1. September 16, 2011<br />Summer News at <br />Castle Cove Family Dental<br />The Castle Cove Spring Fair is fast approaching us, so lock in Saturday 15th October 2011 to your diary. I will be another great day of prize give always; all donated by the local community businesses, as a Thank you for your ongoing support. We will be having a sausage sizzle, Forsyth Coffee Cart, face painting, colouring in competitions and more.<br /> <br />Castle Cove Family Dental is now stocking two styles of Electric Toothbrushes the Oral B 5000 RRP $200 CCFD price $150 and the Oral B 1000 RRP $130 CCFD price $100. These are such a great tool to helping not only the kids with their brushing but the adults too. We have seen a major improvement in all those who have invested in the Electric Toothbrush.<br /> <br />Castle Cove Supporting the Community:<br />In 2011 so far we have supported:<br />St Thomas Arts & Craft Show, Cystic Fibrosis NSW Luncheon, Willoughby Public School, OzHarvest Charity Drive, North Sydney Girls High School, Greenwich Public School, Medicines’ Sans Frontier, Aberdare Ranges Primary School, Fred Hollows Foundation, Westpac Rescue Helicopter Service.<br />Staff Updates at Castle Cove <br />The Surgery has now extended hours here there and everywhere, to cope with the ever increasing flow of new patients. We have had such fantastic feedback about our amazing Hygienists Gaby and Nikki that we have had to add in more Hygiene days and nights and weekends to cope with the added demand. Nikki Bettison is now working Wednesday 8.15-5pm, Gaby Col-Diez is now here Monday 8.15-5pm, Thursday 1-5pm and Saturday’s once a month. <br />Mary Moss is here Monday’s 8.15-5pm, Wednesday 8.15-5.30pm and Thursday 9.30-7.30pm. <br />Mary Tazawa-Lim is also expanding her books to accommodate her growing patients and is now here Tuesday 8.30-5pm, Thursday 8.30-1pm, Fridays from 8.30-3pm and some Saturdays. <br />Dr Carolina Jackson is here three Saturdays a month and Dr Susie Kim is here every other Saturday. Alan Trinh is here once a month performing extractions.<br />Why see our hygienist?<br />*Dental Hygienists are specially trained to provide individualized preventative treatment, and they are also here to demonstrate correct home care to patients to prevent dental disease and tooth wear.<br />* The Dental Hygienist has specially trained to perform preventative treatment and maintenance of the mouth, teeth and gums. Your dentist will refer more specialized oral care, while they provide complex restorative or cosmetic care.<br />*With individually taught home care techniques and regular maintence your dental hygienist can assist you to maintain oral health for the rest of your life<br />Tooth decay in children<br />Why are we seeing more and more tooth decay in our children?<br />Quite often, what parents will notice is a dark hole in a child’s molar. There’s usually no pain or complaint by the child.<br />When the child is brought for dental review, we can see the hole in the tooth. At that point, we will take x-rays of both sides of the mouth. It’s common to then find many more areas of decay happening in between the back teeth.<br />The child with decay may be brushing regularly, even with parental help. The child may have a healthy diet and see a dentist regularly.<br />So, why should such a child still get decay?<br />Contributing factors may include:<br />Regular Snacking/ constant eating / eating very slowly: You can get decay from healthy food like fresh fruits, dried fruit, or savory food if the food is in the mouth for prolonged periods. This is the same for babies and toddlers, when frequent or night-time milk drinking from a bottle or breast can cause nursing decay.<br />Sticky, retentive food such as honey, jam, muesli/breakfast bars, dried fruits, cookies, jazz crackers, etc. Anything that tends to stick on teeth should be avoided in a child’s school lunch box.<br />Type of water: Bottled water and some filtered water do not contain the fluoride that is in present in our tap water. <br />Cleaning in between the teeth, ie flossing. I know this seems a hassle, but it’s easy once you get used to it. When the 6 year-old permanent molars come through, the contact in between the baby molars often becomes tighter than before. Flossing in between the back molars is important to remove the plaque that cannot be brushed off.<br /> <br />Treats: The occasional, special treat is fine. Just don’t give a treat daily! I can’t help feeling that in the spirit of “positive re-enforcement”, our children are getting a little treat way too often. If the treat is not food, then it won’t contribute to tooth decay. But if the treat is a little snake, a jelly bean, or a Boost juice, it can certainly help along decay. <br />Young children (even very independent ones) will need adult help with brushing at least once a day. It is recommended that there’s adult help until about 8 years of age (especially in boys)!<br />Decay in between molars may not be picked up by the dentist without X-rays. <br />These are just some of the obvious and more common factors. While needing to think about the above may seem like a bit of a chore, there’s still nothing better than prevention!<br />Dr Mary Tazawa-Lim<br />DJ’s have their Christmas decorations up so pop these dates in the diary!<br />Christmas Hours <br />Please note the Surgery will be closed from <br />23rd December – 13th January<br />