Dr. Willoughby’s dental philosophy is based on five simple premises:
- Dental health is critical to overall systemic health;
- Prevention before treatment;
- When treatment is required, preservation of natural tooth structure is key.
- Patients deserve to know what their various treatment options are.
- Permanent functional Dentistry should always be the goal and should always be done utilizing safe and biocompatible materials
Dr. Willoughby and his team are here to answer any questions you may have, explain the features and benefits of dental procedures and devices, and teach your family how to best care for their teeth and gums. In today’s Internet and television centered world, patients are constantly bombarded with marketing and advertising about a whole host of consumer dental products, and it is often hard to know who and what to believe. A good example of this surrounds the use of dental mouthwashes.
It’s a well-established medical fact that supplementing your daily oral hygiene routine with the use of an mouthwash /rinse will help reduce bacterial plaque, the incidence of gingivitis and bad breath and the risk of tooth decay. There are many additives contained in various mouthwashes including; essential oils such as lemon, menthol, wintergreen and eugenol as well as enzymes and calcium, Ingredients also include water, sweeteners such as sorbitol, saccharin and xylitol which doubles as a bacterial inhibitor. Mouthwashes also routinely contain antimicrobial agents such as chlorhexidine, hydrogen peroxide and benzalkonium chloride to help further reduce bacteria.
Commercially available mouthwashes which contain hydrogen peroxide are often marketed as whitening agents despite the fact that the concentration of the peroxide is probably not adequate enough to bleach or whiten tooth enamel given the limited contact time the mouthwash spends in contact with the teeth. Fluoride containing mouthwashes can however have some measured benefit in treating sensitive teeth when used in combination with a fluoride containing toothpaste or desensitizing paste such as Calcium Phosphate –especially on the exposed root surface of a tooth.
Sometimes a significant amount of Alcohol (up to 27% vol.) as a carrier to boost the flavor and “bite” or “zing” of the product. Unfortunately, because alcohol is a drying agent, research has shown that they can actually worsen chronic bad breath. In 2008 Research in Australia discovered that amongst users of alcohol containing mouth-rinses, who neither smoke nor drink, the risk of developing oral cancer amongst increased by almost 5 times (with an even higher rate of increase for those who did). Important to note was the side effects from several mainstream mouthwashes that included dental erosion and accidental poisoning of children. *
Given these facts, Dr. Willoughby and his team recommend against the long term use of any Alcohol containing mouthwash product until there is more definitive research on this subject. If you or your family wish to use a commercial Mouthwash, then we strongly recommend that you use one that does not contain Alcohol -so check the label carefully!
* Excerpts taken from Wikipedia “Mouthwashes”
Providing your family with knowledgeable Dental advice
Clearly, the best place to get the truth about dental products and procedures is from your family dentist. Dr. Willoughby is an experienced general dentist. He has completed hundreds of hours of post-graduate dental training in various Cosmetic, Orthodontic, Neuromuscular, and Implant/Bone-grafting programs.
Not only can Dr. Willoughby and his staff advise you and your family about the best-quality dental products to use (such as non-alcohol containing mouthwashes), but he can also provide you with beautiful new porcelain veneers and crowns, dental implants and relieve your TMD pain and symptoms. Our office will provide you with solid advice for every aspect of dentistry. We are here to treat all your family members and provide for their long term dental health.
We are happy to address any dental concerns you may have so please call or email mail is any time if you would like to schedule a consultation with Dr. Andrew Willoughby.
Providing general, implant, laser and Neuromuscular based procedures to Vancouver, the Fraser Valley and surrounding areas of Langley, Cloverdale, Campbell Valley, White Rock and South Surrey.