Elkins Dental February 2018

NEED A LITTLE SPICE IN YOUR LIFE?

Spices and herbs add much more than flavor and aroma to your favorite beverages and treats.They also offer many health benefits. When properly utilized, these spice rack staples can ease a variety of symptoms. Ready to find your new holistic health kick? Read on. NUTMEG This spice, known for its earthy, nutty flavor, has anti-inflammatory and antimicrobial properties. Want to calm nagging pain? This spice has been used to treat joint pain and arthritis. It can even be used to remedy bad breath. Nutmeg is most potent when it’s freshly grated, so it’s recommended you purchase whole nutmeg seed, found in most specialty food stores. You can incorporate nutmeg into your diet by taking it as a supplement in capsule form or simply sprinkling it into your next chai tea. Your achy joints will thank you.

GINGER This root is an essential natural anti-inflammatory. It can help ease an upset stomach and finally tame your nausea. You can safely eat it raw, candied, as a supplement, in tea, or in baked goods. Ginger is most effective when it’s ingested raw or in capsule form. If you have morning sickness, raw ginger might do the trick. Just ask the people of ancient China. Like many spices, ginger’s use as a supplement goes back centuries. Southeast Asian countries used it to ease their own common ailments. Call it tried and true. PEPPERMINT You can use peppermint as an essential oil, steep the leaves for tea, or take a supplement capsule. Each form comes with its own benefits. As an essential oil, peppermint is great for treating colds. It’s a mild decongestant, and it helps with coughs and stuffed-up noses. It also soothes sore throats and headaches. Rub one or two drops under your nose, on your temples, or over your sinuses and feel the relief wash over you! Even further, a study published by The BMJ found that when administered as a capsule, peppermint helped reduce the symptoms of IBS in a majority of patients.

A Word From

Kalie and Caryn

reach those back teeth, especially for children, and if you go this route we recommend finding fluoride-coated floss picks. Other options, like water picks, are good additions to your routine — but they are not replacements for flossing. Flossing does a better job of removing bacteria than water picks, and it also stimulates the gums in a healthy way. Are you flossing — and if so, are you flossing right? If you have any flossing questions, don’t hesitate to reach out to us. We’re here to help! –Kalie and Caryn

When it comes to flossing excuses, we have heard it all!

From “My teeth are too close together to floss,” to “My teeth shred the floss and my hands are too big,” there’s no story that surprises us these days. But let’s get real for a second: Flossing is just as important as brushing your teeth, and every single person needs to do it. The basics are simple: Take an 18-inch length of floss and gently guide it between your teeth.Then make a “C” shape with the floss, and rub the tooth up and down to remove any buildup and plaque. Make sure to get both teeth each time you guide the floss down, and don’t forget the backside of your back teeth. There’s simply no substitute for flossing as outlined above; it’s the best way to take care of your teeth. But we realize that it’s not always that simple. Many people prefer to use the floss picks, and we understand that they might be easier than a string of floss.That’s okay by us, but only if you rinse the pick off in between each tooth. Floss picks do make it easier to

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