The secret behind a potential love affair is quite simple: a great smile.

There is a connection between smiling and attracting the opposite sex. The relationship between these two is a deep-seated evolutionary connection. For most people, smiling speaks to them at an intimate level.

Today, a smile is the assurance of your fun-loving, outgoing and carefree nature. In fact, a genuine smile is one of the top things the opposite sex looks for in a potential partner. If you wish to find love, all you have to do is pull off your greatest weapon: a picture-perfect smile.

How Smiling Makes a Difference

The bulk of communication does not entirely rely on the words you say. In most cases, body language is all you need to convey your emotions. When you are aware of how your body talks, you give yourself a very powerful tool, socially.

A smile is enough to lighten up a situation. It can also define the difference between ‘get out’ as a joke or a threat. In a similar fashion, a sincere smile transforms you into a sociable person, which attracts the attention of the opposite sex.

Smile with Your Whole Face

The key to making the rule of attraction work with just a smile requires smiling with your whole face, not just your mouth. When you smile with your face, your cheeks come up and there is a crinkle by the corner of your eyes.

Smiling with your whole face usually takes time, especially if you are not used to it. Start your day by taking a little time and standing in front of the mirror to practice. To help yourself, vividly recall that moment you were truly happy.

Make Your Smile Work

According to some Marylebone dentists, smiling makes you more approachable, especially with women. When you are out with your friends for a drink, remember to keep your smile strong. Do not worry about smiling out of place or freezing that grin on your face. When the moment calls for a grin, do so genuinely. The opposite sex will see you as friendly and welcoming, which is the first step towards a potential attraction.

Charm your way to a love-filled future; start with a sincere and beautiful smile. Transform your smile with Dr David Madruga.

Many things affect the teeth negatively, including neglect, genetics and several personal daily habits. Certain food items also contribute to major staining, enamel erosion and other dental diseases, with some of the more common examples being wine, coffee, food and drinks with high sugar and acidic content.

But how about alcohol? How does alcohol affect the teeth? David Madruga and his team wish to inform patients about the ways beer could stain teeth and even lead to demineralisation. The key is information and pacing. Allow us to discuss it further:

Stouts

Darker beers contain roasted malts and barley that gives it a distinct colour and strong flavour. The concentrated and dark colour comes from the brewed dark berries stout beers are made of. These have the tendency to stain the teeth, causing the teeth to take on a shade of grey, blue or yellow over time.

Acids

Sour beers may not have the same dark colour as stout beers, but these kinds of ales are known for lying at the low (acidic) end of the pH scale, with a pH of as low as 3.2–3.3. This is harmful to dental health and may lead to demineralisation, a process where the tooth enamel can be worn away by acidity.

Tannins

Despite all these, it is not all bad news when it comes to beers. Craft beers, for example, which are made from barley and hops, contain high levels of silicon and calcium, both of which are good for the teeth, bones, nails and hair. Tannins are good acid usually found in craft beers and can prevent bacteria.

The key to protecting the teeth from staining is information. It is important to stay away from the types of alcohol that leads to the greying of teeth and sticking to types with good acids. It is all about regulation and naturally, healthy dental habits and regular check-ups.

Should you need more guidance about caring for your teeth, feel free to contact us.

A wide smile on your face does not only make you look better. According to research, it can make you mentally healthier, too.

Smiling greatly improves your mood and is also capable of reducing your stress levels. While few people would argue that too much grinning is bad for you, research shows that flashing your teeth is beneficial to your well-being.

A study from Penn State University in the U.S. reported that people who smile more appear courteous, likeable and competent. This alone should be a good enough reason for you to smile more, especially while at work.

How a Smile Changes your Brain

When you smile, your brain keeps track of your current activity. Smiling more often breaks the brain’s tendency to stray towards negative thinking. If you grin often, you re-wire your brain to create positive patterns, overwriting the negative thoughts.

Shawn Achor, author of The Positive Tetris Effect, says it’s important to retrain the brain ‘to scan for the good things in life—to help us see more possibility, to feel more energy, and to succeed at higher levels’. When you smile a lot, you trigger a positive thinking pattern, which ultimately creates a happiness loop. The more you do it, the more your brain will shift towards more positive thoughts.

Smiling often is effective in altering bad thoughts, especially when you are in a situation that causes alarm.

Smiling Can Save Your Life

A smile does not only benefit your brain—it can also save your life, according to biochemist Sondra Barrett.

She says once you let go of unnecessary tension—which you can easily achieve through smiling—you free your cells from the rigidity. According to Barrett’s study, this can save your life. She adds that there have been cases where cancer patients go into remission after releasing their stresses.

‘Our cells are more than just fortuitous arrangements of chemicals’, she says. ‘They are a community of trillions of sentient entities cooperating to create a sanctuary for the human soul.’

Scientifically speaking, smiling leads to a better life quality. With a great smile comes a great mental outlook. David Madruga will give you more reasons to smile by helping you achieve that perfect set of pearly whites. Give our practice a call now.

People who have an overbite or underbite usually become a laughingstock. In reality, bad bite is not a laughing matter. It does not only affect a person’s self-esteem, but also their total wellbeing.

In the dental parlance, malocclusion is the term for the improper alignment of teeth and jaws. While some people can shrug this off, this dental problem brings with it some serious effects on the body if left untreated.

Tooth Pain

As the teeth are not properly aligned, the distribution of pressure and stress brought about by the mouth’s mechanical action will be uneven. And this usually leads to tooth pain. If not corrected immediately, the working forces may wear the teeth and make them loose and sensitive.

Muscular Pain

Malocclusion somehow distorts the facial muscles. Crooked teeth cannot efficiently support the muscles that are used for chewing and swallowing. In turn, these muscles have to double their work to carry out the said functions. This leads to stress and causes pains in the joints and jaws. It may even cause migraines.

Airway Problems

The incorrect dental alignment causes the teeth to consume more space than they should. With this setup, the tongue may have to retreat as it cannot rest where it should. The tongue runs the risk of resting back in the mouth, which in turn affects the flow of air.

Posture Problems

When you have a bad bite, chances are your jaw joints are not properly aligned with the other joints in the body. If you have a malocclusion, you may find it difficult to close your jaws properly. The rest of the body compensates for this setup. You are unconsciously leaning forward to realign the joints and the bones. This is what causes neck and shoulder pains.

Normally, bad bites are a result of habits, such as thumb sucking and mouth breathing. They can also be attributed to physical traumas.

Fortunately, our qualified dentist in Marylebone can help you correct this problem. We have a wide range of services that addresses malocclusion. Just visit our other pages and get in touch with our patient service department to learn more about what we do.

A cup of coffee in the morning provides people with an energy boost. But, more than that, recent studies suggest that caffeine may have a number of health benefits such as decreasing the risks of liver disease and cancer, protecting against Parkinson’s disease and helping prevent diabetes.

The Leading Cause of Teeth Stain

In spite of these health benefits, dental practitioners cannot seem to look at this beverage in a positive manner. Nobody can blame dentists for disliking coffee, as it is one of the evident causes of teeth stains. A majority of patients who go to the dentists for whitening mentions that they drink at least a cup daily.

Caffeinated drinks can leave stains behind the teeth, causing them to turn yellow or unsightly brown. But, aside from staining, dentists also cite coffee as an instigator of enamel damage and teeth clenching. Studies relate that large consumptions of coffee degrade the enamel, which helps keep the teeth strong and healthy. Likewise, it induces the inability to sleep well – a main cause of teeth gritting.

Teeth discolouration is more common among heavy coffee drinkers. As it is difficult to persuade patients to stop drinking coffee altogether, dentists recommend avoiding or lessening the amount of creamer and sugar because these only speed up the growth of the bacteria that cause stains.

Instigator of Anxiety Attacks

Another reason every dentist has no love for coffee is the fact that it causes anxiety attacks. Not for them, of course, but for their patients. Some dental treatments take more time, as the practitioners have to wait for patients to settle down. There are also cases wherein people back out from an appointment because they cannot overcome their fear of the dentist, the equipment and the ambiance of the office.

Dental phobias are common for people who have had a traumatic experience in the past. This is very much understandable on the part of the practitioners. But, some patients get anxiety attacks not because of recollecting distressing occurrences, but because they consume too much coffee.

Dental anxiety is one of the principal factors that make treatments more difficult to carry out for many practitioners. To address this problem, David Madruga offers treatment under conscious sedation for nervous patients. This solution substantially lessens the possibility of stimulating fear during procedures, preventing the development of dental phobia. Contact us today for an outline of the available options.

Dental bonding is an ideal solution for broken, chipped and stained teeth because it costs less, does not usually need to use anaesthesia and only needs a single visit that lasts for 30 to 60 minutes. Many patients in London have visited my practice for this treatment alone, so I guess it is time to talk about what you should and should not do after having your teeth bonded.

Does Your Teeth Need Special Aftercare?

Bonded teeth do not need special aftercare. The tooth-coloured composite bonds well with the teeth, although they are more fragile than natural teeth. All you have to do is maintain good oral hygiene—brush your teeth three times per day, floss at least once a day, rinse your mouth with antiseptic mouthwash and visit the dentist for check-ups every three to six months. Drinking plenty of water after meals helps remove food particles and minimise the acidity levels in your mouth, as well.

How Can You Take Care of Your Bonded Teeth?

The bonding material used on your teeth can last up to 10 years, but this depends on how you promote a healthy oral hygiene. Do not bite your nails, use your teeth to open packaging or chew on anything hard, like ice, candy, beef jerky and crunchy food and snacks. These can put your teeth under stress, making them prone to fracture.

Cut down on food and beverages that can stain your teeth and wear down the bonding material. These include coffee, tea, red wine, fruit juices, soft drinks, berries (blackberry, blueberry and cherries), soy sauce and curry. Stop (or at least cut down on) smoking because this can cause yellow and brown stains on the composite, affecting the appearance of your front teeth.

The dental practice of David Madruga aims to help patients achieve a beautiful-looking smile. Contact us today to book an appointment.

Decades ago, physicians were unlikely to refer a patient to a dentist or gum specialist, if they are suffering from diabetes or heart disease. However, times changed and research revealed that dental health may indicate the state of the rest of your body.

The Link Between the Mouth and the Rest of Your Body

The mouth-body connection is the idea that inflammatory chemicals or bacteria released by certain cells in the gums may enter the bloodstream and affect other organs or tissues. This is not exactly groundbreaking science; in 1900, William Hunter, a British doctor, proposed that focal infections in the gums and teeth caused a disease in another part the body.

Fast-forward to the 21^st century and more research linking dental health to ailments such as cancer, heart disease and type 2 diabetes are gaining traction. Inflammation may be the best explaining the connection between the two; chronic swelling is damaging to the cells and the DNA they hold.

The main cause of the inflammation is the formation of plaque on teeth and gums. The bacteria living in it create an acid that damages and erodes enamel and result in cavities. Other kinds of bacteria develop within plaque which may also trigger inflammation in some of the tissues surrounding your teeth.

The strongest connection of the mouth-body argument is between cardiovascular disease and gum health. A study published in the New England Journal of Medicine suggested that deep cleaning gums and teeth resulted in healthier and more elastic arteries six months after.

More studies are underway to determine if there really is a direct link between dental health and other illnesses. However, you must not wait to have toothaches, decay or gum disease treated to avoid being the first person to prove the correlation.

David Madruga is Here to Help

Dr David Madruga Gonzales is a qualified and experienced dentist that provides multiple treatments for patients who have specific dental health problems. The dentist has worked in several practices in the UK for almost a decade. Dr Gonzales received an award from the Oxford Society of Oral Implantology with a Postgraduate Certificate in Comprehensive Oral Implantology and Prosthetics in 2008 along with other credentials since then.

Contact us to learn more about what treatment you need for your condition.

Scientists and dentists alike have marvelled at the ability of some animals – mainly sharks –to regrow individual teeth as soon as they lose one. Humans, along with every other mammal, lost that ability and only retained two sets of teeth. But, what if researchers found a way to turn back the evolutionary clock and gave us back that ability?

No More Permanent Teeth

Scientists are currently studying the embryonic development of the cichlid, a small fish found in Lake Malawi, which can also regrow its teeth. Unlike shark embryos, these fish are easier to cultivate and observe in a controlled laboratory setting.

Several researchers from the Georgia Institute of Technology in Atlanta and King’s College in London published their latest findings in the early edition of the Proceedings of National Academy of Sciences.

The study is being conducted with another work attempting to record the dental differentiation in mice. Current results show that the process responsible for growing new teeth may remain active longer than previously thought. If confirmed, it could mean that the capability of growing teeth can be reactivated in human adults.

Tooth Loss Dangers

According to statistics, nearly 60% of the working population have lost one or two teeth once they reach the age of 60. If these patients do not receive the dental attention that they need, they can suffer through painful health issues and nutritional problems that can shorten their lives. These are the kinds of situations that can be avoided if humans can grow back teeth.

Some researchers caution that growing teeth, however, would not be enough as scientists will still need to learn how the pertinent nerves and blood vessels grow into the teeth. But, the first step still remains determining how far into adulthood the plasticity of teeth and taste bud cells extend.

If these kinds of studies continue getting support humans growing more teeth may not stay in the realm of science fiction for long. If you want to keep learning about the latest developments in the dental world, or want to see the status of your own dental health set an appointment with us today. We love talking to our patients about our craft, and want to share our knowledge with as many people as possible.