Thought for Apr 23...

The basic division among humans is between those who hope and those who accept the unjust status quo.

John Carmody

 

Thought for Apr 22...

Friends always answer when you call, reach out and help you when you fall; they strengthen you in times of stress and add much to your happiness.

William Arthur Ward

 

Thought for Apr 20...

You are your own greatest asset—there is nothing you cannot do.
No one can keep you from dreaming your dreams,
      and only you can prevent them from coming true.
Your achievements are not determined by your ability alone,
      but by the desire you possess to reach them.
There are no worlds outside of those you create for yourself,
      and the only boundaries are those
      you establish and choose to live within.
Never be afraid to defend your decisions, regardless.
No one can possibly know what is best for you other than yourself.

Terry Everton

HoeDown ThrowDown Video

The FAMOUS HoeDown ThrowDown spoof video that my daughter's made at their sleepover the other night. Many of you have already heard the story about how I woke up at 2am to find every light in my house on and no one around. Here's the reason why!



I have to admit...I love the video!

Headaches - The Dental Connection

Headache is one of the leading causes of physician visits by patients and accounts for an enormous annual expenditure for pain relief medications. Yet few people think of going to a dentist for headache treatment. You probably know that what we dentists call occlusion is what most people refer to as their "bite" – the way their teeth come together. What many people do not know is how far-reaching the impact of a poor bite can be.

For example, did you know that a poor bite can be the cause of pain almost anywhere in the head and neck area? Headache is a prime example. Yet, headaches in the temple region are very commonly related to the bite and, correcting the bite often does away with the headaches.

To be sure, there are other causes of headache and head or neck pain. Most patients with this type of pain have already seen a physician to rule out other possible causes such as tumors, eye-strain, etc. With the post-graduate training our staff has completed, and state-of-the art equipment that we have acquired, we are able to scientifically rule in (or rule out) your bite as a possible source of pain.

I give you this as just one example of problems that may be caused or affected by your bite – a cause that most people aren't aware of. There are many others and they are listed as symptoms on the enclosed checklist. We now routinely use this checklist with our patients to determine and record any of those symptoms that you may have. We also record what we refer to as "signs" that your occlusion may have problems. We invite you to look over this list of symptoms and see if any pertain to you – give yourself a "self-test."

If you have any of these symptoms or, if you have some of these "signs," it would be in your best interest to have your occlusion evaluated. With cosmetic dentistry so popular today, it is especially important to make sure your bite is healthy prior to proceeding. A bad bite is often the cause of poor aesthetics, and if the bite is not corrected as part of the treatment process, the cosmetic procedure may be doomed to premature failure.

I hope that you have found this information of interest. If you have questions after reading this our office would be more than happy to provide you with further information. If you have friends or loved ones that you suspect may be suffering from these conditions, you would be doing us, and them, a favor to pass this information along.

Yours for better dentistry,

Dr. Mike Maroon

Food allergies may mimic seasonal allergies

(CNN) -- Have you ever experienced itchiness or hives in your mouth
area after eating raw fruit or vegetables? Do you also have seasonal
allergies?

People with allergies to birch pollen may have associated allergies to
raw apples.

If so, you may have oral allergy syndrome, whose symptoms occur because
the proteins in some fruits and vegetables are similar to proteins in
some pollens.

"They're not identical proteins, but they're similar enough to confuse
the immune system to have these reactions," said Dr. Robert Wood,
chief of pediatric allergy and immunology at Johns Hopkins Children's
Center.

That's not to say that everyone with pollen allergies has oral allergy
syndrome. A person may sneeze all spring long and not have any obvious
food sensitivities.

But oral allergy syndrome may help explain why some people have
seemingly mysterious reactions to certain foods -- for example, raw
apples but not cooked apples. That's because there are proteins in raw
apples that are very similar to the proteins in birch pollen, experts
say. Read about pollen predictions for this season

Cooking the offending fruits and vegetables will "denature" or change
the shapes of these proteins, so people with oral allergy syndrome will
usually be able to eat them without a problem, said Dr. Stanley Fineman,
allergist with the Atlanta Allergy and Asthma Clinic.

Some people find that the peel of a fruit has more allergens than the
meat, so peeling first helps, Wood said.

Because the reaction is usually localized to the mouth area, including
lips, tongue, and throat, some people will choose to ignore the symptoms
and continue to eat offending foods, Wood said. For people with
reactions confined to the mouth, this is a "reasonable" choice they
could make. Learn more about managing food allergies »

"Patients will typically decide on their own, without any discussion
with a doctor, whether they enjoy the apple enough to put up with an
itchy mouth, or whether they hate the itchy mouth enough to avoid the
apple," he said.
-------
POLLENS AND ASSOCIATED FOODS

Ragweed: Bananas, melons (watermelon, cantaloupe, honeydew), tomatoes

Birch: Apples, carrots, celery, peaches, pears, potatoes, hazelnuts

Grass: Kiwis, tomatoes

Mugwort: Apples, carrots, celery, kiwi fruit, peanuts, some spices
(caraway seeds, parsley, coriander, anise seeds, fennel seeds)

Source: The Mayo Clinic
-----
But in rare cases people with oral allergy syndrome experience
anaphylaxis, a life-threatening reaction that may include blocked
airways, hypertension, anxiety, vomiting and diarrhea. The most severe
reactions require the use of an injection of epinephrine to subside,
which is why many people with food allergies carry auto-injectors for
emergencies.

Over-the-counter antihistamines alleviate symptoms of reactions for some
people, experts say.

Studies have shown that some people who undergo allergy shots for pollen
allergies will experience relief in oral allergy syndrome, Wood said,
but at this point no one should get shots just for that reason, since
they don't work on most people's food allergies.

"If you are a good candidate for allergy shots otherwise, this may be a
side benefit," he said.

While other kinds of food allergies present in the first two or three
years of life, pollen allergies that contribute to oral allergy syndrome
develop more slowly, Wood said, peaking in the teenage and young adult
years. Some people may develop allergies even later in life, he said.

A person who moves to a new part of the country, having never been
exposed to the native pollens there, may become allergic to those
pollens and have some spill-over into food allergies, Wood said.

   Typically, once people start to react to some foods, they will also
react to other foods in the same group. People may find that their
allergies to raw fruits and vegetables subside during the season when
the associated pollen levels are low. For example, a person may react to
raw apples from March to October, but feel fine when eating them from
November to February, when birch pollen is low, Wood said.
advertisement

About half of people with pollen allergies have improvement from puberty
through adulthood, which correlates with associated food allergies, Wood
said.

"The better the pollen allergy gets, in most people, the less the food
allergy will occur," he said.

Denture Creams, Like Fixodent & Poligrip, Linked to Neuropathy, Zinc Poisoning & Other Side Effects

Denture Creams, Like Fixodent & Poligrip, Linked to Neuropathy, Zinc Poisoning & Other Side Effects

 

A recent study suggests that excessive use of denture creams, such as Super-Poligrip and Fixodent, may cause copper deficiency, nerve damage and a serious nerve disorder called neuropathy. The study, which was published in the medical journal Neurology, was conducted by researchers at the University of Texas Southwestern Medical Center in Dallas and reported on four denture-wearing patients who developed nerve damage.

 

All four patients displaying symptoms of nerve damage had abnormally high levels of zinc in their blood, accompanied by abnormally low levels of copper. Denture cream contains high levels of the mineral zinc, which, along with copper, regulates much of the neurological activity in the body. According to the denture cream study, denture wearers may absorb the zinc contained in denture cream through their gums, which may lead to zinc poisoning and copper depletion. Zinc poisoning and copper depletion can cause serious and even life-threatening nerve damage, including the permanent nerve disorder neuropathy.

 

One of the patients involved in the study suffered from nerve damage that caused weakness in the hands and poor balance. A second patient suffered from nerve damage that caused her to experience cognitive problems, urinary incontinence, and weakness in the arms and legs so severe that she was rendered wheelchair dependant. For these two patients, discontinuing denture cream use and taking copper supplements alleviated some of their neurological symptoms. Another patient, who took copper supplements but didn't stop using denture cream, experienced improved copper levels, but his zinc levels remained too high and he showed no improvement in neurological symptoms. The fourth patient, who took copper supplements and stopped using denture cream, showed improvement in copper and zinc levels but showed no improvement in neurological symptoms.

 

Although researchers say one tube of denture cream should last roughly three to ten weeks, the four patients in the study all used about two tubes of denture cream each week. Three of the four patients involved had been using "extremely large amounts of denture adhesive daily for years."  Based on the patients' denture cream use, the researchers estimate that they each were exposed to at least 330 mg of zinc daily, far more than the recommended daily allowance of 8 mg for women and 11 mg for men.   Unfortunately, many of the more than 35 million Americans who wear dentures are unaware of the link between denture adhesive creams and serious side effects, as the Fixodent and Super-Poligrip labels don't contain warnings about zinc poisoning, copper depletion, or neuropathy.   Indeed, in the case of Fixodent, it does not even identify zinc as a substance contained in the adhesive.   Currently, most denture adhesive creams are Class I medical devices and the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) does not require denture cream manufacturers to warn the public about these potential side effects.

 

www.ConsumerInjuryLawyers.com is a consumer advocacy website that provides free information about denture cream zinc poisoning.

If you or a loved one uses Fixodent, Super-Poligrip, or another brand of denture cream and suffers from symptoms of zinc poisoning or neuropathy, you could be entitled to compensation. Find out more about denture cream zinc poisoning lawsuits.

 

Excess Use Of Denture Cream Tied To Nerve Damage

Denture Creams Such As Super Poligrip, Fixodent and Others, May Be Associated With Side Effects Such As Paralysis, Numbness, Tingling, Muscle Weakness And Other Neurological Issues.

There have been numerous reports of people experiencing paralysis, developing numbness, tingling in hands, loss of sensation or unexplained pain and muscle weakness in legs and arms, as well as numerous other neurological problems as a possible result of the zinc in Super Poligrip, Fixodent and other denture creams.

Symptoms of Zinc Poisoning
Exposure to excess zinc can cause paralysis, unexplained pain and muscle weakness, numbness, loss of sensation or other neurological symptoms. Denture cream users who experience such symptoms should consult their doctor. Typical symptoms of zinc poisoning include:

Numbness and Tingling:
Zinc poisoning can lead to conditions called paresthesias and dysesthesias. Paresthesias leads to feelings of numbness, tingling, pinching, sharp, deep stabs, electric shocks, or buzzing in the arms and legs. Dysesthesias refers to unpleasant abnormal sensations that occur when a patient touches something.

Impaired Sense of Position:
Because of the numbness in their feet, victims of zinc poisoning may lack coordination when walking.

"Glove and Stocking Sensation":
Patients may have a feeling of wearing stockings or gloves or slippers even though their hands and feet are completely bare.

Weakness in the Arms or Legs:
The copper deficiency that accompanies zinc poisoning can damage the nerves leading to the legs and arms. This can cause difficulty walking or running, and a feeling of "heaviness" in the legs. These symptoms can make walking and other daily functions quite difficult.

Scooters in the Stimulus Package!

(pictured here is the Vespa 300 Super)

 The U.S. Government's recently approved stimulus package includes tax breaks for consumers who purchase new on-road two or three wheeled motorcycles or scooters in 2009.

The law, officially designated as the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009, allows buyers of "qualified motor vehicles" to take a tax deduction for state or local sales or excise tax imposed on the purchase, up to $49,500 of the purchase price. The deduction applies to NEW purchases made between February 17 and December 31, 2009, and taxpayers do not need to itemize to claim it.  

Key Tax Break Points
· Vehicles eligible for the tax deduction are all on-road two and three wheeled vehicles weighing less than 8,500 pounds and is limited to the tax on up to $49,500 of the purchase price  

· The deduction applies to vehicles purchased between February 17, 1009 - Dec. 31, 2009  

· Only new on-road two- or three-wheeled motorcycles or scooters are eligible

· The tax deduction is for state or local sales or excise tax imposed on the purchase

· Single taxpayers with an adjusted gross income over $125,000 and married tax payers with an adjusted gross income over $250,000 are not eligible

· The law also includes a new 10 percent tax credit, up to $2,500 for motorcycles (two or three-wheeled vehicles) with electric motors manufactured primarily for use on public streets, roads and highways purchased by December, 2011

The best local spot to purchase new or used scooters is Vespa Hartford. Check out their website at www.VespaHartford.com.