Blog

The holiday season is upon us again. Where did the year go? At the orthodontic office of Lisa P. Howard DDS MS, we would like to share some stocking stuffer ideas to consider for patients of all ages wearing braces. Instead of candy and sweets that can bend wires and knock off brackets during holiday festivities, give something more suitable to make your season bright.

Stocking Stuffer Ideas

1. Colgate Wisps for those on the go. Wisps are disposable mini-toothbrushes with a breath-freshening bead that allows you to have a clean, fresh mouth without water or rinsing.
2. Playing cards and card games
3. Fun pens, markers, and note paper
4. Comic books, puzzle books, or magazines
5. For the ladies – Festive nail polish, or for teens and adults, the latest in jamberry nail or Incoco nail design wraps that are easy to apply, don’t chip easily, and last up to two weeks!
6. Cash or prepaid debit card
7. Movie or concert tickets
8. Scratch off lottery tickets.
9. Gift cards
10. For the kids; include a letter from Santa thanking them for avoiding the hard and sticky foods they love so much throughout the year that damage braces and create extra trips to the orthodontist you like to avoid.

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Orthodontics…A Rite of Passage? Ever thought about why you don’t see many seniors with braces in high school yearbooks today? Look at yearbook or prom pictures from the 1960s or ’70s and you’ll see many “tin grins”. You don’t often see that today. Why? Kids today undergo orthodontic care at a much earlier age in Scarborough ME and treatment is usually completed before their junior year when most yearbook and prom photos are taken. Some patients, with special problems, begin orthodontic treatment as early as age 7 or younger.

The American Association of Orthodontists (AAO) recommends that all children receive an orthodontic evaluation by age 7. This is when the permanent teeth begin to erupt and most orthodontic problems become apparent to general dentists and parents. If orthodontic treatment is indicated, the optimum time to determine the best course of treatment and timing to begin is when the teeth and jaws are still growing.Read More

Thanksgiving is celebrated with feasts and football games and the start of the Christmas shopping season, Thanksgiving means roasted turkey, cranberry sauce, pumpkin pie, and green bean casserole with Campbells mushroom soup. No matter how you celebrate this momentous day, at the orthodontic office of Lisa P. Howard DDS MS, we want you to know we are thankful for all our wonderful patients we treat throughout the year. We wouldn’t be here without you! To commemorate this traditional holiday, we would like to share some fun trivia we thought you would enjoy! Feel free to add some fun facts of your own in the comment area.Read More

At the orthodontic office of Dr. Lisa P. Howard DDS MS, some teens and adults opt for Invisalign, the “braceless” alternative to traditional braces to straighten teeth. What would you do if something happened to your Invisalign aligners while you were out of town? What if an aligner breaks, is left behind at a restaurant while eating, or you lost your purse or luggage with your aligners inside? Here are some tips for Invisalign patients on what to do if you are out of town and something happens to your aligners!Read More

Halloween was also known as All Hallows’ Eve in some circles. It goes as far back as about 2,000 years to a pre-Christian Celtic festival held around Nov. 1 called Samhain (pronounced “sah-win”), which means “summer’s end” in the Gaelic language.

Halloween costumes and the tradition of “dressing up” may go back to a time when people would disguise themselves and go door-to-door, asking for food. Early costumes were usually disguises, often woven out of straw and there were times when people wore costumes to perform in plays or skits to celebrate All Hallow’s Eve.

Trick-or-treating didn’t start in the United States until World War II. However, Halloween was as much a time for festivities and games as it was for playing tricks or asking for treats. Apples are associated with Halloween, both as a treat and in the game of bobbing for apples, a game that since the colonial era in America was used for fortune-telling.

Halloween is a fun time of year for kids of all ages… but for orthodontic patients it can be a “nightmare” waiting to happen if braces are being damaged from eating the wrong treats. Watch this video put out a few years ago by the American Association of Orthodontists with additional “Halloween Brace Tips” for consumers that still very much apply today!Read More

Oral piercings of the tongue, lips, and cheeks are growing in popularity and acceptance, and are considered a way to express ones personality in an art form like tattoos. However, did you know the human bite can be more “toxic” than an animal bite? Keeping this in mind, imagine what could happen to your mouth with oral piercings that collect additional food and debris (that breed bacteria and germs) while banging against your teeth over 1500 times a day when you swallow…Read More