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Many of our young patients experience anxiety during dental appointments. Dr. Maryam Azadpur and our team want to help your child overcome any fear he or she may feel when coming in for regular visits.

If you know your child suffers from anxiety during dental checkups, nitrous oxide sedation, popularly known as “laughing gas,” may be helpful. Nitrous oxide can be used during many types of dental procedures.

It has a sweet odor and taste, and gets mixed with oxygen when supplied through a mask. The effects typically kick in within a few minutes and leave your child feeling calm and relaxed.

Nitrous is helpful because your child will stay conscious and able to move and answer questions the doctor may ask. The drug is also convenient because the effects go away within a few minutes after the mask is removed.

Nitrous oxide is not dangerous when it’s combined with oxygen. It is non-addictive and non-allergenic. When used properly, nitrous oxide reduces anxiety, while allowing continued communication between the patient and dentist during a procedure. It can also help alleviate pain or discomfort during exams.

You should know that nitrous oxide may cause nausea in up to ten percent of patients. This drug is not recommended for people who suffer from certain medical conditions. We recommend discussing this method with Dr. Maryam Azadpur if your child's dental anxiety begins to interfere with his or her appointments.

We want all our patients to feel comfortable during their care. Talk with Dr. Maryam Azadpur at your child's next appointment to find out if nitrous oxide is an option. If you have questions regarding nitrous oxide, call our Simsbury, CT location and we’ll be happy to answer them.

April brings a few exciting celebrations to our office! We will be celebrating Alison and Kay this week for Hygienist Appreciation Week. Additionally, we will be celebrating Pat, Jill, Kelly, Susan, & Shari for Administrative Professionals Day on April 27th. All these people are vital parts of our practice, and we can't say enough good things about them.

April is Oral Cancer Awareness Month. Since most of our patients are under the age of 18, oral cancer does not come up often. Schedule regular visits with Dr. Azadpur and we will monitor your child's oral health at each visit. However, some of the symptoms you should be checking for are a lip or mouth sore that doesn’t heal, a white or reddish patch on the inside of your mouth, loose teeth, a growth or lump inside your mouth, mouth pain, ear pain, and difficult/painful swallowing.

We suggest that you continuously pay attention to anything in your child's mouth that does not look right or does not heal in a timely manner. Give us a call if you are concerned and be prepared to take a picture of the affected area for Dr. Azadpur to see.

This month we are introducing a new service. We are so excited to introduce our newest technology: dental laser!! This amazing device will eliminate drills, needles, and numbness and will help us to provide gentle and virtually pain-free treatments. Healing time will be much faster too, and your child will be able to resume their activities directly following their treatment!

As a quick refresher, we are still requiring masks and temperature checks in the office and your appointments need to be confirmed ahead of time. Good news! We have unlocked the door to the reception area and no longer ask that you call when you arrive.

If you are looking to schedule an appointment, the best way to do so is by calling the office or sending an appointment request via our website and someone will call you back as soon as possible. We are booking out about 3 months, although last minute openings do occur so you may get lucky!

We are so happy to see signs of spring everywhere! Warmer weather, flowers beginning to peek up from the ground, and garden centers stocking up on inventory. The long winter is finally over!

It's a moment many of our patients have experienced. One second you're chewing on a piece of gum, then suddenly you forget to keep chewing and swallow the entire rubbery gob whole! It's at this point you remember your mother warning you as a child that if you swallow gum it will stake a claim and take up residency in your belly for seven years. Dr. Maryam Azadpur and our team at Simsbury Pediatric & Adolescent Dentistry hate to take all the fun out of the mystery, but the truth is that chewing gum, when swallowed, will enter your stomach and move through your digestive system just like any other piece of food. So, if you ever accidentally swallow a piece of gum, there is no need to worry!

That being said, it's important to know that gum does not have any dietary benefits, so while it’s not exactly harmful to swallow, you still want to avoid swallowing it. If you are an avid gum-chewer, we encourage you to chew sugarless gum, especially if you are wearing braces, because gum with sugar can lead to cavities. Sugarless gum still has the same amount of flavor, but has fewer cavity-causing ingredients. In fact, many brands contain an additive called xylitol, a natural sweetener known to fight cavity-causing bacteria. Xylitol is also known to increase salivary flow as it rinses away plaque and acid.

The fact is, when the bacterium in your mouth breaks down sugar, what’s left behind is acid. This acid eats away at the enamel coating of your teeth, causing holes that we call cavities. Cavities can lead to other long-term mouth problems if they are not treated in time, so it is best to try and avoid overexposing your teeth to too many harmful substances!

If you have any questions about chewing gum, please contact our office. Happy (sugar-free) gum chewing!

Your infant’s first teeth will begin to appear around six to 12 months of age. You might wonder how important these primary teeth really are. After all, baby teeth are destined to fall out within a few years and be replaced by a full set of permanent teeth. However, baby teeth have important functions, and proper care can set the stage for excellent oral and overall health.

Promote Better Nutrition

The appearance of your baby’s primary teeth around six to 12 months of age coincides with changes in your infant’s nutritional needs. Beginning at six months, exclusive breastfeeding is no longer nutritionally sufficient; this is the age at which you should introduce solid foods.

At six to eight months, when your baby can start to chew, strained or pureed fruits and vegetables are appropriate. As your little one’s teeth grow in and chewing abilities progress through 12 months of age, you can gradually add cereal, bread, cooked meats, and other adult foods to his or her nutritious diet.

Increase the Life Expectancy of Baby Teeth

Although baby teeth are inevitably going to fall out and be replaced by permanent ones, making baby teeth last serves an important role that can have benefits into the future. Baby teeth serve as placeholders for permanent teeth. If they decay and fall out too soon, permanent teeth are more likely to grow in crooked.

How to Take Care of Baby Teeth

Your baby’s primary teeth are already in his or her mouth at birth; they are just invisible because they have not broken through the gums. Since they are already present, your baby can get cavities if you do not practice proper oral hygiene from the beginning.

• Do not let your baby fall asleep with a bottle in his or her mouth.
• Brush your child’s baby teeth twice a day as soon as they come in.
• Floss your child’s teeth as soon as he or she has two teeth that touch.
• Visit Simsbury Pediatric & Adolescent Dentistry for your baby’s first checkup when the first tooth arrives.