Have you noticed pain and discomfort in your jaw? Does your TMJ click or pop? Have you noticed that your teeth are wearing or becoming shorter? Does your spouse tell you that you grind your teeth at night?

If you answered yes to any of these questions, you could be showing signs of occlusal disease.

Occlusal disease is caused by an imbalance in how your teeth meet. With this imbalance or interference, our bodies try and rub or grind it smooth, which causes the wear and destruction of all of our teeth. Dr. Sara Michel has been working with the Dawson Institute, studying the causes and cures of occlusal disease. Call to set up an appointment with her to discuss your concerns.

If a person has some mild discomfort in thier muscle of mastication (the muscles we use to chew with) there could be other contributing factors other than an occlusal imbalance. Soreness of the jaw muscles can be cause by excessive caffeine, sleeping on your stomach, chewing too much stick chew foods, such as bagels. Not chewing food evenly on both side of the mouth could also be a cause. Some hints at relieving the symptoms of discomfort include: moist heat compresses, ibuprofen, softer diet, and less caffeine.

If you have any questions or would like to discuss this further, feel free to call us at Dalseth Family and Cosmetic Dentistry.

- Dr. Pascal

Last night was Family Night at the dental office. It is an event we have twice a year for all of the staff member, their spouses and children. It is a great time to get everyone together and reconnect. The children have a great time playing games and comparing check-ups. We had about 25 people last night. After we clean everybody's teeth we celebrate the great check ups with pizza and ice cream. The wonderful part is seeing how much the children have grown and how fast they can become friends. The next days is always fun as the staff share stories about how much fun their children had and how they are looking forward to the next Family Night.

Check out the photos on Facebook

Dr. Pascal

Spring is in the air! As you probably know, you can always connect with us on our Facebook page, but we invite you to please contact our office with any updates to phone numbers and addresses, so that we may be able to reach you.

We also encourage you to call us and let us know if you have any new phone numbers or if your contact information has changed!

Thank you! Have a great week!

Visiting our office regularly will not only help keep your teeth and mouth healthy, but will also help keep the rest of your body healthy. The fact is, every hour of every day in the U.S., someone dies of oral cancer, which is the sixth-most common diagnosed form of the disease. The five-year survival rate is only 50 percent, and oral cancer is one of the few cancers whose survival rate has not improved. Since April is Oral Cancer Awareness Month, we would like to take this opportunity to remind all of our patients about the importance of maintaining good oral hygiene.

We are trained to diagnose, treat, and prevent oral health problems. Please let us now if you have any questions about your oral health during your next appointment. Take care of your teeth!