Tobacco and Your Mouth

 Tobacco and Your Mouth

 By Mina Levi, DDS, 05/28/2015

It is common knowledge that smoking and other tobacco use causes health problems such as lung cancer. However, not many people are aware of the dental andoral health implications of tobacco use such as cigarettes, chewing tobacco, cigars, and smokeless tobacco. In this week’s article, San Francisco dentist Mina Levi,DDS talks about dental and oral health concerns that are affected by tobacco use.

What are the dental problems that are caused by tobacco use?

Using tobacco:

· Increases risk of oral cancer – a disease that rapidly progresses and is often not diagnosed until the later stages III and IV, causing it to have a high death rate. See more about oral cancer here.

· Increases risk of gum disease, which is the leading cause of tooth loss in adults in the United States today.

· Causes bad breath.

· Causes buildup of tartar or dental plaque on the teeth, which if not cleaned professionally will cause tooth decay.

· Causes staining on the teeth causing them to turn yellow or brown in color and cannot be cleaned with a regular toothbrush – staining will need to be removed at a San Francisco dental office.

· Causes damage to gum tissue and causes receding gums, which leaves the roots of the teeth exposed to “the elements”. This increases sensitivity and also increases the risk of tooth decay.

· Slows down gum healing, so if you have an oral surgery procedure done or you cut your gums, the healing time will slow down and an infection can occur more easily.

Quitting

Quitting tobacco use is essential in ensuring future and present health and can provide long term health benefits. There are many different ways to quit using tobacco, such as:

· “Cold turkey”: quitting all tobacco use without the help of any chemical or medical remedy

· Nicotine patches/gum: nicotine patches and gum provide the tobacco user with small amounts of nicotine which is the addictive property in tobacco products. This can help reduce cravings for cigarettes and other tobacco products as the nicotine is being replaced. However, the use of the gum and patches will also need to cease eventually because nicotine can have negative health implications as well.

· Psychotherapy: therapy with a psychologist or psychiatrist can help a person mentally achieve overcoming the addiction and can provide self-control strategies. Therapy is also good for your overall mental well being and should be included in your regular health program.

If you have questions about how tobacco products such as cigarettes and chewing tobacco can affect your teeth and mouth, or if you have concerns about quitting tobacco use, visit Dentist San Francisco Mina Levi, DDS on the web at www.minalevidds.com or give us a call at (415) 513-5066.

Topics: Dentist San Francisco, cigarettes, tobacco, tobacco use, cigarette use, smoking, smoking cigarettes, smoker, smoking and mouth, chewing tobacco, chewing, tobacco effects, teeth tobacco effects, mouth tobacco effects, oral cancer, gum disease from smoking, gum disease, gum recession, teeth staining, cigarette staining, tobacco staining, tobacco teeth staining, hookah, hookah tobacco, cigars, cigar tobacco, cancer, throat cancer

April is Oral Cancer Awareness Month

April is Oral Cancer Awareness Month

By Mina Levi, DDS, 04/09/2015

April is Oral Cancer Awareness month and Dentist San Francisco Mina Levi DDS wants to shine a light on it, promote awareness and save lives! Oral Cancer awareness in the American public is low. Approximately 45,750 people in the U.S. will be newly diagnosed with oral cancer this year. 125 new people in the US every day will be newly diagnosed with an oral cancer, and that one person every hour of the day, 24/7/365 will die from it. While smoking and tobacco use are still major risk factors, the fastest growing segment of oral cancer patients is young, healthy, nonsmoking individuals due to the connection to the HPV virus. We cannot stop this virus from spreading; our only hope to save lives is with professional involvement and public awareness. In this article, Dentist San Francisco Mina Levi, DDS gives guidelines for how to check yourself for oral cancer and how/when to get screened at the dental office.

Get screened at the dentist!

Every time you have an exam, your San Francisco dentist performs a basic oral cancer screening by looking and feeling the soft and hard tissues of the mouth. However, it is very important to have an extensive oral cancer screening such as the Vizilite T-Blue screening performed once a year if you are a tobacco user and once every two to three years if you are not.

Perform a self-exam monthly!

Using a bright light and a mirror:

·         remove any dentures

·         look and feel inside the lips and the front of gums

·         tilt head back to inspect and feel the roof of your mouth

·         pull the cheek out to see its inside surface as well as the back of the gums

·         pull out your tongue and look at all of its surfaces

·         feel for lumps or enlarged lymph nodes (glands) in both sides of the neck including under the lower jaw

Look for:

·         white patches, called leukoplakia  

·         red patches (erythroplakia)

·         red and white patches (erythroleukoplakia

·         sore(s) that fails to heal and bleeds easily

·         abnormal lumps or thickening of the tissues

·         chronic sore throat or hoarseness

·         difficulty in chewing or swallowing

·         a mass or lump in the neck  

See your San Francisco dentist right away if you have any of these signs. When it comes to your health, your mouth is one of your body’s most important early warning systems. Don’t ignore any suspicious lumps or sores. If you discover something, don’t panic. Make an appointment for a prompt examination with Dentist San Francisco Mina Levi, DDS. You can visit us on the web at www.minalevidds.com or give us a call at (415) 513-5066. Early treatment may well be the key to complete recovery.

Topics: Dentist San Francisco, Oral Cancer, oral cancer screening, oral cancer screening San Francisco, SF oral cancer, SF oral cancer screenings, SF cancer, San Francisco Dentist, San Francisco dentist oral cancer, San Francisco oral cancer dentist, San Francisco cancer check up, cancer exam, oral cancer exam, dental oral cancer exam, dental exam, cancer rates, cancer death rates, oral cancer death rates, risk factors, risk factors for oral cancer, oral cancer awareness, oral cancer awareness month, oral cancer month

Source(s): AAOMS, OCF

Beating Oral Cancer

Beating Oral Cancer

By Mina Levi, DDS, 02/19/2015

Most people are surprised to learn that one American dies every hour from oral cancer; a death rate that has remained virtually unchanged for more than 40 years. In fact, recent statistics published by the American Cancer Society indicate that while the incidence and death rates for cancers overall has decreased, the incidence of oral cancer has increased by 5.5% and the death rate has increased by 1.5%.

Oral cancer is far too often discovered in late stage development, the primary reason for the consistently high death rate. Oral cancer treatment often results in disfiguring effects on patients, and can seriously compromise their quality of life. Early detection and diagnosis can make a tremendous difference in life expectancy; oral cancer is 90% curable when found in its early stages. Unfortunately, 70% of oral cancers are diagnosed in the late stages, III and IV, leading to a five-year survival rate of 57%. The Dentist San Francisco Mina Levi, DDS article this week tells Eva Grayzel’s story with oral cancer.

You can find out more about Eva or see her speak by going to http://www.evagrayzel.com.

In 1998, at age 33, in the midst of a successful career in storytelling, Eva was diagnosed with advanced stage oral cancer and given a 15% chance of survival. A non-smoker, she had been bounced from dentist to doctor for more than two years. The ulcer on her tongue became larger and more painful. After diagnosis, she endured a partial tongue reconstruction, a modified radical neck dissection and a maximum dose of radiation therapy. After getting a second chance at life, she wanted to do whatever she could to raise awareness about this disease and prevent what happened to her from happening to others.

If you have questions about oral cancer or would like to get screened for oral cancer, visit Dentist San Francisco Mina Levi, DDS on the web at www.minalevidds.com or give us a call at (415) 513-5066. If you would like to see Eva Grayzel speak, visit her website at www.evagrayzal.com.

Topics: Dentist San Francisco, oral cancer, cancer, cancer screening, oral cancer screening, cancer test, oral cancer test, cancerous lesion, lesion, cancer lesion, cancer tongue lesion, tongue lesion, cancerous tongue lesion, oral cancer treatment, cancer treatment, oral cancer survival, cancer survival, survival rates, cancer survival rates, oral cancer survival rates

Source: www.evagrayzel.com

Oral Cancer: Why it is Important to be Screened

Oral Cancer: Why it is Important to be Screened

By Mina Levi, DDS, 07/17/2014

You may have noticed at your last regular dental visit that someone asked you if you have had an oral cancer screening in the last few years. Oral canceris a disease in which cancer cells form on the lips, oral cavity or oropharynx. Without noticeable symptoms, you may not think it is necessary to have an oral cancer screening. However, by the time physical symptoms appear, the oral cancer can be progressed too far to be removed easily. In this article, we discuss oral cancer and the importance of oral cancer screenings such as the Vizilite test available with Dentist San Francisco Mina Levi, DDS.

About Oral Cancer

Most people are surprised to learn that one American dies every hour from oral cancer; a death rate that has remained virtually unchanged for more than 40 years. In fact, recent statistics published by the American Cancer Society indicate that while the incidence and death rates for cancers overall has decreased, the incidence of oral cancer has increased by 5.5% and the death rate has increased by 1.5%. Oral cancer is far too often discovered in late stage development, the primary reason for the consistently high death rate. Oral cancer treatment often results in disfiguring effects on patients, and can seriously compromise their quality of life. Early detection and diagnosis can make a tremendous difference in life expectancy; oral cancer is 90% curable when found in its early stages. Unfortunately, 70% of oral cancers are diagnosed in the late stages, III and IV, leading to a five-year survival rate of 57%.

Oral Cancer Screening

Oral cancer screening tests look for cancer in the mouth and throat before a person has any symptoms. This makes it possible to identify cancer at an early enough stage to start successful treatment. Screening tests are given when there are no symptoms, so it is important to keep in mind that suspicion of cancer is not the reason for the test. For those who are non-smokers, it is suggested that an oral cancer screening is performed once every two years. For tobacco or recreational drug users, it is important to have the test performed once per year since it is a higher risk.

Vizilite Test

The Vizilite oral cancer screening test is an easy and quick system that takes about two minutes to complete and highlights any cancerous or pre-cancerous tissues. The Vizilite system gives no false negatives, meaning that every lesion identified by Vizilite is either cancerous or pre-cancerous. TheVizilite test also significantly reduces the number of false positive lesions identified during standard visual examinations, limiting the number of biopsies that need to be performed.

If you have questions or concerns regarding the Vizilite oral cancer screening test or oral cancer, visit Dentist San Francisco Mina Levi, DDS on the web atwww.minalevidds.com or give us a call at (415) 513-5066.

Topics: Dentist San Francisco, oral cancer, cancer, oral cancer screening, cancer screening, early signs of oral cancer, early signs of cancer, oral cancer screening provider, oral cancer screening dentist San Francisco, oral cancer provider San Francisco, cancer from tobacco, oral cancer from tobacco, oral cancer symptoms, definition of oral cancer, vizilite, vizilite oral cancer screening, vizilite cancer screening, vizilite test, tobacco use