Pediactric Dentistry on the Tundra

The following information is from an article out of the Pediatic Dentistry Today magazine. It is a continuation from a previous blog reguarding the importance of health and diet in New Zealand. This article focuses on children in Alaska. Prior to the mid 20th Century, Alaskan Natives had very low rates of dental decay due to the high protein diet and low fermentable carbohydrates. However, since the mid 20th century, more refined sugar and carbohydrates have been introduced into the communities. The following issues have contributed to high levels of untreated dental caries: dietary changes, lack of access to fluoridated public water, and limited access to dental providers. In these two instances, with Alaska & New Zealand, money is not the most important issue with children's dental health needs. In New Zealand, they had proper funding for children to have dental expenses taken care of. In Alaska, they have formed a health plan to specifically support prevention in order to improve the oral health of all Alaskans. The main issue is proper education, diet, and prevention precautions. Incorporating healthier drink and snack choices plays a large role in prevention. If schools and parents could adopt policies and restrictions of sodas and sugared beverages and foods, this would help children diminish dental issues. Healthy lifestyle choices is a large portion of what it takes to keep healthy teeth and gums for a lifetime.


PDT March 2011 Volume XLVII, Number 2

CONGRATULATIONS!!!

Congratulations to our 2 winners for the Dental Health Month Poster Contest!!!




Justin




Dakota










Grand prize was a Gift Certificate to The Roxy Movie Theater

Children Stress Too!

The following is an article written by Stefanie Ilgenfritz with the Wall Street Journal on how children become stressed and that we may misinterpret their stress. It is very important to know how daily life can be stressful to our little one's.

Wall Street Journal Blog
I wrote recently about new research that showed how stressed out we are. But there’s more. Our kids are often stressed, too—and we don’t always see it.

One of the most striking findings in the American Psychological Association’s annual survey Stress in America was the mismatch between what kids say they are stressed about, and what parents think their kids are stressed about. We may assume that our kids are worried about peer pressure, but this research suggests that’s not as big an issue for kids as we think. For instance, among parents of 13- to 17-year-olds, 20% said peer relationships were a source of stress for their kids. But just 11% of the kids said they worried about that.

What are kids really stressed about? The future. A big worry was whether their family will have enough money. Among kids 8 to 17 years old, 30% said they worried about family finances—though just 18% of parents thought that their kids were stressed about financial difficulties. And 29% of teenagers said they were worried about getting into a good college or what to do after high school, while just 5% of teens’ parents thought their kids were stressed about that.

“Parents pretty predictably underreport” the amount of stress in their children, said Katherine Nordal, a psychologist and executive director for the APA’s practice directorate, at a briefing on the research last week. The results are worrisome: Parents significantly underreported how likely their kids were to have headaches, difficulty sleeping and eating issues, compared with what the kids themselves reported. The study, conducted for the APA by Harris Interactive, surveyed 1,206 young people ages 8-17.

Dr. Nordal noted that a significant percentage of kids say they are comfortable talking with their parents about what’s on their minds, so perhaps the problem is that (stressed) parents aren’t carving out the time to sit down with them.

We’d all like to believe that our kids are fine and that we are successfully protecting them from stress. But kids are no fools, and when they see us worry, they worry too. It’s hard to sit down with a kid—at almost any age—and talk about what’s bothering them. But this research suggests that we need to do a better job of listening to them.

Readers, do you think that your own stress spills over onto your children? Do you talk with your kids about what’s stressing them out? And what advice do you have for coping with stress in the family?

http://blogs.wsj.com/juggle/2009/11/09/what-are-your-kids-so-stressed-about/?KEYWORDS=%22stress+of+children%22

New Zealand on Dental Health Issues

There are well documented issues on children's dental health in different parts of the world. While there may be different cultures, types of food available, and different means of preparation, one thing holds true: it proves that we must get proper nutrition to stay healthy and strong. Please take a moment to check out the link below that describes how nutrition plays an important role in dental health issues with children in New Zealand.

http://www.nzherald.co.nz/nz/news/article.cfm?c_id=1&objectid=10710408

Nutritional Health & Dental Issues

Nutrition plays a very important role in a child's dental needs as well as their health and well being.

Choosing a Healthy Diet

Choosing a healthy diet may sound easy, however, fruits, milk, cereals, bread and some vegetables contain sugars and / or starches. Carbonated sodas, sweet fruit drinks and sugary snack foods should be limited.

You don’t have to avoid these foods, just keep in mind that you should eat a balanced diet, brush your teeth twice a day and floss daily.

Healthy Tips


•Drink plenty of water
•Eat a variety of healthy foods from the five major food groups
•Cut down on snacking in between meals
•Limit snacks and drinks that are high in sugar
•Brush twice a day
•Floss Daily
•Visit your dentist for regular check ups

Dental Health Month

February is Dental Health Month!!