Columbia Healthy Smiles Blog

Unfortunately, nothing ever seems to come free, including dental care. Generally, when it comes to taking care of your oral health, you have three options: dental insurance, cash payments, or a dental savings plan. If your employer doesn’t provide dental insurance and you’d still like to save money at the dentist, a savings plan may be your best bet. Continue reading to learn more from your dentist in Columbia about dental savings plans and who should be considering one.

Did you know that October is National Dental Hygiene Month? If you haven’t already been prioritizing your oral health with a good dental hygiene routine, now is the perfect time to start. After all, your smile is the only one you’ve got so you might as well take care of it and show it off for as long as possible. Your dentist in Columbia shares some helpful tips to implement into your dental hygiene routine this month and going forward.

When you think about the health of your smile, you are probably mostly concerned about your teeth. However, caring for your gums is just as important. After all, a beautiful smile relies on healthy gums in order to last. The problem is that half of Americans over the age of 30 are experiencing periodontal disease which can be detrimental for your smile and the rest of your body when it’s left untreated. Not only does it lead to tooth loss, but it’s also linked to heart disease, diabetes, and other serious conditions. Your dentist in Columbia shares some tips that can help you maintain healthy gums.

Do you frequently struggle with bad breath? It’s actually a much more common problem than you may think. Believe it or not, over 80 million American suffer from chronic bad breath, also known as halitosis. Most of the time, it originates from bacteria on the tongue and gums. As common of a condition as this is, it can still be quite embarrassing. Fortunately, you don’t need to put up with it. Your dentist in Columbia shares some ways that you can stop bad breath in its tracks.

COVID-19 has shaken up so many of our lives in a strange way, but there are certain things that you shouldn’t be changing. One of them is your regular dental appointments. Even though it may seem like a good idea now, missing your visit to the dentist could lead to all sorts of issues in the future. Living through a pandemic doesn’t mean that you should be neglecting your oral health. Continue reading to learn more from your dentist in Columbia about why you should continue to attend your regular dental appointments.

Tooth loss can affect people of all ages as a result of injury, poor lifestyle habits, or gum disease. Fortunately, with modern dental technology, there are many different tooth replacement options and each of them have their individual benefits. However, if you are looking to restore your smile by replacing your missing teeth, you want something that is long lasting and the most functional. This is why over 3 million Americans have already opted to restore their smile using dental implants. Read on to learn more from your dentist in Columbia about why dental implants are such a popular option.

From face masks to stay-at-home mandates, the COVID-19 pandemic has transformed our world in more ways than one. Perhaps the most significant change is the introduction of social distancing guidelines to reduce the transmission of this potentially fatal virus. While implementing the 6-foot distance is more natural for some, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention continue to reinforce the importance of implementing this guideline. In fact, they believe that social distancing measures have prevented up to 185,000 deaths! With this in mind, your dentist in Columbia will be opting for no-contact greetings at your visit during COVID-19. If you are looking for a creative one of your own, then keep reading!

You originally had a dental checkup scheduled in March, but the COVID-19 pandemic caused dentists all over the country to reschedule elective appointments and only treat patients with emergencies. Recently, your dentist in Columbia called you and said that because they’re open now, you could attend your checkup. When you arrived at the office, you noticed a few things were different. For one thing, a member of your dentist’s team asked you to rinse with mouthwash before your appointment could begin. Why? Keep reading to find out.

Ever since social distancing guidelines were first introduced a couple of months ago, you’ve been following them diligently. You have family members who are high-risk for COVID-19, so you want to do your part to avoid spreading the virus to them. One day your dentist in Columbia calls you, letting you know it’s time for your biannual checkup. You start to wonder: is it safe? Absolutely! Dentists all over the country are taking precautionary measures to ensure their patients safety in the office, one of which is enforcing social distance. Keep reading below to learn how your dentist will use social distancing to keep you safe at your appointment.

From connecting with family to getting groceries, the COVID-19 pandemic has changed many activities we previously took for granted. This includes your dental appointments, which will likely look very different than any you’ve had before. There have been a variety of changes made to keep you as safe as possible while getting treatment for your smile. Here’s what to expect before, during, and after your first visit with your Columbia dentist when they reopen.