National Smile Week at Scott Orthodontic Associates

It’s National Smile Week, and a GREAT time to remind our patients at Scott Orthodontic Associates to practice good oral hygiene to keep those teeth shining during your orthodontic treatment! This includes brushing and flossing regularly, avoiding foods that can stain your teeth such as tea and coffee and visiting your general dentist as recommended.

There are two main reasons to maintain good oral hygiene during your treatment:

• To keep the teeth and gums clean so the teeth won't rot and the gums won't recede away (you'd want to keep your teeth clean for this reason whether or not you are having orthodontic treatment).

• Clean teeth and healthy gums will promote better tooth movement with a healthier result. It may sound absurd, but your body has only so much energy to spend on your mouth so when it is busy fighting decay and periodontal disease, tooth movement slows down considerably.

Another great reason to smile is this: smiling can actually help you live longer according to a new study! So keep smiling and have a great rest of the summer!

Dr. Scott and Scott Orthodontic Associates, easing your child's fear of the dentist (and orthodontist)

Lakeland orthodontist Dr. Gregory Scott knows that many children have fear when it comes to visiting the dentist or orthodontist. Our staff at Scott Orthodontic Associates found a great article on how to help kids overcome fears of the dentist, courtesy of our friends at WebMD.

Making your child feel comfortable when they visit our office is a priority for us, and our team excels at making children feel comfortable during their treatment. Dr. Scott and our highly trained staff are committed to providing you with the best orthodontic experience in a friendly, fun, and high-tech atmosphere. In fact, most of our patients look forward to their next visit!

Talking retainers with Dr. Gregory Scott

If you've recently completed your treatment at Scott Orthodontic Associates, fantastic! We’d like to congratulate you again! Now that your braces have been removed, Dr. Gregory Scott will provide—or has provided you—with retainers. After braces are removed, teeth can shift out of position if they are not stabilized. Retainers, you see, provide that stabilization. Retainers are designed to hold teeth in their corrected, ideal positions until the bones and gums adapt to the treatment changes. Wearing retainers exactly as instructed by Dr. Scott is the best insurance that the treatment improvements last for a lifetime. Here are some things to remember when you receive your retainers:

* Wear your retainers full time, until Dr. Scott instructs otherwise. Wearing your retainers at night ensures that your pearly whites won’t relapse.

* Take your retainers out when eating...and always put retainers in their case! (Most appliances are lost in school lunch rooms or restaurants.)

* Clean retainers thoroughly once a day with a toothbrush and only a small amount of toothpaste. Use warm but not hot water.

* When retainers are not in your mouth they should ALWAYS be in a retainer case.

* Retainers are breakable, so treat them with care. If retainers are lost or broken, give us a call at (863) 709-1941 immediately.

* Remove retainers when swimming or during any sporting activity in which the retainers could fall out and get broken or lost (cheerleading, basketball, etc.) or when you should be wearing a mouth guard (football, soccer, etc.).

We hope this helps! You can always contact our staff at Scott Orthodontic Associates if you have any questions!

Happy Mother's Day, from Scott Orthodontic Associates

Our entire staff at Scott Orthodontic Associates would like to take this time thank all the wonderful moms out there for being so great during your child's orthodontic treatment. Whether it's driving their kids to regularly scheduled appointments or for "being there" while their child is treatment, the moms who come to our office are all great, and we'd like you to know that we appreciate you all! Happy Mother’s Day to you all!

And kids? If you happen to be out of Mother's Day gift ideas, check out this helpful video about clever, inexpensive Mother's Day gift ideas, courtesy of a recent segment on Good Morning America. Whatever you come up with, Dr. Scott and team know your mom will love it!

What helps you relax at Scott Orthodontic Associates?

Trust us when we say that we completely understand that not everyone always enjoys visiting their orthodontist. But at Scott Orthodontic Associates, we strive to bring you the best and most comforting experience at each visit. We’d like to know: What is it about Scott Orthodontic Associates that makes you comfortable or puts you at ease? Is it something about our pleasant office environment? Our friendly staff? Perhaps it has something to with Dr. Scott's professionalism or demeanor?

Let us know by posting here or on our Facebook page ... or by giving us a call! Have a terrific weekend!

This spring, play it safe! From Scott Orthodontic Associates

With spring here, many children, teens and adults will once again pick up the ball, bring the bat out of seasonal retirement, and lace up their cleats to hit the fields for the return of spring sports! April is National Facial Protection Month, and during this time, Dr. Scott and our dedicated team urge our young athletes to play it safe when out on the field.

Above is a helpful video from our friends at the AAO about staying safe on the ball field this spring. If you have any further questions about any of the tips offered in the video, please contact Scott Orthodontic Associates. And remember to have fun and stay safe!

Age seven, the magic number for your child's first visit to Scott Orthodontic Associates

Many parents in Lakeland and surrounding communities just assume they must wait until their child has all of his or her permanent teeth to visit Scott Orthodontic Associates, only to discover that treatment would have been much easier if started earlier. But did you know that the American Association of Orthodontists recommends that every child have an orthodontic check-up no later than age seven?

That's right: seven.

OK, you're thinking: what’s so great about age seven, Dr. Scott? Enough permanent teeth have arrived for Dr. Scott to make a determination about whether any problems are present. The first molars have come in, providing an opportunity to check for malocclusion, or what Dr. Scott calls “bad bite.” Also, the incisors have begun to come in, and problems such as crowding, deep bites, and open bites can be detected.

Orthodontic evaluation at an early age provides two positive outcomes: For some, early identification or problems will lead to easier or shorter orthodontic treatment in the future. For others, however, a healthy prognosis will provide immediate peace of mind.

Early evaluation, of course, may signal a need for early treatment. For some children, early treatment can prevent physical and emotional trauma. Aside from spurring on years of harmful teasing, misaligned teeth are also prone to injury and detrimental to good oral hygiene. So if your child is nearing age seven, please give us a call at Scott Orthodontic Associates to schedule an appointment.

Happy Monday!