Westside Dental Associates

Substitute Sugar for Xylitol This Holiday Season

October 18, 2013

xylitol

As Halloween and the rest of this year’s holidays get closer, the temptation to indulge in a variety of treats will grow. But sugar, as you know, can negatively affect your oral health.

In today’s post, we want to explain how sugar can cause cavities and let you know about an alternative to sugar that will let you enjoy all of your favorite holiday goodies.

How Does Sugar Damage Your Smile?

For as long as you’ve been going to the dentist, you’ve been told that sugar is bad for your teeth. But why is that? It’s because of how sugar interacts with your teeth.

When certain bacteria in...

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Tackle Stains and Misalignment with Porcelain Veneers

September 30, 2013

porcelain veneers

Are you so embarrassed of your smile that you hide it when you talk or laugh? Do the beautiful smiles you see on TV, at the movies, or in your favorite magazines just seem to make your feelings even worse? At Westside Dental Associates, a unique cosmetic solution can help you overcome these feelings and enjoy greater self-confidence. It’s called porcelain veneers.

What Makes Porcelain Veneers Unique?

With porcelain veneers, Dr. Latner can help you address two common cosmetic issues: staining and flaws such as misalignment, cracks, and chips. What’s more, you can see fully customized results in just two appointments.

Here’s how the process looks.

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Correcting Overbites, Underbites, and Crossbites with Invisalign

September 27, 2013

Invisalign

How confident are you about the appearance of your smile? If your answer to that is, “Not very,” Dr. Latner of Westside Dental Associates offers Invisalign, an excellent cosmetic solution for treating overbites, underbites, and crossbites.

How Does Invisalign Work?

Invisalign isn’t the only cosmetic braces option available today, but it’s among the most popular and effective. And for adults who want to project a professional, mature appearance, the major benefit of Invisalign is that it doesn’t rely on brackets or wires to move teeth. Instead, Invisalign uses a series of clear trays to gradually move teeth into their ideal position.

Why is Straightening Your Teeth...

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Why Is Flossing Important?

September 20, 2013

general dentistry

You’ve probably heard throughout your life that flossing is important, but do you understand why? In today’s post, we’d like to look at how flossing can help and what can happen if you don’t floss on a regular basis.

Why Should You Floss?

Flossing is important because of how it can help your oral health. When food is allowed to build up around teeth, the amount of harmful bacteria in the mouth will go up as well. Those harmful bacteria increase one’s vulnerability to decay and gum disease. If left untreated, they can lead to serious oral health problems, including advanced gum disease and tooth loss.

Serious oral health...

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Transform Your Smile Ahead of the Holiday Season with Cosmetic Dental Care

September 13, 2013

cosmetic dentistry

Do you want a whiter, straighter-looking smile before the holiday season arrives? Dr. Latner and his dental team at Westside Dental Associates offer three of today’s most popular and effective cosmetic dentistry services, all to help you achieve beautiful, customized results.

Which Cosmetic Services Can Help You Smile Confidently This Holiday Season?

Those services include:

With these services, patients can get amazing results in just one to two visits. But which cosmetic dentistry service will do the best job of helping you achieve your goals?

What Happens During a Consultation?

During a consultation...

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Teeth Whitening with Zoom!

August 22, 2013

teeth whitening

Few people have a naturally bright smile. That’s because so many things we run into on a daily basis can cause stains—things like coffee, tea, red wine, juice, and soda, for instance. Tobacco use also contributes, as does aging. All of which explains why teeth whitening is among the most popular cosmetic dentistry services offered by Westside Dental Associates.

Teeth whitening with Zoom! is easy and yields amazing results. With just one appointment, you can expect to see your smile brightened by anywhere between 6 to 10 shades.

How Does Zoom! Work?

It starts with us making sure you’re comfortably seated. We’ll put a protective cover...

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Is It Time for Your Home-Stretch Checkup?

August 15, 2013

general dentistry

If you had a checkup with Dr. Latner earlier this year, it may already be time for your second annual visit with Westside Dental Associates. That’s because we’re past the halfway point in 2013 and are entering the home stretch. Over the next few months, you can only expect life to get busier as the kids return to school, major holidays like Halloween and Thanksgiving get underway, and the hustle and bustle of December gets underway.

Why Should You See Your Dentist for a Dental Checkup?

Right now, with summer vacation slowly winding down, it’s the perfect time to see our Los Angeles team for regular care. During...

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Diabetes and Gum Disease

August 8, 2013

general dentistry

We’ve said it before—gum disease doesn’t just affect your oral health; it has an impact on your overall well-being. That even goes for patients with diabetes.

What’s the connection? Though it’s not entirely understood, it appears that the relationship between gum disease and diabetes occurs in two ways.

What is the Connection Between Diabetes & Gum Disease?

Gum disease forms when bacteria and plaque accumulate around the gum line. This causes the tissue to become irritated, resulting in an infection. The body responds to this infection by raising blood sugar levels, in turn raising a patient’s risk of experiencing diabetic complications.

Now, consider the other side. Patients who...

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Risk Factors for Cavities

August 1, 2013

general dentistry

You’ve heard all your life that keeping your teeth healthy means avoiding sugary foods and brushing twice a day. But in fact, when it comes to cavities, there are other risk factors besides sugary foods and not brushing that you should be aware of. In today’s post, we’d like to go over some of those. We hope you find them informative, and if you have any questions about what you see, don’t hesitate to call our Los Angeles dental office.

What Factors Put You at Risk for Cavities?

Already having cavities

All patients face a risk of developing cavities, but patients who have had cavities in the past are...

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How Saliva Protects Your Smile

July 30, 2013

general dentistry

As we indicated in our last post, saliva can play an important role in protecting teeth from decay. Specifically, saliva helps neutralize the acid produced by mouth bacteria. But that’s not all it does.

What Saliva Does to Keep Your Smile Healthy

Saliva is 99% water, and water—as we said last time—helps keep teeth clean. The other 1% of saliva is made up of electrolytes, mucus, glycoproteins, enzymes, and antibacterial compounds. As you eat, saliva breaks down food particles around teeth and offers your enamel special protection. What’s more, because saliva contains calcium and phosphates, it helps with the re-mineralization process, too.

It’s because of saliva’s benefits...

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