At Origin Dental Wellness, we have taken microscope slides of every patient’s plaque for years. This is a part of a routine dental hygiene appointment. The importance of looking at the plaque under the microscope is to determine if there are any pathogenic microorganisms swimming around that could be responsible for systemic health effects, namely … Read more
Did you know Listerine was developed not as a mouthwash, but as a germicide, surgical antiseptic and a cure for gonorrhea. It’s earlier adaptations were also used as a floor cleaner. It is almost 30% ethyl alcohol and has a highly acidic pH value of 4.8 ( teeth break down at 5.5 pH), which not … Read more
Your mouth could be making you sick. This is unfortunate and 100% true. Almost all chronic diseases are inflammation driven and that inflammation could be starting in your mouth. How to find out if you’re at risk? A quick sample of your biofilm viewed under the microscope could reveal a lot. What is biofilm? The … Read more
I May Not Know How Many Kids You Have, But I Know What’s Swimming Around In Your Mouth Sadly, perhaps not so sadly, this is true. I am a dental hygienist. There are different approaches to a dental hygiene visit. There is the “chat and polish” version. This chick knows all the names of your … Read more
The next time you are in the dental chair for your oral wellness exam, aka dental cleaning, ponder this; there is some archaeology going on in your mouth. An archaeologist is a person who studies human history through the excavation of artifacts and remains. As a hygienist, I do some excavating and recovering of artifacts … Read more
What? What does that even mean you ask? It is the summary statement of how I view my healthcare. Ready to take this journey with me? Ok, let’s go. So, here is how I see it. Healthcare can be expensive. AMIRIT? Also, I like to travel. I would rather travel than pay for healthcare costs … Read more
Water found in nature will generally have a pH between 6.5 and 8.5. The pH of water is a measure of its acidity. “pH” stands for “potential of hydrogen”. The H is capitalized because it’s the chemical symbol for hydrogen. The pH scale measures the relative concentrations of hydrogen ions and hydroxyl ions in a … Read more
Dental plaque is a mass of bacteria also called biofilm. The mouth contains millions of bacteria, so how are we to win the battle against diseases such as decay and periodontal disease? A three prong attack is a good plan. The first step is to physically remove as much bacteria as possible. An electric … Read more
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