For the third year in a row, when Atlanta Parent asked their readers about their favorite oral health professionals, moms chose Dr. Hernandez and Dr. Johnson of Vital Smiles! We love this! Honestly, mom’s opinions matter more to us than anyone else’s, because no one knows a kid’s world like their mama does. We’re thrilled to have this honor, and we are proud of our doctors and staff who work hard every single day to deliver top-notch care.
Things You Didn’t Know Your Dentist was Doing at Your Checkup
Welcome to February! February is National Children’s Dental Health month, and we are celebrating! We’re celebrating our dentists and our staff members, and most of all, we are celebrating our favorite patients (and their adults). If you’re one of our favorite patients’ adults and you’re reading this and thinking, “Yeah, it’s another one of those made-up ‘holidays’—like Squirrel Appreciation Day,” we’re willing to agree that there’s nothing inherently magical about February. We do, however, think that the important things in life are worth taking time to notice and appreciate, so we want to highlight the value of your child’s oral health and appreciate the care that goes into maintaining a happy, healthy mouth.
How Snacking Affects Your Teeth
Remember when you were a kid and snacks made the world go ‘round? Moms, y’all can definitely vouch for how quickly a fun outing becomes a disaster when you forgot the snacks at home, right? I mean, snacking is a way of life for children; they basically eat all day long. Unfortunately, many of us have maintained our childhood snacking habits, and it’s taking a toll on our teeth. How does that work? Let’s talk about it.
Taking Care of Your Tongue
When you think of oral health, it’s really easy to focus on teeth almost exclusively and forget that there are other important players in your overall mouth health. One of the other key influencers of oral health is your tongue. In this post, we’re going to talk about how taking care of your tongue can help eliminate or prevent bad breath.
Ways to Break the Nail-Biting Habit
In the last post, we discussed the negative effects that nail-biting can have on your have on oral and general health for both you and your kids, and we promised that we’d chime in soon with some strategies for helping you break this common habit. We all know, of course, that breaking long-time habits is more easily said than done. Everyone is different, and most people will probably find it most effective to use a combination of strategies to kick this habit to the curb.
Let’s Talk about Nail-biting
Nail-biting is a common habit. A majority of kids chew their fingernails at least at some point during their childhood, and teens and adult frequently continue the habit. Like most nervous habits, nail-biting typically becomes a subconscious practice that surfaces most when you feel stressed in some way: hunger, boredom, frustration, complexity, etc. We want to help you help your kids navigate this common phase.
“Mom-Approved” Two Years in a Row
Parents, you voted our Dr. Miguel Hernandez into the top “Mom-Approved Atlanta Dentists” list in the February 2018 issue of Atlanta Parent for the second year in a row: wow! Thank you! We wanted to take a minute to tell you what your trust means to us.
Why Does my Kid’s Breath Smell?
Bad breath. It’s that moment when your kid’s trying to tell you about his day at school and you about swerve into the wrong lane when you get a whiff of his breath. Was it something in his lunch? Did he not brush his teeth this morning? Did he drink from a mud puddle at recess? Why does his breath smell so bad? And what can you do to help?
How to Look for Baby Bottle Tooth Decay
Did you know that even 4 year olds can develop baby bottle tooth decay? Several months ago, our Dr. Hernandez helped a 4-year-old patient with severe baby bottle tooth decay regain healthy teeth and a happy smile. We were thrilled to see the patient helped, but we were also motivated to help more parents know how to prevent this.
What to Expect at your Vital Smiles Visit
If you have never been to our offices before, we would love to welcome you to the Vital Smiles family. We want your children to have positive experiences with their dental visits. As a parent, you play an important role in how your children react to dental exams. So here are a couple of helpful kid-friendly tips to keep in mind when you schedule your first visit: