lower coverage.  This is because, Pediatric dentist are consider in many cases to be specialist and not general dentist. So once your child is old enough to see a family dentist many people wish to make the change so that their child dental care can become more affordable.

However, if change is done abruptly it can be overwhelming and cause some anxiety. But if you’re both prepared and plan accordingly, it can be a smooth process.  Try and find a general/family dentist that still provides a kid friendly office. Make sure the dentist you are seeing is well equip to handle younger children.

Ways to clean and reduce cavities.

Studies have suggested that dental hygiene remains at the bottom of the health care duties compared to taking a bath or washing your hair.

How often should I brush my teeth?

Brush your teeth with a fluoride toothpaste at least twice a day for 2-3 minutes, especially before bedtime.

How to reduce gum disease and tooth decay?

Flossing your teeth helps remove plaque in between your teeth where a toothbrush cannot reach. Mouthwash helps reduce bacteria in your mouth which helps to reduce tooth decay. Be sure to visit your dentist every six months for a professional teeth cleaning.

With the continue rising of healthcare cost more employers have stop offering dental care benefits to their employees. Due to this only 57% of Americans are covered by a dental plan compared with more the 85% who have medical insurance.  This according to the latest in Healthcare Transparency Index from Change Healthcare.

The index is showing a concerning trend that employees and their dependents are skipping regular dental visits and neglecting their dental health care. That women were more likely to receive dental care, averaging 1.31 visits per year versus only 1.11 for men. The index also found that seniors age 60 and older were the most likely to receive dental care, compared with young adults ages 21 to 30 representing the least likely.

Gum Disease can effect anyone at any age. For some people gum disease is what happen to older people and not to children.  However that would not be correct.  Gum Disease ( Periodontal disease) can effect anyone at any age.

Gum Disease is an infection of the tissues and bone that help support the teeth.  If untreated gum disease can become very serious dental issue causing teeth to become loose and even fall out. Gum disease is one of the main reason why people in the U.S. lose their teeth.  It is normally caused by plaque buildup.  Plaque contains bacteria, which produce toxins that irritate and damage the gums.

By having proper dental habits at home (brushing and flossing twice a day) and by having regular dental check ups you can help to prevent gum disease.  A child should start seeing a dentist from the time they cut their first tooth or by their first birthday.

Does my dental insurance provide full coverage?

Many dental insurance plans will not provide coverage for all procedures 100%.  Most plans have deductibles and co-payments.

What is a deductible on a dental insurance plan?

The deductible is the amount to be paid to prior to coverage. This amount varies depending on the type of dental plan.

What is a co-payment on a dental insurance plan?

A co-payment is the amount to be paid by the insured for a portion of services rendered.

Proper dental care for your child begins even before your baby cuts their first tooth. As and infant you want to keep your baby’s gums clean.  You can do this by running a damp washcloth over your baby’s gums following feedings, by doing this it can help to prevent buildup of damaging bacteria. Once your baby has a few teeth showing you can then begin to brush them with a soft child’s toothbrush.  Feeding habits for babies is very important in maintain dental health.

Even babies can have problems with dental decay when parents do not practice good feeding habits. Putting a baby to sleep with a baby bottle in his or her mouth may seem convenient but it can do great harm to your baby’s teeth. A Parent should consider taking your child to a dentist who specializes in treating kids. Pediatric dentists are trained to handle the wide range of issues associated with kids’ dental health e of issues associated with kids’ dental health

 DENTAL SEALANTS: DENTAL INSURANCE PLAN HELP AND INFORMATION

What are dental sealants?  Dental sealants are a plastic material applied to the back surfaces of the teeth to help prevent cavities.

Should children get dental sealants?  Dental sealants are important for children since they protect the top surface of the molars where pits and fissures are more prevalent and are susceptible to bacteria by getting trapped in the pits and fissures of the tooth which leads to the onset of cavities. The plastic material / dental sealant covers the top surface area of the molar. Your dentist needs to be consulted before you have any dental work done on children to ensure they are receiving the proper dental health care.

What are the costs of dental sealants?   Dental sealants cost approximately $25-$49 per tooth but this can vary depending upon the geographic area in which you live in and the type of dentist you visit.

Do dental insurance plans cover dental sealants?  Some dental insurance plans do cover a percentage of the dental sealant procedure. Coverage depends upon the type of policy you purchased, the coverage limitations, co-insurance, policy waiting periods and deductibles.

Brush your teeth twice a day with a tooth paste that contains fluoride. Preferably, brush after each meal and before bedtime to help reduce the bacteria from staying on your teeth for a certain length of time.

You may wish to consider these helpful tips as well:

* Floss your teeth daily to prevent tooth decay and gum disease.

* Check with your dentist regarding the use of a supplemental fluoride which strengthens your teeth and helps prevents tooth decay.

* Consider dental sealants which is a plastic like substance placed on the top of molars to protect the teeth from decay.

* Use mouth wash with fluoride. Many of them kill 50% or more of the bacteria that cause tooth decay.

* Chewing gum with the ingredient Xylitol © may also kill some of the bacteria which causes tooth decay.

Having a Sugar Free Diet Equals healthier Children and Healthy Teeth.  It can be difficult to give your kids a sugar free diet when sugar is an ingredient which is used to enrich a high percentage of baby foods, snacks and prepackaged foods.  Processed food in today’s society is represents alot of what people are eating.

However do your best to stay away from these type of food is you want your child to stay healthy. If sugar is consumed in excess, it can bring about plenty of health complications. Try to eat more sucrose-free food products, and make sure to replace the high sucrose foods with healthy foods that contain vitamins, minerals and fibers. These types of foods will help your child develop healthily and grow strong teeth.

Proper preventive dental care for babies start with the parents. In the past many people did not feel that baby teeth were all that important.  Not fully understanding the roll that baby teeth play in a child development.  Baby teeth serves many functions. such as allowing for proper jaw growth, baby teeth assist in the formation of proper speech and they are space savers for adult teeth to come in correctly. Untreated tooth decay in baby teeth can lead to premature loss of teeth as well as effect the development of adult teeth.

Parents must start good oral health habits for their babies right from the start. Make sure to clean your baby’s gums even before emerging baby teeth. When baby teeth start to come in make sure to brush and clean both teeth and gums. If you are not sure the proper way to do so then take your baby to see a dentist. The dentist can show you proper way to clean and take care of your child teeth and gums.  The days of children not seeing a dentist until they are two or older are long gone.  It is best advised that you should take your child to see a dentist when they cut their first tooth or by their first birthday.

What is Tooth Decay?

Tooth decay is the destruction of the outer surface of a tooth from acid forming bacteria that is produced by food containing carbohydrates (sugars and starches)

Making Informed Choices for Dental Insurance

Many state laws mandate that consumers with dental coverage receive a fully detailed patient information handbook — a Description of Benefits — that clearly outlines coverage, deductibles, co-payments, limitations and exclusions… The law mandates that consumers with dental coverage receive a fully detailed patient information handbook  — a Description of Benefits — that clearly outlines coverage, limitations and exclusions.

It has been suggested that breast-feeding over bottle-feeding is better for the overall health of your baby.  However with regards to early childhood cavities breast-feeding is no better or worse then bottle feeding both can cause dental decay in baby teeth if proper dental care is not taken.

To help prevent dental decay:  Avoid overnight feedings, letting your baby nurse at will can make milk pool in baby’s mouth which will cause acid to form contagiously throughout the night which can lead to tooth decay.  This is the same with bottles so avoid letting your child walk around with a baby bottle.   Whether you  are breast feeding or bottle feeding your baby, wipe your baby’s teeth and gums with a clean damp washcloth after feedings.

The ADA (American Dental Association) suggest that you encourage your child to drink from a cup by the time they reach their first birthday.  Dentist suggest that you should take  your child to their first dental appointment by the time they reach their first birthday.  We suggest having either dental insurance or a dental plan in force in order to help make going to the dentist more affordable.  And remember preventive dental care starts from home.

Simple step you can take to prevent tooth decay

Brush your teeth twice a day with a tooth paste that contains fluoride. Preferably, brush after each meal and before bedtime to help reduce the bacteria from staying on your teeth for a certain length of time.

You may wish to consider these helpful tips as well:

* Floss your teeth daily to prevent tooth decay and gum disease.

* Check with your dentist regarding the use of a supplemental fluoride which strengthens your teeth and helps prevents tooth decay.

* Consider dental sealants which is a plastic like substance placed on the top of molars to protect the teeth from decay.

* Use mouth wash with fluoride. Many of them kill 50% or more of the bacteria that cause tooth decay.

* Chewing gum with the ingredient Xylitol © may also kill some of the bacteria which causes tooth decay.

A Study done on Antiboitic Prophylaxis shows that patients who are undergoing invasive dental procedures do not benefit from it use.  In the British Medical Journal it suggested that patients that are at risk from infective endocarditis (an infection of the inner surface of the heart) will not benefit from antibiotic prophylaxis before undergoing invasive dental procedures.  Dr Lockhart noted that dental offices have been in the spotlight for more than 50 years because dental procedures can cause bacteria to enter the blood stream, but stated there is no strong scientific data to show that dental procedures cause infective endocarditis.

Some typical features of a direct reimbursement plan:

* Neither you nor your employer pay monthly premiums
* Freedom to choose any dentist
* Typical employer cost: depends on the number of employees and benefit caps
* Benefits usually capped at $500 to $2,000 annually.

Participants insured with a dental PPO insurance plan are responsible for paying their deductible before receiving any reimbursement.  One of the key differences between dental HMO insurance and dental PPO insurance is that DPPOs usually allow dentists to spend more time with insured patients.

Dentists in dental HMO insurance plans are expected to see a certain number of patients, so some dentists have been known to rush through dental appointments.  A PPO dental insurance plan consists of numerous dentists that sign up to join a network insurance system or group with hopes that they will have many patients to service.  When subscribers join a PPO dental plan, they benefit from lower out-of-pocket costs when they see one of the network dentists.