This Year, Make a New Year’s Resolution to Smile About!

Let’s face it- when was the last time you managed to keep a New Year’s resolution? We at Four States Dental Care believe the key to sticking to a goal is picking one that is both reasonable and attainable. If you haven’t yet picked a New Year’s resolution, consider setting one that will improve your oral health!

For example, resolve to brush twice and floss once a day. Good oral hygiene only takes a few minutes a day, and can make a big difference in your oral health and overall health too! For more oral health-themed resolutions for you and your family, check out this article.

We would love to see what you come up with, share with us by commenting on this post or on our Facebook page. Whatever your New Year’s Resolution, we wish you the very best for 2011!

-Happy New Year, from your friends at Four States Dental Care

Four States Dental Care, wishes you Happy Holidays

In this season given to tidings of comfort and joy, and as the team at Four States Dental Care reflects on the year that was, we’d like to ask you, our wonderful patients: What do you love about the holidays this year? Being with your loved ones? A clean slate for 2011? Opening presents by the fireplace? All the delicious food? Also, what gift are you most looking forward to getting this year?

We’d love if you shared with us all the things you love about the holidays. Seasons Greetings, and don’t forget to stay away from those sweets!

--The team at Four States Dental Care

Drs. Kunkel and Matousek-Ronck want to know : are there teeth grinders in your house

Grind, grind, grind. If you live with a teeth grinder, you may be familiar with this unpleasant sound, especially recently. A recent study published in the journal Head & Face Medicine suggests that people—adults and kids—faced with stress tend to cope by grinding their teeth. In addition, the Chicago Dental Society suggests that since the recession began in 2007, teeth grinding, or bruxism, has been on the rise.

The Chicago Dental Society surveyed more than 250 members about the connection between stress and oral health. Nearly 75 percent of dentists said their patients reported increased stress over the past year, largely due to the economic recession. During stressful times, teeth grinding can be a nuisance that causes headaches and sleep problems, but it also can cause lasting problems for your teeth and gums, including chipped teeth, worn enamel, chronic pain, or even TMJ, a painful jaw disorder.

The first step of recovering from teeth grinding is noticing the problem. Symptoms of teeth grinding include:

•Sensitivity in the teeth
•Tightness or pain in the jaw
•Dull headaches, earaches, or facial pain
•Chipped, worn down, or loose teeth

An important thing to remember is that people frequently grind their teeth in response to stress, and taking measures to reduce or eliminate stress can help solve the problem.

If the teeth-grinder in your house can’t stop, schedule an appointment to see us by giving us a call. Drs. Kunkel and Matousek-Ronck and our team at Four States Dental Care can help determine the cause of the problem.

Flossing 101

Here is a very concise video explaining the proper way to floss your teeth. Many people think that flossing is only to get the food out from in between your teeth, when actually flossing should be done every day on every tooth to help protect your teeth and gums.



If you have any additional questions about flossing feel free to give us a call at Four States Dental Care.

Staying connected with Four States Dental Care

At Four States Dental Care, we embrace new technology, whether it is through the innovative dental treatments we offer, our high-tech website and social networks, or our modern office conveniently located in Neosho and Pineville.

As you can probably tell, we love connecting with our patients online, whether it’s by sharing news on our blog or communicating ideas on our Facebook page. For social media to work, however, we understand that conversation is vital, and that’s why we invite you to join in and tell us what’s on your mind. Although social networks are hugely popular these days, we know they’re unpredictable and ever-changing.

While we take a little time to research how to best use social media moving forward, we thought we’d ask you, our loyal patients: How would you like us to use our social networks? What would you like us to share on our blog? Please post your thoughts or give us a call! Have yourselves a wonderful weekend!