Your Dentist Today

Dentistry has come a long way in the last one hundred years. Gone are the days when the local dentist was a self appointed man of medicine who may have also been the town’s mortician and furniture salesman. Today of course a dentist must go through rigorous training that includes earning a bachelor degree and then going through dental college for four years. That training can go on even longer of course for a dentist who wants to specialize in a certain field. And of course with all of these training and hands on skills comes the ability to learn how to handle the patient who is fearful or nervous.

In the good old days of course before there were proper dentist and proper medical training, the way to handle a nervous patient or any patient for that matter likely involved having the patient take a swig of whiskey to numb the pain. Today doctors have access to better methods to control the pain and the anxiety including nitrous oxide or laughing gas and numbing medication. So, even though there is plenty of argument to be made to avoid the dentist a hundred years ago, today there really is no good reason to avoid having proper dental care.

Dentistry has come along way in a very short time and today with easy access to dental hygiene tools such as toothpaste, toothbrushes, dental floss and fluoride it is easier than ever before to maintain and care for your teeth properly. Added to these advances of course is the ability to have your teeth professionally cleaned once or twice a year by a dental hygienist who can help you learn to properly care for your teeth and gums.

With all of the dental technology available today, even those of us who do end up with a cavity or a broken tooth or teeth that are less than shiny white, can have access to the skills of a doctor who can do more than just remove decay and fill cavities. Today it is common for the family dentist to also be a cosmetic dentist with the ability to make any smile better. This includes teeth whitening, veneers, caps and even using titanium screws and a prophetic tooth to surgically replace a lost or broken tooth without the hassle of a bridge or dentures, which used to be the only options available.

So take advantage of living in the high tech world of dental technology and don’t be afraid of your dentist. After all it’s not your great great great grandpa’s world anymore and there is no reason your teeth can’t last you your whole lifetime.