Regardless of the severity, knowing what to do in a dental emergency can do quite a bit to help maintain your smile’s integrity. From small cracks or chips in teeth to knocked-out teeth, holes in your lips or tongue, and other problems, there’s no shortage of possible dental emergencies. The following advice applies broadly to all dental emergencies. No matter... read more »

Your teeth have a specific shape and strength that enables them to bite and chew food. In fact, you may see that your back teeth, or your molars and premolars, have ridges called cusps that turn food into digestion-appropriate mulch. In addition to aiding digestion, though, these cusps can ensnare plaque and food debris and trap them. To keep cavities... read more »

We all know some foods can help our body stay healthy. However, did you know some foods can help your teeth stay healthy too? Healthy foods are essential for healthy teeth, which is why our dentist, Dr. Chris Ostendorf with Ostendorf Family Dentistry in Stewartsville, Missouri, is here to explain more. For starters, the best drink to enjoy is water.... read more »

If you are routinely suffering from issues associated with poor oral health, it could be a sign of oral health conditions such as gum disease, also known as periodontal disease. Gum disease can arise in many forms and can progress over a period of many stages in years. Thus, always inspect your smile each day to make sure you're not... read more »

One of the biggest threats to oral health continues to be cavities. Cavities have plagued mankind for ages, but with modern dentistry, they are much easier to contain. Cavities arise when there are holes in your tooth enamel often formed by harmful acids. In order to properly treat cavities, effective oral health care methods need to be used. If your... read more »

Here at Ostendorf Family Dentistry, we endeavor to use our new blog as a regular means for publishing valuable content for our community through monthly blog posts. Thanks to the wonders of the Internet, we’re able to further explore some of the most important topics pertaining to our industry and area of expertise here on our website through these articles.... read more »