Say hello to Dr. David Jourabchi at Kids Dental Spot in Phoenix, Arizona. Dr. Jourabchi specializes in pediatric and special health care needs patients. He is passionate about treating cavities and gum disease with a holistic approach that begins with oral hygiene and nutrition
Dr. Jourabchi earned his Doctor of Dental Surgery degree at UCLA School of Dentistry. He continued his studies with the Fellowship in Community-Based Care at Ohio State University and at Interfaith Medical Center in Brooklyn, NY. Outside of work, he enjoys watching superhero movies, biking, hiking, swimming and a tasty BBQ.
Do you brush and floss as much as you recommend?
I floss more than I recommend! Brushing and flossing is super important. I have more space in between my teeth so it’s even more important for me to floss; I guess I just get a lot of food stuck in between my teeth. But everyone at their own level, honestly.
What is your favorite flavor floss?
I like the grape flavored floss, those Crayola gum grape flavored ones.
Electric or manual toothbrush?
I prefer electric brushes. Usually I recommend Oral-B brushes just cause they’re round and are oscillating. They do a better job, I think, in general. But again, everybody to their own level. We’re in a unique space where if you can get anything in the kids mouth and brush them, that’s the best thing.
Which celebrity has the best smile?
I would say Matthew McConaughey because he has a big smile.
If you could tell patients to stop doing one thing, what would it be?
I think it would be drinking juice or at least using a straw to drink juice. Drinking juice is pretty bad. I think about it like this: if you thought of the calories you are drinking, you probably wouldn’t be drinking so quickly. But it’s super easy to drink calories.
What is the best dental advice you’ve ever received?
The best dental advice I’ve ever received is that your teeth should not be touching at rest. A lot of people don’t realize that. When we’re sitting around most people have their teeth touching or they are clenching in some ways. Our teeth really shouldn’t be touching unless we are chewing. A lot of people don’t realize that. It causes a lot of headaches or facial pain and can cause gum sensitivities Obviously it wears down your teeth more than you know.
What is the best thing about being a Delta Dental dentist?
At a previous office we had a tie with Delta Dental because they are a nonprofit [Delta Dental of Arizona Foundation]. So, through that office we were a recipient of a Delta Dental grant which is huge. That helped so many people in a really large way; making an impact and helping them receive treatments and care that really nobody else is paying for at the moment.
Can you explain why Delta Dental of Arizona’s Special Health Care Needs benefit is important and how it impacts your patients?
The patients that we see here, especially the ones with special health care needs, benefit from being at the dentist frequently for multiple reasons. They can get more familiar with the team, with the environment and with our expectations for what they’ll be expected to do in the dental office. I think that’s [Special Health Care Needs benefit] really helpful cause it’ll be able to get people in more frequently and makes a huge difference along the way in desensitization. If you could see somebody in three months, instead of seeing them in six months, you’re able to really make a relationship with them and you can build trust with them in a different way.
Also, when you are able to see people over time you can catch things a lot more quickly. In that way, I think it [Special Health Care Needs benefit] helps mitigate a lot of cavities or infections that would get worse over time because we could catch those earlier, treat them and stabilize the teeth.
I don’t think there’s enough of a push at this point and I think a lot of that comes with fear from parents because they don’t know what would happen. If they were aware of a desensitization approach that’s being supported by Delta Dental, they would be a lot more welcoming to come in knowing that there’s less stress at each appointment. We don’t have to get everything done every time.
How would you describe how oral health impacts overall health and wellbeing?
Our oral health, I always believed, is the entrance to our body. So, anything that goes into our mouth is being introduced into our body and our blood stream. It is well known that if there is inflammation in one place of our body that the inflammation spreads throughout [the body]. At this point, it is not entirely understood, but we know that inflammation is bad. Knowing that we can decrease inflammation in the mouth and in the overall body that way would make our bodies feel at rest so that we’re not constantly fighting off this infection. In that way, it definitely makes us overall healthier by keeping our mouth cleaner.
What is the most important thing you want parents to know about caring for their child’s teeth?
A caregiver should know that teeth are very dynamic. They change very frequently; they react to the way that our body is as a whole. There are a lot of medical conditions that can arise from something that is tooth related. That is often overlooked. My recommendation would be, in addition to taking kids to their medical doctor for check-ups and vaccinations, just to really maintain routine check-ups with the dentist with the same purpose. We make sure we are meeting milestones, making sure that teeth are coming in the right sequence or if we are having these effects, we can help mitigate them early on.
And don’t be afraid of going to the dentist. Just know that there is the right dentist somewhere out there for you. Feel it out and find a place where you feel comfortable.
What is your favorite tooth-healthy snack?
I really like cucumbers and carrots.
What is your favorite dental joke?
What time should you go to the dentist? Tooth-hurty!
If you were stuck on a desert island, what three items would you bring?
I would bring a pot. I would bring a flint. And I would bring my wife.
