Hooray for a holiday weekend!  And we’re taking Friday off for the holiday and my wife and I are playing some golf with friends!

Here is some information about community fireworks and parades happening this weekend.  I will add  more as we come across them this week.  I plan on firing up the grill and trying out a new Rib recipe for the 4th festivities.

As far as Red, White and Boom goes we typically hop on the motorcycle and head to the Cota Bus maintenance facility on McKinley Blvd about 9:40 armed with our “bag chairs” securely on the bike with bungee cords…. of course.  We might try Goodale Park this year because it’s mentioned as a good spot slightly away from the crowds.

Red White and Boom fireworks start at 10 PM on July 3rd and they are being shot off at Veterans Memorial.

Columbus Community Fireworks

The Dispatch list of Parades and Fireworks

The Official Red White and Boom website

Fireworks all over Ohio

Your Smile is the first thing people typically see when the meet you.  Everyone has their own feelings about what kind of a smile they want and that is great.  But if you would like to understand the possibilities and cost of improving your smile, just ask your dentist.

And if you don’t like what you hear, ask another dentist. What I am saying here is that not every dentist has the same kind of style or philosophy so you need to find a dentist that matches your style and desire.  A friend of mine came to our office about 4 years ago.  She is/was a mid twenties professional and she had some staining on her front teeth.  Her old dentist had told her the staining “wasn’t a big deal”  and “was just part of her smile”  That is not the answer she wanted to hear so at her first appointment she asked Dr. Thompson what she could do about the staining.

It was a quick, pain free, polish to get the stains off and it didn’t cost her anything beyond her routine cleaning cost.  Bonus!

So, you might have something you’d like to change with your smile right now but you have been putting it off figuring it would cost a fortune.  Just ask.  You are an adult.  Get the scoop and then decide if it’s something you want for your smile.  Asking the question isn’t a commitment to treatment…. we all know that!

Top Questions to ask your dentist at a Smile Consultation.

The nutritional labels above are from Coke and Diet Coke some of the leading soft drinks in the industry.  Regular soft drinks contain both sugar and acid that can lead to tooth decay.  And although Diet soft drinks don’t contain sugar, they contain acid which is still harmful to teeth.

Sugary drinks, including sports drinks and energy drinks are consumed by children and adults a like but a lot of the cautionary information is aimed at parents and children.

But young adults should also pay close attention.  Students studying for exams or young people on the job trying to “get through the day” can mindlessly sip on soft drinks most of the day.  This continual sipping means the acid and sugar stay in contact with your teeth and can literally “bomb out” your mouth in between visits to your dentists.  Repairing the decay in these “bombed out” mouths isn’t cheap but if the decay isn’t repaired it just leads to bigger cavities.

So how much acid and sugar is in some of your favorite soft drinks?  See the chart below and remember the lower the acid number, the worse it is for your teeth.  I added battery acid, just for fun so you could compare the acid PH level of battery acid to your favorite soft drinks.

For more soft drink results see the information from the University of Minnesota School of Dentistry where these results were taken.

Kids today are consuming too much juice.  Often they drink juice instead of water, fruits, or vegetables.  Children that drink too much juice may not be hungry when mealtime arrives and will miss out on other important nutrients they would get from food.  For children ages 1 to 3, try to limit juice to one cup a day.

How much sugar is in an 8 oz cup of juice?

• Grape Juice = 8 teaspoons of sugar
• Apple Juice = 6 teaspoons of sugar
• Orange Juice = 6 teaspoons of sugar
• Juicy Juice = 5 teaspoons of sugar

The sugar in juice can significantly contribute to dental decay.  Small children can get cavities when liquids that contain sugar are left on teeth for extended periods of time.  This can happen when the child drinks juice from a sippy cup or bottle for prolonged periods during the day or is put to bed with juice in a cup or bottle.  Never put your child to bed with a bottle or sippy cup of juice.

Here are some tips to limit the amount of juice your child drinks

• Offer Juices less often and/or dilute it with water
• Give water in place of juice in a special cup or bottle
• Serve fruit as a snack in place of juice
• Serve milk and juice at mealtime only…water in-between meals

Stay tuned for tommorrow’s post… Stop the Pop!  Acid + Sugar = Trouble

Ok, summer is finally here!  The kids are out of school….. now what?  Some of my friends will find this post amusing because I don’t have kids.  I have grand kids (which always gets a chuckle) and I myself am still a kid at heart.  I have more toys at my house than some parents… ok maybe not but I have a lot of toys for kids.  My philosophy is… if I can keep the kids entertained then the parents will come over to visit more often.  Also, I admit it, I love toys.

So, I have many friends with kids so I hear about the challenge to find fun, inexpensive things to do with kids in Columbus. 

I also have included a few things below I heard on the golf course last nice during my Shady Ladies golf league.  Feel free to add comments with your own ideas.

Activities at Wellington School in Upper Arlington

Upper Arlington Parks and Rec Summer Program for kids and teens

I came also across this tweet today from Columbus Underground that I wanted to share with patients and friends.  Kids Summer Class and Camp RoundUp

Grandview Parks and Rec Summer Program

And another good website to check out is Kidslinked.com the source for local kids activities and events and Kidslinked Columbus Summer Fun Guide

The first thing I notice when I meet someone for the first time is their smile.  Perhaps it’s because I’m married to a dentist, I’ve been working in a dental office for 5 years, or because I had a lot of work done on my smile (braces twice, jaw surgery) before I even became eligible for my “special dental benefits plan”.  I guess having a nice smile has always been important to me.  It’s the one thing that is always with me no matter where I go.

But is that what the general public wants?  I struggle with what people want from their dentist in writing these blog posts.

• Do they just want their teeth cleaned and rush out the door.  That’s cool, because at least their clean and they are taking care of things.
• Do they believe they can wait until it hurts if the dentist detects cavities or gum disease?
• Why don’t more people floss?  It only takes a minute a day and it does so much good.
• Do they believe that it’s more important to have their morning Starbucks than to have to pay out of pocket for a professional dental cleaning or $30 copay for a filling?
• Do they really believe that their dental insurance should cover more, even though their premium is $10 per month?  (compared to $100s for medical)
• Do they want whitening that works with a little effort on their part for less than $100?
• Are they skeptical as to whether the Smile Makeover will really look as good as the mocked up “after” picture?
• Do they want their dentist to say “you know your teeth are looking a little yellow, we could really brighten them up for as little as $89 with a take home whitening kit“  Or is that insulting to the patient?  Because just about everyone over 30 could make a fairly significant difference in their smile, with a little whitening.
• What do people want from their dentist?
• Let’s start the conversation.  Would love to hear your comments here on this post.