In just a few short days we’ll be entering a brand-new decade! Let that sink in for a moment and while you do, here’s a look back at some of the top stories from 2019 that made us smile in pop culture, the dentistry world and everything in between!

Silver Diamine Fluoride: Is this Drill-free Dental Procedure the Future for Kids’ Cavity Treatment?
Too many children in Arizona experience tooth decay. In fact, more than half of Arizona’s kindergarten children (52%) have decay experience, a level higher than the national average for 5-year-olds (36%), according to the Healthy Smiles Healthy Bodies Survey. The traditional treatment for cavities is to drill out the decay and provide a dental filling, which […]

The Inventor of Cotton Candy was Actually a Dentist
Airy spun sugar, cotton candy—AKA Fairy floss—is a pink, fluffy cloud that kids’ dreams are made of. But who invented cotton candy? Surprisingly, the inventor of cotton candy was actually a dentist! In 1897 William Morrison teamed up with Tennessee candy maker, John Wharton, to create the concoction. The duo premiered cotton candy in 1908 […]

Poor Oral Health Can Mean No Olympic Medals
Athletes from all over the world continue to prepare as the Rio 2016 Summer Olympic Games creep closer and closer, kicking off on August 5th. The life of an elite athlete means to win it all, you have to have it all: the talent, dedication, coaching and nutrition. And just like skipping a day of […]

Year In Review: 2014’s Top Teeth Moments [Infographic]
2014 is coming to a close – we’re only a few short days away from the New Year. There were some significant smile-centric stories this year – in popular culture, the dentistry world and everything in between! Let’s take a look back at 2014’s top teeth moments.

Improvements in Dental Technology
Did you know that people have been driving cars longer than they’ve been using an effective toothbrush? According to the American Dental Association, the first nylon-bristle toothbrush wasn’t sold until 1938. Surprisingly, the Ford Model T—one of the first mass-produced automobiles—was sold 30 years prior. Cars are more computerized now, but automakers use the same […]

The Facts About Dental X-rays [Infographic]
Did you know that the X-ray was discovered on November 8, 1895 when Wilhelm Rontgen discovered the treated cardboard he was using in routine experiments glowed in certain situations? Two weeks later, he took the first picture using X-rays: the bones in his wife’s hand. Today X-rays are an important tool for dental treatment because […]

Trend Watch: Oil Pulling for Better Dental Health
You may have first heard of oil pulling via Facebook or Pinterest. Indeed, the whole Internet is buzzing about the latest natural health craze. But exactly what is oil pulling, how safe is it and does it actually work? What is oil pulling? Originating in India, oil pulling is an ancient Ayurvedic practice that involves […]

Toothpaste Breakdown: Common Ingredients & How They Clean Your Teeth
Toothpaste has been around longer than you might think. Ancient civilizations learned that a mixture of ashes, burnt eggshells and pumice yielded a powder that can be used to clean teeth. Modern toothpaste does not contain any of the original ingredients (thank goodness!), but how many of you actually know what makes up the concoction […]

Before the Modern Toothbrush
Knee-deep in the world of X-box and iPhones, it’s hard to imagine a time before the conveniences of modern technology, let alone a time when the simplest of inventions weren’t commercially available. Interestingly enough, a 2003 survey conducted by Lemelson-MIT found that technologically advanced items like cars, computers or our beloved iPhones lag in importance when compared […]