Our Blog

The beginning of the holiday season can mean a lot of things to different people. For some, this might be a time of Lefse baking, Black Friday shopping, and cheering for America’s football team (the Dallas Cowboys). For others, it might be enjoying the delicious pumpkin pie recipe found on the back of Libby’s canned pumpkin. Ultimately, Thanksgiving is a time when we express gratitude for the people who bless our lives.

This Thanksgiving, we will be spending the holiday with our families. As our family members grow older and the time spent together is fewer and far between, we treasure our visits. Thanksgiving is the best time to celebrate family and enjoy a wonderful table feast without the stress of shopping for gifts.

During this holiday season, we are truly blessed to have so many people in our lives to be thankful for. We are thankful for our amazingly talented dental team: Bree, Kimmi, Rachel, and Madison, for their hard work and uplifting presence in the office. Most of all, we are grateful for all of you, our patients, for bringing your beautiful smiles to our office each and every time you visit. Happy Thanksgiving!

Dr. Roger and Scott Amundson and our team at Amundson Dental Associates frequently field questions about cavities and what causes them. Patients will typically ask, “I brush twice a day and floss regularly, as well as rinse with hydrogen peroxide, so a cavity is unlikely, right?”

Not quite.

When cavities, also known as caries, are in their initial stages, people often will feel no symptoms, and they won’t experience any pain or discomfort. It’s not until the tooth decay has reached a certain level that patients begin to notice the signs. If you are experiencing any of the following symptoms, you may want to consider scheduling an appointment with Dr. Roger and Scott Amundson as soon as possible:

• Dull or sharp toothache
• Tooth sensitivity or mild to sharp pain when eating or drinking something sweet, hot, or cold
• Persistent bad breath or a bad taste in the mouth
• The presence of a sticky, tarry feeling when biting down
• Puss or discharge around a tooth, especially when pressing on your gums
• Visible holes or discoloration in your teeth (usually black or brown)

Cavities can happen at any time, to anyone, no matter how old you are. Routine dental care is important to prevent cavities or the onset of tooth decay, so it is important to visit Dr. Roger and Scott Amundson and our team at Amundson Dental Associates for regular cleanings. If you are overdue for a checkup or think you may have a cavity, please give us a call at Grand Forks office to schedule an appointment.

Diabetes is a chronic disease that increases the risk for many serious health problems, including severe gum disease. November is Diabetes Awareness Month, and it’s a great time for us at Amundson Dental Associates to remind our patients that the way you care for your teeth at home doesn’t just affect your oral health; keeping your mouth healthy is vital to your overall health, too.

Diabetes is the result of a deficiency, or lack of the hormone insulin to properly transport glucose (blood sugar) to the cells throughout the body. According to the American Diabetes Association, the most common types of diabetes are Type One (90-95 percent of cases), Type Two (five percent), and gestational or pregnancy diabetes. Women who have had gestational diabetes have a 35 to 60 percent chance of developing diabetes, mostly Type Two, in the ten to 20 years following their pregnancy.

In the past decade, researchers have found links between periodontal (gum) disease and diabetes. Not only are people with diabetes more vulnerable to gum disease, but diabetes may also have the potential to affect blood glucose control, as well as contribute to the advancement of diabetes.

Nearly 26 million Americans currently live with the disease, with an additional 79 million in the pre-diabetes stage. There is some good news we want you to know, however; you can protect your gums and teeth from the effects of diabetes by visiting our Grand Forks office for an exam. Patients who are living with diabetes may require more often visits to ensure their dental health remains in tip-top shape. Many insurance plans provide expanded benefits for diabetic patients, and Dr. Roger and Scott Amundson can tell you how often you need to come in for an appointment.

For more information on how we can help, please do not hesitate to give us a call at our Grand Forks office.

All Hallows' Eve, more commonly known as Halloween, is a yearly event celebrated on October 31, and one that is anticipated by the young and young at heart all over the world. Some scholars claim that Halloween originated from Celtic festivals that honored the dead or that celebrated the harvest, while others doubt that there's any connection at all to Samhain (a Gaelic harvest festival.) Regardless of its origin, our team at the dental office of Dr. Roger and Scott Amundson hopes that Halloween is fun and enjoyed by all of our awesome patients!

Trick or treat?

In North America, Halloween is predominantly celebrated by children who dress up in costumes, which range from scary to cute, who then go around the neighborhood knocking on doors asking "trick or treat", and they are given candy in return. Trick-or-treating is a time honored tradition, and though many parents groan at the pounds and pounds of candy collected by youngsters and fear for the health of their teeth, there are a few things you can do to help their teeth stay in great shape until the candy is gone:

• Limit the amount of candy they can consume each day
• Have them brush their teeth after eating candy
• Avoid hard, chewy candies as they can stick in hard to brush places
• Keep candy out of sight to reduce temptation
• Don't buy candy too far in advance to limit pre-Halloween consumption
• Help or encourage your children to floss

Halloween Fun

Halloween isn't just about gorging on candy; there are other events associated with this festive day including carving jack-o'-lanterns, painting pumpkins, decorating sugar cookies, bobbing for apples, going to haunted houses, or just curling up on the couch with a bowl full of popcorn and watching some classic, scary movies.

Halloween Around the World

Some countries, like Australia, frown upon Halloween, claiming it is an American event and not based in Australian culture, while others like Italy have embraced the fun and celebrate much as Canadians and Americans do. Mexicans have been celebrating this fun day since around 1960, and it marks the beginning of the Day of the Dead festival. Some countries in Europe have come late to the party, but since the 1990s, countries like Sweden, Norway, and Germany have started celebrating Halloween as well, and finding children in costumes or having ghosts hanging in windows has become commonplace.

Halloween is about fun; stepping outside our normal lives and donning a costume or gathering with friends to knock on doors and ask for candy is as much a part of our culture as hot dogs and barbecue on Labor Day. Have a safe and happy Halloween from the team at Amundson Dental Associates!