Do you remember this cartoon? It's good to see that Casper was promoting healthy oral hygiene habits back in the day! We're sure that Casper would be a big fan of 2min2x.org and promoting the importance of brushing for 2 minutes twice a day!
When it comes to taking care of your aging parents, do you consider their dental health as well as their physical health? As parents continue to age, their ability to take care of their teeth tends to decline. This may be due to a loss of manual dexterity, arthritis, stroke, forgetfulness, or a lack of focus on their oral health. Caregivers, whether they are adult children or hired assistants, can play a major role in helping elderly adults maintain their dental health.
Make sure that your aging parent stays on schedule with their routine dental cleanings. Often these elderly patients need to come for more frequent visits, at least 3-4 times a year instead of only twice. If an elderly patient is unable to clean their own teeth due to injury (such as a broken wrist or arm) and does not have a caregiver who is able to clean their teeth regularly, the patient would benefit from monthly professional cleanings. This cleaning routine and the tips below also apply to disabled patients or those who are recovering from an injury that inhibits their dexterity.
A healthy mouth is an important part of overall health and well-being. Healthy mouths help keep patients free of infection and pain and promote the ability to eat well. Brushing is a critical part of maintaining a healthy mouth and applies to natural teeth as well as dentures and partial dentures.
Keys to brushing an adult's teeth:
1. Find a place and position that gives the caregiver easy access. Brushing does not have to be done at the bathroom sink. Sitting in a chair at a table is often the most convenient and accessible place. Have a towel, bowl, and a cup of water ready. You may have to try different positions for better access and/or visibility: Standing behind the patient gives you better control and accessibility; sitting knee-to-knee allows you to visualize where you are brushing. Comfort is key!
2. Skip the toothpaste or use a very small amount. When it comes to brushing, the mechanical action of removing plaque and debris is the main focus, so toothpaste is not necessary. If you do use toothpaste, pick one that contains fluoride and use only a pea-sized amount so that you don't overwhelm the patient. Some patients may not be able to swallow well or may have an aversion to the strong taste of toothpaste. Don't let a lack of toothpaste prevent adequate brushing!
3. Select the right toothbrush. Soft bristles and a handle that's easy to hold are the key features. A children's toothbrush may allow easier access to posterior teeth. Electric toothbrushes have larger handles and are often easier for a caregiver to hold. Many also find that adapting the handle on a manual toothbrush aids control. This can be done by wrapping a washcloth around the handle, attaching a bicycle handle grip or Styrofoam tubing to the base of the toothbrush, or cutting a hole in a tennis ball and attaching it to the end.
4. Brush gently. Take care to angle the toothbrush toward the gumline and gently brush the gums. Pay attention to the backs of the teeth, the spaces between them, and the folds of the cheeks where food easily gets trapped. Swipe the cheeks with a gloved finger or cotton swab to remove any food deposits. If the patient wears dentures or partials, remove them before brushing and be sure to clean the dentures and partials before replacing them.
Flossing is also a key part of oral hygiene, especially for older adults who often have larger gaps between their teeth due to gum recession. However, flossing often becomes more difficult for aging adults due to the loss of manual dexterity and precise movements that are required. Caregivers can always use regular floss to clean between the teeth, although it takes some practice and may feel awkward. Other options are floss holders with longer handles that are easy to grip, inter-dental brushes (these small pointed brushes clean between the teeth at the gumline -- but never force them!), or a WaterPik.
Helping your elderly parent maintain proper oral hygiene will go a long way towards making them more comfortable and avoiding dental pain and problems. It may take some practice to find the best positioning and technique, so don't get discouraged. As a caregiver you are providing an invaluable service!
Feel free to ask us questions about homecare for your aging parent the next time you bring them in for their routine appointment at Jacques Dentistry in Greenville, SC . We are happy to demonstrate positioning and techniques that will help you as you care for your parent.
When you hear the name Paul Revere, you probably think of his "midnight ride" to warn of the movement of the British army toward Lexington, but he had more to his story. By trade, Revere worked as a silversmith, but he was also an amateur dentist!
What's a common item in almost every person's medicine cabinet?
Outdated or unused prescription medications.
So what do you do with them? Leave them there to collect dust? Throw them in the trash? Flush them down the toilet?
No. No. Definitely no!
It's dangerous to leave old medications sitting around. Children may find them and think that they are candy. You may try to reuse an expired medication yourself and find that it doesn't work effectively -- it may have lost its potency or not even be the proper medication for your ailment. In more serious situations, teenagers or young adults may help themselves to leftover pain medications, thus setting themselves up on the pathway to addiction. Many parents, grandparents, and other family members, may have leftover pain medications that they have totally forgotten about stored in their home; these medications can get into the wrong hands all too easily.
Throwing medications in the trash does get them out of your home and away from your family members, but it potentially puts them in the hands of other drug seekers or allows them to affect the environment.
Flushing medications down the toilet definitely gets them out of the reach of humans, but these medications find their way into our rivers and streams. Despite the current advancements in water purification and filtration, the tiny particles of medications slip through and are deposited in the soil, our rivers, and in drinking water.
Luckily for us, we have a wonderful solution to disposing of unwanted medications right here in Greenville, SC: Project Rx: A River Remedy. Project Rx takes places twice a year in and collects and disposes of unused prescription medications.Since the event started in 2010, almost 10, 000 lbs of medication have been collected and safely incinerated with law enforcement.
So go through your cabinets and look for any unwanted and/or expired prescription medications, over-the-counter medications, and pet medications. Keep all medications in their original containers for identification of the drug and quantity. Mark out your name and identifying details with a dark permanent marker, but be sure to leave the medication name visible for sorting purposes. If you have any medications in blister packs, punch out the pills into a sealed Ziploc bag along with the empty blister pouch. Then bring your medications to one of the convenient drive-thru locations listed below -- yep, that's right, you don't even have to get out of your car!
Project RX: A River Remedy locations for Saturday, September 27, 2014:
Greenville Technical College McAlister Square
225 South Pleasantburg Drive
Greenville, SC 29605
ST. FRANCIS millennium
2 Innovation Drive
Greenville, SC 29607
Greenville County Medical Society
1395 South Church Street
Greenville, SC 29605
