Being Thoughtful

My dad and I were sitting in the hospital waiting room.  My mom's knee replacement surgery was over and we were waiting to meet with the surgeon to get the run-down, when my dad's cell phone rang.  I couldn't tell who had called my dad, just that they were asking after my mom, wondering how she's doing.  He hung up the phone and I pounced.

"Who was that?"

"Dr. Matthews office," he replied.

I felt confused.  Why was the dentist calling my dad about my mom?

"I guess they heard about Mom's surgery," Dad explained.  "They want to send flowers. They just needed to know which hospital, the room number and how long she's staying."

Aside from knowing which hospital, we had none of the other information at the time.  But, when he knew, my dad called back telling them where to send the flowers.

These arrived the next day.  

Even against the backdrop of the hideous hospital blinds, you can see how beautiful they are.

I was sooooo puzzled about how Dr. Matthews' team had learned about my mom's surgery.  Turns out my mom had an appointment two days before surgery for her annual cleaning.  It came up in conversation and they remembered and sent flowers.

Not every business understands the value of this kind of thoughtfulness.  But Dr. Matthews sure does.

Smiles Giveaway Winner | Nicole Taylor

And the winner is...

Nicole Taylor!

To pick up your $25 iTunes gift card come by the office in the next week.

Dr. Matthews office located at 3610 N. University Ave Suite 200 in Provo.

Violet

by Andrea Harris

Call me Beauregarde. Violet Beauregarde.

I love gum.  I love it so much that when people ask what I’d HAVE to have if I were stranded on a desert island, I secretly wish I could say gum.  But you get funny looks if you don’t pick things like food... or water...  Nevertheless, I gotta have my gum. I snuck it in every choir class... and concert in high school and college. (Shhhh … don’t tell.)  I’m so stealthy with my gum that I can pretty much keep a piece in my mouth while I eat dinner and have it to chew later. Crazy, I know.  Every once in awhile though,  I wonder if all this gum chewing is really all that good for me.  I have perpetually minty fresh breath, but is that a good enough reason to chew?

As luck would have it, the ADA actually approves of my gum habit! They claim, “clinical studies have shown that chewing sugarless gum for 20 minutes following meals can help prevent tooth decay.

The chewing of sugarless gum increases the flow of saliva, which washes away food and other debris, neutralizes acids produced by bacteria in the mouth and provides disease-fighting substances throughout the mouth. Increased saliva flow also carries with it more calcium and phosphate to help strengthen tooth enamel.”

HALLELUJAH.

So what does that mean for me and all the other happy gum cracking folks?  It means that you can decrease the amount of tooth decay by limiting the acid you your teeth come into contact with.  After you eat, the pH of your dental plaque becomes acidic for a period of time, weakening teeth and making them susceptible to tooth decay.

Colgate cites a two-year sugarless chewing gum study conducted on a population of children from third to fifth grade in Europe. Along with non-fluoridated water and regular fluoride toothpaste use, the results after just one year showed children that chewed sugarless sorbitol gum had a 41.7 percent reduction in dental caries compared to the control group of children who did not chew the sorbitol gum.  The study also showed that chewing three pieces of sugarless chewing gum per day was not difficult to maintain.  Trust me, it’s not.  I’m more of a six to ten piece a day kinda girl myself.  Three pieces a day would list emergency rationing for me!

Naturally, the ADA suggests that while gum chewing does help cut does on dental decay, it should never replace regular brushing and flossing.  Still, I take great comfort in knowing I can have my gum and chew it, too.

Smiles Giveaway Winner | Julie Black

And the winner is....

Julie Bearden Black!  

Congratulations!

To pick up your $25 Olive Garden gift card come by the office in the next week.

Dr. Matthews office located at 3610 N. University Ave Suite 200 in Provo.

Team Spotlight: Dr. Blake Matthews

Matthews Family taken in 2011 (before Brock's LDS mission)

Dr. Blake Matthews met his gorgeous wife, Sydney on a blind date at BYU.  They dated for two years and married in 1989 just in time for Blake to finish his undergrad and begin dental school in 1990.  Blake applied to a prestigious program at the University of Utah where he proved himself to be one of the top 10 dental students in the state.   This earned him a scholarship to Creighton University where Blake graduate with his dental degree.

Dr. Matthews with Bailey and Quade in a ghost town

In 1994 Blake, Sydney and their new addition, Brock headed back to Utah to join forces with Blake's dentist father, Gary Matthews.  (Gary has now been in practice for over 40 years and together as father and son, Gary and Blake are one of the longest running family dental practices in Utah County. )

The Matthews family was soon joined by two girls McKell and Bailey and another boy, Quade, completed their family in 2001.

If you quiz Dr. Blake Matthews' kids, they would tell you that Blake is the world's greatest dad.  He's a highly involved father and family man who loves to share with his family his love of sports and the outdoors. He loves hiking, skiing, boating, horseback riding, and camping.

In addition to being an amazing dentist, Blake is a fantastic baseball coach. He has coached both of his boys' teams, most recently helping Quade's competition super league baseball team to become the best 11-year-old team in the state last year.

Coach Matthews, Sydney and Quade

Blake enjoys running and has competed in 2 marathons and a triathlon.  Last year, Blake, Sydney, McKell and Sarah (from the office), put together Team Matthews and ran a 1/2 Marathon together.

Blake loves being a dentist and is particularly honored by being one of the official dentists of BYU Athletics and the official dentist of the Fredette Family Foundation.

Dento - what?

Photo credit: Intelligent Dental.com

by Andrea Harris

I have some weird phobias: popular amusement park characters, kids in Halloween costumes, door-to-door salespeople, airport security scanners (I beep. EVERY. SINGLE. TIME.)... Are you feeling me here?  

Most of my quirky fears aren’t really that life impeding, but for a lot of people, their dentophobia is keeping them from getting adequate medical care.   

                                           

Dentophobia? Yep. You read it right.  It’s a real thing.  (Shhh.  I have a little mild dentophobia myself. Add that to the list.)  In fact, it’s estimated that as many as 75% of US adults experience some degree of dental fear, from mild to severe. Approximately 5 to 10 percent of U.S. adults are considered to experience dental phobia; that is, they are so fearful of receiving dental treatment that they avoid dental care at all costs. Many dentally fearful people will only seek dental care when they have a dental emergency, such as a toothache or dental abscess. People who are very fearful of dental care often experience a “cycle of avoidance,” in which they avoid dental care due to fear until they experience a dental emergency requiring invasive treatment, which can reinforce their fear of dentistry.  

There are plenty of reasons people experience dental phobia.  Frankly, dentists get a bad rap in the media.  And have you ever heard about what a great time your friend had a routine cleaning?  Of course not!  You hear about the time the needle accidently hit a nerve or the nightmare implant Uncle Frank had in 1982.  Yikes!  Some people just aren’t comfortable with the perceived lack of control under any kind of anesthesia or the fear that the dentist won’t stop when you’re in pain.   

But really, there are so many dental tools that can make your experience at the dentist infinitely more relaxed and pleasant. Gone are the days of the giant drills, clunky pliers, and massive needles.  Frankly, modern dentistry can be a nearly painless experience.  Remember the time I was denied laughing gas at the “other guy’s” and almost lost my mind? It’s 2013, kids. I want my laughing gas.  And trust me, if your hand is near my mouth,  you’d want me to have my laughing gas, too.  

According to WebMD, new medications and products help reduce pain during dental work. Topical anesthetic gels and dental patches used to numb gums keep patients comfortable during injections and deep cleanings. Nitrous oxide ("laughing gas") relaxes patients during more involved procedures. So does intravenous conscious sedation, which eases pain and discomfort while keeping you awake with medications given through an intravenous line placed in either the hand or arm. Frankly, that sounds dreamy to me!  I just want to take a little nap and wake up with fixed teeth.

Because a little distraction goes a long way, iPods for your listening pleasure, big-screen televisions, iPads, and virtual reality glasses that put your eyes and mind in another realm are common items in the modern dentist's office. So is calming décor: fresh flowers, miniature waterfalls, and bright, inviting wall colors.  Have you been to Dr Matthews’ office lately?  I can never decide whether to gaze out the window at the mountain view or watch the gorgeous landscapes go rolling by on the big screens hanging from the ceiling.  It’s like a spa... only with fluoride...

To truly calm your fears, it never hurts to remember that the dentist is a person who cares as much about your comfort as your teeth. "Look at the doctor as someone who's also a friend," says David Hershkowitz, DDS (Associate chair of the Department of Cariology & Comprehensive Care at NYU).  I think the same thing goes for the staff at a dental office and Dr. Matthews has some of the nicest hygienists and dental assistants I’ve ever met.  Let’s just say that any dental office who gives you a birthday gift because you spent your bday  week in the dentist chair having emergency work done is just fine by me!   

So let’s get down to the nitty gritty.  Let’s say you’re a good old fashioned dentophobe. Dr. Hershkowitz has these suggestions for talking to your dentist. If he doesn't respond or comply with your requests, find another one.

Give a cue:  Establish a sign, such as raising your hand, to let your dentist know if you're uncomfortable and need him to stop working immediately.  Dr. Matthews is great about that. I don’t think I’ve ever had work done when he didn’t tell me to let him know immediately if I was in too much pain.

Be prepared: Ask your dentist in advance what you can expect during your visit and how procedures, such as injections, are handled. "There's nothing wrong with asking the doctor, "What will you do to let me know I'm in control?'" says Hershkowitz.

Talk it over: "A good dentist should begin a visit by asking you open-ended questions about what bothers you so he or she knows what not to do," Hershkowitz says. A simple "Tell me about any difficulties you've had during past dentist visits" may help you open up and relax. "If you talk about it first, it will remove the anxiety."

So while I will surely never love beeping my way through airport security and amusement park characters will probably always send me running in the other direction, I’m going make sure that my mild dentophobia doesn’t keep me from getting the dental care I need.  Are you?