Bernstein Dental Care: Blog

TMJ disorders can affect your jaws range of motion while talking, chewing, and yawning. Therefore, if you suffer from a temporomandibular disorder, this condition can be made worse by the foods you choose to eat. Crunchy foods, including popcorn, chips and other salty snack foods may be too difficult for your jaw to chew when you have TMJ. Dr. Paul Bernstein of Bernstein Dental Care is here to advise you what you shouldn’t eat when you have TMJ/TMD. Hard vegetables like carrots and celery can also cause pain in the jaw because of the intensity with which you need to bite down on them. Other types of food to avoid include chewy snacks, fatty foods, and foods that are cut into large pieces. To summarize, any type of food that allows you to open your mouth wide or chew for long periods of time may aggravate your TMJ. Instead, we recommend incorporating more soft food into your diet, such as cooked veggies, soft bread, and yogurt. If you are concerned about TMJ, please give us a call to di

Sleep apnea is not only a serious medical condition, but left untreated it can lead to a plethora of other health issues and is dangerous for the heart.  A patient with sleep apnea does not breathe properly during sleep, resulting in low oxygen levels throughout the entire body. Breathing supplies lungs with oxygen but also the rest of the body.  When there is a lack of oxygen, the part of the heart responsible for moving oxygenated blood to the organs and extremities is forced to work extra hard.  This can cause an enlarged heart and eventually heart failure. Those living with untreated sleep apnea are at a higher risk of developing irregular heartbeats, and also have a higher risk for a stroke and heart attack.  Men with untreated sleep apnea are actually living with double the risk for a stroke.  If you have yet to find a solution for sleep apnea, please visit Bernstein Dental Care for a consultation. If you have questions or concerns regarding sleep disorders, please give us a call

Patients who are unhappy with their smiles for a variety of reasons come to Bernstein Dental Care for a solution.  The look of your smile includes the gums, and even when a patient’s teeth are healthy they may feel their gums keep them from a perfect smile.  Dr. Paul Bernstein offers cosmetic periodontal surgery to give every patient the chance to achieve the look they desire. Cosmetic periodontal surgery is the process of sculpting a patient’s gum line.  A procedure can include removing gum tissue, grafting gum tissue, or both. Patients with excess gum tissue may have a gummy smile, and this can be removed with a scalpel tool or laser to expose more of the tooth.  Elongated teeth are the result of gums that have receded.  In these cases, gum tissue is harvested from a healthy location in the patient’s mouth and grafted onto the area lacking tissue.  The end result is an even, stunning smile! To learn more about cosmetic periodontal surgery and all the services we provide, visit www.be