Now the bad news:  Trident is reformulating its gums sold in Canada.  I’d recommend you stock up on the high-xylitol gum we have available while you still can.  It’s $15 a case;  that’s pretty close to what you’d pay for regular gum.

If you’d like to check into other sources of products with xylitol, you can Google “xylitol.”  There are some excellent sites selling gum, candies, and even pure xylitol for beverages and cooking.

Cavity-busting in children

I recently read some very important studies.

We’ve known for years that parents (usually mothers) transmit decay-causing strep. mutans bacteria to their children.  This generally happens because many naturally-affectionate parents kiss their children on the lips.

If mothers  chew a gum with high xylitol content (preferably a gum in which xylitol is the only sweetener) three times a day, they have much lower levels of strep mutans bacteria in their mouths.  Their children are likely to have considerably fewer cavities, even years later.  The studies indicate that mothers should start chewing the xylitol-sweetened gum when their children are three months old.

These studies show tremendous promise for reducing decay in our children.

Deep Thoughts

“Yesterday is history;  tomorrow’s a mystery.  Today is a gift.”

  Eagles quarterback Jeff Garcia, 12/25/06  (editor’s note:  who first uttered this quote? If you know, please call us.)  

About your trash…

Here are some things that might surprise you:

---Never dispose of dental floss in the toilet.  Dental floss, especially Teflon flosses like Glide, can clump in your pipes and form huge “floss snowballs” that can clog drainpipes.  Toss your floss in the trash.

---When someone tosses trash out the car window onto the road, here’s how long it will take to decompose:

   ---Styrofoam…..never

   ---Aluminum….80-100 years

   ---Plastic bags…10-20 years

   ---Plastic-coated cartons… 5 years

   ---Plastic containers…50-80 years

   ---Cigarette butts….10-12 years

   ---Leather shoes---25-40 years

   ---Vibram soles….50-80 years

   ---Wool socks…up to 6 months

   ---Paper containers…2-5 months

Dental insurance “magic”

While we’ve been sleeping, the dental insurance industry has managed to magically  shrink  benefits without people noticing.  Here’s how:

In 1962 a decent dental insurance plan had an annual maximum benefit of $1000. 45 years have passed, but the most common annual benefit is still $1000.  Inflation has made your annual $1000 worth a small fraction of what it provided you with in 1962.

If you have dental insurance, don’t you think it makes sense to talk to your benefits officer and try to get a higher annual maximum?  

                               Wisdom from a shaman

I recently read the book The Wind Is My Mother, by the Native American medicine man Bear Heart.  I spent the summer between my junior and senior high school years working on the Rosebud Lakota Sioux reservation in South Dakota, and my interest in Native American wisdom is long-standing.

Some of Bear Heart’s wisdom:

“Jonas Bear once took me down to a pond and told me to look into it, asking, ‘What do you see?’

     ‘I see my reflection.’

     ‘Put this stick in the water and stir up your reflection.’

After I stirred it up, he asked, ‘Now, what do you see?’

‘My face is all distorted.’

‘Do you like what you see?’

‘I know that it’s not supposed to be that way.’

‘When you meet someone and you immediately dislike him or her, always remember that you are seeing a reflection of yourself---there’s something you don’t like about yourself that you’re not owning up to.  When you see it in someone else, then you don’t like that person, but in reality you are being displeased with yourself.  Always remember that.’”

“Years ago, in the days before many native Americans had cars, one old Navajo rode a long distance to go to the trading post.  Since the post didn’t have much exposure to traffic, the owner really liked to talk when he got a customer.  He was talking to one

customer as the Navajo brought his groceries to the counter, and  the trading post man continued talking as he was sacking the groceries.  As the Navajo paid him, the man was still sacking and talking, sacking and talking.  The Navajo  made the long trip home and, as he unpacked the groceries, he discovered that the money he’d given to the trading post man was there in one of the sacks.

Early the next morning when the trading post man was about to open the store, he found this Navajo waiting for him.  The Navajo handed him the money, and the man asked, ‘Where was it?’

‘It was in my sack.’

‘Thank you, Chief.  I sure appreciate this.   But I’m curious.  Why did you bring it back to me?’

The Navajo pointed to his chest.  ‘In here.  I got two little men in here.  One’s good, but the other one’s sure bad.  He’s a bad little man.  The bad one said, ‘Keep it.’  The good one said, ‘It’s not right.’  The bad one said, ‘He won’t miss it.’  The good one said, ‘It doesn’t belong to you.’  They argued all night last night.  Tonight, I want to get some sleep.”

Our latest $50 winners

Every month we have a drawing for a $50 office credit.  We do this to thank our patients who make appointments that begin between 11 AM and 3 PM.