Time was, only a very short while ago, that dentists had to treat serious gum disease through highly invasive oral bone surgery. But a new laser procedure does away with cutting and stitches. It removes deteriorating gum tissue (while leaving healthy tissue intact), restores the height of the tissue around the teeth, reduces the patient's pain and discomfort, closes the disease-produced pocket between gums and teeth, and lets healing proceed apace.

The technique is known as LANAP, short for Laser-Assisted New Attachment Procedure. It's approved by the Food and Drug Administration and patented for reattachment of gum and bone tissue around teeth. (Read more about Laser Miracle for Diseased Gums)

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Ah, the delights of the dentist's office! First you come in and are forced to lie supine on a reclining chair, as if on a surgeon's operating table. Then the needle filled with numbing agent appears and descends, like some evil wasp. The high-speed drill begins to whine, ominous as some merciless mosquito about to pounce. Grinder bits are added to the drill, which, when applied to the tooth, make the head vibrate as though it's in a blender. And all of the other associated sights, noises and tastes combine to create such an unforgettable experience!

But with the increasingly popular and available laser dentistry, help is on the way. (Read more about Miracle of Laser Dentistry)

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Bleeding gums can be a key early-warning sign for over 20 serious medical disorders, including diabetes, heart disease, pre-diabetes, Hodgkin's lymphoma and cancers of the colon and other organs. And which doctor is best positioned to notice bleeding gums? The dental doctor, of course!

In addition, according to Dr. Ronald Schefdore, a Chicago dentist with over 25 years of experience, people usually visit their dentist more often than their doctor. (Read more about Dental Screening Can Be a Lifesaver)

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Those Americans who avoid going to the dentist for years due to their extreme dental phobia may be setting themselves up for potentially life-threatening health problems.

As dental decay advances and gums deteriorate unchecked, bacteria may start to proliferate and get into the bloodstream, eventually causing damage to the heart and other areas of the body, doctors say. (Read more about Fear of Dentists Can Hurt Health)

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A Temple University pediatric dentist says kids who binge on their Halloween candy spoils - but who don't consume them piecemeal throughout the day - may actually be doing their teeth a favor.

The key challenge, though, is limiting their fling to just a few days, and then drastically tapering off on candy consumption for the rest of the year. Or letting kids eat candy and other carbohydrate sweets just for dessert, not popping them every hour or so. (Read more about Kids' Halloween Candy Haul: Not to Worry)

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You just might discover the best cosmetic medicine not at your local plastic surgeon or spa but at your local grocery store.

Experts have identified an increasing number of "beauty foods" that act to add youthful qualities to skin, hair and teeth. For example, salmon and other omega-3-fatty-acid-rich foods help smooth wrinkles. Cranberries help whiten teeth. And spinach, broccoli and Swiss chard help produce glossy, well-conditioned hair. (Read more about A Beauty Spa in Your Refrigerator)

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Many studies are showing a persistent connection between gum disease and other ailments that afflict corners of the body far afield from the teeth.

Specifically, when gingivitis (early-stage gum disease) or full-blown periodontal disease is present, it's often the case that doctors find that a patient has diabetes, kidney disorders, preterm labor, certain types of cancer, osteoporosis or even Alzheimer's disease. (Read more about As Goes Oral Health, So Goes General Health)

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Gone are the days (or soon will be) when dentists had to ladle quantities of goo into patients' mouths to take impressions for the construction of crowns, bridges and implants.

Instead, exciting new high technology has been developed that will do a two-minute digital scan of a patient's entire set of teeth. Once the information is captured by an electronic wand the dentist passes around the teeth, it's delivered to a dental lab where milling machines hooked up to CNC (computer numerical control) devices are used to craft the artificial dentition, most of which is now made from zirconium dioxide. In the past, gold and platinum had been the materials of choice. (Read more about Dentistry Goes Digital)

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Energy drinks in the U.S. have been on the rise for more than 10 years, promising consumers a boost to their day. It's estimated that the energy drink market will be $10 billion by 2010. This is good news for beverage companies, but it could have oral health implications for consumers who rely on these drinks, sometimes daily, for that boost. Previous research findings have warned consumers that the pH levels in beverages such as soda could lead to tooth erosion. The studies revealed that, whether diet or regular, iced tea or root beer, the acidity level in popular beverages that consumers drink every day contributes to the erosion of tooth enamel. (Read more about Energy Drink Consumption Can Lead to Tooth Erosion)

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So you want to flash those pearly whites?

Sure you can get yourself lasered, you can go to your dentist to get bleached, but what about the low tech method: toothpaste.

Dr. Marc Liechtung, a cosmetic dentist and owner of this laser whitening center, says they do have a role. “These products have become an adjunct to in office bleaching. So we tell our patients to go out after bleaching, and get whitening toothpaste.”

In whitening toothpastes, there are two general categories of whiteners—abrasives--the most common one is silica, and anti-tartar agents.

Unlike bleaching agents like hydrogen peroxide, which get into the tooth, these superficial whiteners clean surface stains--mostly along the gum line and in between teeth.

They get to stains from things like coffee and smoking.

“People want to get like 7-8 shades lighter they’re not going to do it with just toothpaste,”says Dr. Liechtung.

But Dr. Robert Gerlach, who leads the studies on whitening at crest, says the right whitening toothpaste can make a huge difference. “The before and after images are remarkable; the patient clearly looks remarkably better. But we haven’t affected the underlying tooth color. To do that we have to diffuse peroxide in. So if you don’t have stain on your teeth, we can’t remove that stain.”

Dr. Gerlach says there are innumerable studies to back up the whitening claims. And to add to that, four crest and three Colgate pastes have the ADA seal of approval for whitening.

Dr. Clifford Whall, Director of the ADA Acceptance Program, says, “Our guidelines set specific levels of whiteness that they have to achieve in order to receive our seal.”

That’s not to say other toothpastes with whitening on the label but without the seal don’t whiten…in fact, if they contain silica, for example, they probably do.

“The second thing the whitening toothpaste do, however, is they prevent daily stain accumulation,” states Dr. Gerlach.

The ADA seal adds a layer of guarantee that there is clinical data to back up the claim. (Read more about Whitening ToothPaste)

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