Veneers are an excellent alternative to crowns in many situations.

Food and drink, illness, injury, heredity or environmental factors can discolor teeth.

The reason cosmetic dentistry is experiencing a boom is that baby boomers want to preserve their youthful appearance.

More than 80 million people suffer from chronic halitosis, or bad breath.

Chemicals called ketones are the primary source of bad breath in those dieting.

Bad breath while traveling happens when the salivary glands slow down the production of saliva, which allows bacteria to grow inside the mouth and bad breath to develop.

The muscle pain and spasms associated with TMD are often compared to that of a "charley horse" in a runner's leg.

Men are less likely than women to take care of their physical health, and many times their oral health.

Long ago, most men worked for one or two employers throughout a lifetime and many did not think about the way their overall appearance affected their professional life.

With just one kiss couples can share more than 500 different types of disease-causing germs and viruses.

A person with a long, narrow face is more likely to have problems breathing through his or her nose.

Tooth loss is simply the result of an oral disease – not the aging process.

Evidence shows that older Americans are at risk for greater oral health problems than other groups because of age and the inability to get to a dentist’s office due to an existing medical condition or lack of transportation.

Every year more than 2.5 million older Americans may be victims of elder abuse, and in some cases dentists serve as the first line of defense.

Though breast milk and most ready-to-feed formulas contain infant-safe fluoride levels, parents must be careful with concentrate formulas that require adding water.

If left untreated, orthodontic problems can result in tooth decay, gum disease, headaches and earaches, as well as speaking, biting or chewing problems.

About 1 million Americans and Canadians over the age of 18 wear braces.

Currently, only about 20% of all cancer patients will actually benefit from costly immunotherapy. New research can now determine which ones are in that category, simply by analyzing previously unseen changes in patterns in CT scans taken when the lung cancer is first diagnosed compared to scans taken after the first 2-3 cycles of immunotherapy treatment.

The resilience of Samoan communities in the face of climate change is providing a blueprint for other nations to follow, according to researchers.

Scientists have developed a new three-valued memory device inspired by solid lithium-ion batteries. The proposed device, which has an extremely low energy consumption, may be key for the development of more energy-efficient and faster random-access memories (RAMs), which are ubiquitous in modern computers.

Researchers have improved on a transparent, conductive coating material, producing a tenfold gain in its electrical conductivity. When incorporated into a type of high-efficiency solar cell, the material increased the cell's efficiency and stability.

Bacteriophages, viruses that infect bacteria, have been shown to preferentially bind to mucosal surfaces. This has been suggested to provide an extra level of immunity against bacterial infections. Researchers tested this idea using fish, phages (viruses) and a fish-infecting bacteria. Phages were confirmed to bind to the mucosal surface, staying there for days and give protection from subsequent bacterial infection.

A team of scientists has recorded in real time a key step in the assembly of ribosomes -- the complex and evolutionarily ancient 'molecular machines' that make proteins in cells and are essential for all life forms. They reveal in unprecedented detail how strands of RNA are 'chaperoned' by ribosomal proteins into folding properly; the findings overturn the longstanding belief that ribosomes are assembled in a tightly controlled, step-wise process.

The rise in popularity of electric vehicles and aircraft presents the possibility of moving away from fossil fuels toward a more sustainable future. While significant technological advancements have dramatically increased the efficiency of these vehicles, there are still several issues standing in the way of widespread adoption.

A new cancer-detecting tool uses tiny circuits made of DNA to identify cancer cells by the molecular signature on their surface. The circuits work by attaching to the outside of a cell and analyzing it for proteins that are more abundant on some cell types than others. The devices distinguish cell types with higher specificity than previous methods, giving researchers hope their work could improve diagnosis, or give cancer therapies better aim.

Both obesity and smoking can have negative effects on bone health. A recent study examined whether they also impact healing in patients who have undergone surgery for fractures of the wrist, or the distal radius, which are among the most common bone fractures.

Higher exposure to commonly used oral antibiotics is linked to an increased risk of Parkinson's disease according to a recently published study. The strongest associations were found for broad spectrum antibiotics and those that act against against anaerobic bacteria and fungi. The timing of antibiotic exposure also seemed to matter.

Researchers discover how outside stimuli drive the formation and reorganization of the cytoskeleton in the nucleus of mammalian cells.

Researchers have found a new survival mechanism for a commonly known type of bacteria. It can send out warning signals and thus make sure that other bacteria escape 'dangers' such as antibiotics. The researchers hope that the new knowledge can be utilized to make antibiotic treatment more effective.

Geoscientists have successfully developed and tested a new high-tech shallow water buoy that can detect the small movements and changes in the Earth's seafloor that are often a precursor to deadly natural hazards.

In order to miniaturize individual components of mobile phones or computers, for example, magnetic waves are currently regarded as promising alternatives to conventional data transmission functioning by means of electric currents. The physical basis for this is the spin of electrons in magnetic materials, which can be simplified as a rotation of electrons around their own axis. Physicists have developed a new approach that makes it easier to use spin waves.

A toxic pollutant produced by burning fossil fuels can be captured from the exhaust gas stream and converted into useful industrial chemicals using only water and air thanks to a new advanced material.

New research supports the idea that music all around the globe shares important commonalities, despite many differences.

New research has found that old newspaper provide a cheap and green solution for the bulk production of single walled carbon nanotubes.

Why is Oral Health Important for Men?   Men are less likely than women to take care of their physical health and, according to surveys and studies, their oral health is equally ignored. Good oral health recently has been linked with longevity. Yet, one of the most common factors associated with infrequent dental checkups is just being male. Men are less likely than women to seek preventive...

Men: Looking for a Better Job? Start by Visiting the Dentist   An online poll of 289 general dentists and consumers confirms the traditional stereotype that men are less likely to visit the dentist than their female counterparts, according to the Academy of General Dentistry (AGD), an organization of general dentists dedicated to continuing dental education.   Why? Nearly 45 percent...

If you experience frequent headaches and pain in your lower jaw, check your posture and consult your dentist about temporomandibular disorder (TMD), recommends the Academy of General Dentistry (AGD), an organization of general dentists dedicated to continuing dental education.   Poor posture places the spine in a position that causes stress to the jaw joint. When people slouch or hunch over...

Dry socket, the most common postoperative complication from tooth extractions, delays the normal healing process and results when the newly formed blood clot in the extraction site does not form correctly or is prematurely lost. This blood clot lays the foundation for new tissue and bone to develop over a two-month healing process.   Updated: October 2008    

The History of Dental Advances   Many of the most common dental tools were used as early as the Stone Age. Thankfully, technology and continuing education have made going to the dentist a much more pleasant – and painless – experience. Here is a look at the history of dentistry's most common tools, and how they came to be vital components of our oral health care needs.   Where did t...

Orofacial pain includes a number of clinical problems involving the chewing (masticatory) muscles or temporomandibular joint. Problems can include temporomandibular joint discomfort; muscle spasms in the head, neck and jaw; migraines, cluster or frequent headaches; or pain with the teeth, face or jaw.   You swallow approximately 2,000 times per day, which causes the upper and lower teeth t...

In our fast-paced lives, many of us may be eating in a hurry, taking giant bites of our food to get done quickly and on to the next task. Fast-food restaurants advertise giant burgers and sandwiches as a selling point, but often those super-sized delicacies are larger than a human mouth.   Taking bites that are too big to chew could be bad for your jaw and teeth, says the Academy of Genera...

How Do I Care for My Child’s Baby Teeth?   Though you lose them early in life, your primary teeth, also called baby teeth, are essential in the development and placement of your permanent teeth. Primary teeth maintain the spaces where permanent teeth will erupt and help develop proper speech patterns that would otherwise be difficult; without maintenance of these spaces, crowding and misali...

When Should My Child First See a Dentist?   Your child's first visit to the dentist should happen before his or her first birthday. The general rule is six months after eruption of the first tooth. Taking your child to the dentist at a young age is the best way to prevent problems such as tooth decay, and can help parents learn how to clean their child's teeth and identify his or her fluori...

Is My Child at Risk for Early Childhood Tooth Decay?   The average healthy adult visits the dentist twice a year. The average healthy 2-year-old has never been to the dentist. By kindergarten, 25 percent of children have never seen a dentist, yet dental decay is the single most common chronic childhood disease in America.   The culprit? A combination of misinformation about when a c...

What is a Composite Resin (White Filling)?   A composite filling is a tooth-colored plastic and glass mixture used to restore decayed teeth. Composites are also used for cosmetic improvements of the smile by changing the color of the teeth or reshaping disfigured teeth.   How is a composite placed?   Following preparation, the dentist...

Temporomandibular joint disorder (TMD) describes a variety of conditions that affect jaw muscles, temporomandibular joints and nerves associated with chronic facial pain. Symptoms may occur on one or both sides of the face, head or jaw, or develop after an injury. TMD affects more than twice as many women than men.    Updated: November 2008   

Pacifiers Have Negative and Positive Effects   It’s one of the hardest habits to break and can require a great deal of persuasion: Parents often struggle with weaning their child off of a pacifier.   There is much debate regarding the use of pacifiers, but there is evidence to show that there are both pros and cons, according to a study in the January/February 2007 issue of Gene...

What is Baby Bottle Tooth Decay?   Baby bottle tooth decay is caused by the frequent and long-term exposure of a child's teeth to liquids containing sugars. Among these liquids are milk, formula, fruit juice, sodas and other sweetened drinks. The sugars in these liquids pool around the infant's teeth and gums, feeding the bacteria in plaque. Every time a child consumes a sugary liquid, acid...

What is Dental Amalgam (Silver Fillings)?   Most people recognize dental amalgams as silver fillings. Dental amalgam is a mixture of mercury, silver, tin and copper. Mercury, which makes up about 50 percent of the compound, is used to bind the metals together and to provide a strong, hard, durable filling. After years of research, mercury has been found to be the only eleme...