Dear Patients,

The cool evenings and rainy days illuminate the fact that fall has arrived. Vibrant colored leaves and Halloween trick or treaters are just around the corner.

Over the last century modern technology has enabled countless advances in dentistry. One of the most significant scientific discoveries was that when the mineral fluoride was incorporated into tooth enamel, it would make teeth impervious to tooth decay. This discovery lead to the introduction of fluoride into our nation’s water systems in the mid 1960’s. However, as with most good things, there can also be negative consequences.

The old adage that if a little is good, more is better does not apply to fluoride. In fact, excessive amounts of fluoride can cause unsightly chalky white spots on teeth and/or bone brittleness. Our office strongly recommends against putting toothpaste on young children’s toothbrushes until they can demonstrate the ability to spit the toothpaste out. Systemic ingestion of fluoride by children can result in too much fluoride incorporated into their permanent dentition, thus the unsightly discolorations.

Another negative consequence of fluoridation is that it makes cavity detection difficult by the average dentist. Traditional x-rays and explorer (picky thing) techniques taught in dental school and used by the majority of dentists result in many undiagnosed areas of decay. Our office uses a laser cavity detection device and direct visualization which enables us to find cavities undetected by the old techniques.

If you or someone you love has questions about fluoride or tooth decay, please contact our office for a no-charge consultation.

Sincerely,

Michael W. Dagostino, DDS

P.S. We are working on integrating e-mail into our office communications. Please send us your e-mail address with your payment. We are excited about this change! Additionally, our website has a lot of new information posted, please visit us at www.DrDagostino.com