It takes 43
muscles to frown but only 17 to smile - so smile! Bad
teeth and bad breath are the #1 turn-offs for women according to a survey
in a popular men's magazine.
Regular
dental visits ensure healthy teeth and gums and detect at early stages
diseases like cancer. Sixty percent of people in the U.S. visit their
dentists on a regular basis.
Tooth
decay is caused by the germs (plaque) which live on your teeth. Plaque
turns sugar found in food into acid. This acid then attaches to the tooth
surface.
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The
more often that you eat sugary foods, the more acid is produced and the
more damage to your teeth.
Many
drinks are very sugary. Colas contain as much as 8 teaspoons of sugar.
Carbonated
drinks and fruit juices are acidic and diet sodas also damage teeth but
to a lesser extent.
Milk
and water are the drinks recommended for between meals. Drinking and eating
"bad" foods do more damage if they are between meals. Tea and
coffee without sugar are acceptable.
Fluoride
provides protection against dental decay at all ages.
Children
do not lose all of their baby teeth at once. Certain baby molars are expected
to be in the child's mouth until 12-13 years of age.
18
percent of 2-to-4-year-old children have experienced tooth decay, and
16 percent have untreated decay.
74%
of children ages 2 through 17 have visited a dentist in the past year.
By
age 17, 78 percent of young people have had a cavity. By age 17, 7 percent
of young people have lost at least one permanent tooth.
Among
poor children, almost 50% of tooth decay remains untreated.
Dental
caries (cavities) and periodontal diseases are the most common oral diseases
and 85 percent of adults (18 and older) in the US are affected.
Dental
cavities are preventable for the most part, yet remain the most common
chronic disease of children – five times more common than asthma.
More
than 108 million Americans do not have dental insurance.
More
than 70 percent of respondents say it is important for employers to provide
dental benefits.
Dental
coverage is the second most popular benefit in compensation packages,
next only to medical insurance.
65
percent of large employers offer dental benefits.
