January 2015
In This Issue
Contact Uscontactus

Address:
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(215) 860-9808
 
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You're Invited to
"A Gala for Smiles":
A Fundraising Event
to Save Smiles of Peruvian Orphans
gala

For the past two summers, students from Temple's Kornberg School of Dentistry, led by Dr. Sheryl Radin's daughter, Bari Levine, a student in the Doctorate of Dental Medicine-Master of Public Health (DMD-MPH) dual-degree program, have traveled to La Ventanilla, Peru, to provide needed oral healthcare to children at La Sagrada Familia orphanage.

In addition to raising money and recruiting fellow Temple dental students, Bari has made the project a family affair by involving her parents, Dr. Radin and Dr. Robert Levine and brother, Dr. Ross Levine.  A 2015 mission is planned for July 10-17.

A fundraising event organized by Bari for the 2015 trip, "A Gala for Smiles" is planned for Saturday evening, March 21, 2015 at 6:00 PM at Spring Mill Manor, Ivyland, PA.

Click here for an invitation to the event, or if unable to attend, an opportunity to donate to this worthy cause. Your support will make a real difference in the lives of these children.

For more information, please contact Bari Levine at [email protected] or visit www.growingsmilesfoundation.org.

giveawayMeet the Winner of Our Gift Basket Giveaway!

Congratulations to 5-year old Brynn Berkis!  Kelly (far right) presented the basket to Brynn, pictured sitting on mom Meghan's lap, who was accompanied by her brother, Drew (age 7), and younger sister, Reese (age 4).  Brynn was so excited to open the basket filled with arts and crafts that she and her siblings will certainly enjoy! 


As an adult, you may have your New Year resolutions ready, but what about ones for your kids? Setting New Year resolutions for children helps them in the long run. Children learn how to become organized and efficient early on in their lives. Read on to find out some ideas in New Year's Dental Resolutions for Kids that will leave you both smiling for 2015 and beyond.

 

A child's dental health is set in motion before her first baby tooth sprouts. Going to bed with a bottle, thumb / finger-sucking and swallowing toothpaste are just some examples of unhealthy dental habits in children. Since we're talking about New Year's resolutions for kids, here are 6 Unhealthy Habits for Kids' Teeth to avoid to help keep your child's teeth healthy.

 

You may recall this past June, I accompanied my daughter, Bari Levine, Temple Dental students, and my husband, Dr. Robert Levine, to Peru where we provided oral health education and dental care to over 150 orphans.  I'm pleased to announce that we will be returning there again this July.  In an effort to raise money for our cause, Bari has organized  "A Gala for Smiles," featuring a night of comedy that will sure to make you laugh.   Please accept our invitation to this special evening of fun!

Lastly, be sure to check out who won our latest in-office giveaway.  We hope all of the kids who won this past year enjoyed their prizes as much as we enjoyed giving them.  It's something we truly loved doing as we proudly celebrated our 15th year!

 

Wishing you a happy and healthy 2015! 

 

Sincerely,
 
Dr. Sheryl Radin and Staff at
New Year's Dental Resolutions for Kidsresolutions 

It's that time of year again. The time to prepare our New Year's resolutions is upon us so we can be on our way for the coming year. Who says kicking the New Year off right should only be reserved for adults? Certainly not the dentist! When it comes to children, we're big believers in ingraining good habits early in their lives, so let's take a page from the adult experts in goal planning and share some of that wisdom with our kids. 

 

The Amazing Power of Visualization

Here's how it works with dental resolutions - you know the familiar and unimaginative kind ... brush regularly, floss more, and visit the dentist more frequently. Of the three, only brushing is done at the recommended frequency. Why? It's likely done because we know that if we don't brush our teeth regularly, we can envision an immediate consequence we will suffer today: bad breath. We're not thinking about tomorrow or next year, we're thinking only about today. Yet in thinking about the short term, we end up helping ourselves in the future as well. That's the key.

Believe it or not, you've already taught your children to do this sort of risk assessment every day. For example, you tell them to look both ways before crossing the street because of future consequences.

So, how can we leverage this sort of thinking when it comes to things they don't want to do, like flossing? Think of how you explained to your child not to touch the stove when it was hot. You probably didn't actually hold their hand to the flame to experience getting burned; you merely got them to think about the result by putting a little bit of fear into them somehow. Granted, your goal shouldn't be to scare children into good habits, but truth-be-told, there is always a little bit of the boogeyman in the things we try to teach our children. This is how we learn.

In regard to things like flossing, perhaps it can be helpful to show kids what ignoring their teeth looks like in the future. Pictures of people with gum disease, for example, might help a child to imagine themselves in the same predicament. Or, if a relative wears dentures or has other dental concerns, perhaps they can help bring these consequences to life for a child as well. There's nothing quite like seeing Grandpa take his teeth out of a glass for demonstration purposes. There are, of course, many ways to work this time-shift into your routine - stick to your own parenting style and you'll come up with something that works.

So help your kids ring in a wonderful New Year by teaching them planning and goal setting - all great life skills. If your children learn early to follow through on their goals now, in the future, they'll be among the treasured people who regularly fulfill them!

 

Source: Patient Connect 365   

6 Unhealthy Habits for Kids' Teethhabits 

According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), about 19 percent of kids between the ages of 2 and 19 have untreated cavities. However, childhood tooth decay can be prevented in the first place when parents help their kids avoid bad dental habits (and foster good ones).  To get your kids' teeth off to a healthy start, avoid these dental-health no-nos.

 

Sucking a baby bottle at night

Called "bottle mouth" by some doctors, pitting and discoloration on the teeth can be a result of nighttime bottle-feeding. If the mouth isn't cleaned, sugar from the milk or juice will remain on the teeth for a long time at night and can eventually eat away at the enamel. So think twice before lulling a baby to sleep with a bottle full of milk or any liquid containing sugar.

 

Sipping On Sippy Cups All Day

Once your child graduates to a sippy cup, avoid this bad oral health habit: letting him carry it around all day or take it to bed at night (for the same reasons that using a bottle this way is unhealthy). Constantly sipping milk, juice, or any sweetened liquid does not give a child's natural saliva a chance to rinse away sugars that cause tooth decay. For the best dental health, limit sippy cups to mealtime and snack time - and have your child swish and swallow with water after drinking any sugary drink.

 

Thumb Sucking With Big-Kid Teeth

For babies and small children, a little thumb sucking is normal - and it probably won't cause any damage until permanent teeth have replaced the baby teeth. However, once the permanent teeth start coming in - usually somewhere between the ages of 4 and 6 - thumb sucking can cause a misalignment of the teeth, which can lead to a number of issues, such as difficulty chewing. If your child won't stop sucking her thumb, you should let your dentist know. Most children will grow out of it by about age 4, but if your child continues, behavior modification with a reward system will usually break this habit.

 

Giving Pacifiers to Preschoolers

Just like thumb sucking, sucking on a pacifier is a perfectly normal and healthy baby habit. However, pacifier use (just like thumb sucking) can also affect a child's oral health by interfering with normal tooth and jaw development. Using the pacifier into the toddler years can be a tough habit to break - the best time to stop allowing your baby to use a pacifier is at about age 1 to safeguard baby teeth.

 

Gnawing on Pencils

Once your child's off to school (she grew up so fast!), don't be surprised if you see her with a No. 2 pencil in her mouth - this bad dental habit is all too common in school kids. In addition to introducing bacteria into the mouth, this habit can cause wearing away of tooth surfaces and can lead to dangerous oral trauma if a child falls while having a pen or pencil in the mouth. Most children can break this habit once they are old enough to understand the dangers.

 

Nibbling on Nails

About 30 to 60 percent of children and young teens bite their nails, according to the Academy of General Dentistry (AGD). Nail biting is not only bad for the nails - it can cause serious damage to a child's dental health. In fact, AGD warns that nail biting increases a child's risk for bruxism, which is unintentional teeth grinding. In turn, bruxism can lead to facial pain and sensitive teeth. The best way to break this habit is to explain the dangers to your child and find alternatives and rewards.

 

Source: Everyday Health 

 

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