Our Blog

As Thanksgiving approaches, our team is thrilled to celebrate the holiday. This year, we're especially thankful for our incredible patients. Their smiling faces and kindness are what drives us to deliver our best care each and every day. What are you thankful for?

In observance of Thanksgiving, our office will be closed, as well as the following Friday, Saturday, and Sunday, allowing us to spend quality time with our families.

Many of us will be traveling to spend time with family, while others are staying home and hosting a dinner. Thanksgiving traditions hold a special place in our hearts, too. For many of us, it's about savoring delicious food and hunting for those irresistible Black Friday deals.

For those looking for holiday deals, we have a November special on kids' Oral B spin brushes for just $5.95, down from $7.00. These make excellent stocking stuffers and are a great way to encourage children to maintain their oral hygiene.

If you’re looking for a delicious snack to enjoy this holiday season, one of our team members loves white chocolate covered fresh cranberries. You simply wash fresh cranberries, dry them very well, and then dip them in melted white chocolate. Place them on wax paper and let them dry. Once the chocolate is set, place them into zip lock bags in the fridge to enjoy any time! The sweetness from the chocolate balances the tartness of the cranberry and it is the perfect treat.

While indulging in holiday feasts, it's easy to overlook our oral health routine. We tend to consume more sweets and travel, which can disrupt our usual dental care habits. This combo can lead to not brushing as well as we normally do, and more sugars left on the teeth than normal as well. To avoid cavities, make sure to bring along your normal oral care items, brush after each meal, and take your time to ensure you are removing all food debris.

Of course, your oral health isn’t all you should focus on. Don’t forget to focus on you as well! Many of us focus on eating right and exercising to keep our body healthy, but it is also important to keep our mind healthy. One way to do this is to visualize the things we are thankful for. Keeping our good fortune in the forefront of our minds can help to keep us positive, happy, and with a healthy mind.

As we gather around the table and celebrate this Thanksgiving, let's remember to cherish our health, our connections, and the moments that bring us joy. Happy Thanksgiving!

Halloween is fast approaching, and Dr. Dale Scharine and Dr. Mark Pflum wanted to be sure to wish our patients a happy day, no matter how you might celebrate this holiday. The Halloween that is familiar to most people today bears little resemblance to the original Halloween; back in the "old days" it wasn't even called Halloween!

Festival of the Dead

Halloween started out as a Celtic festival of the dead that honored departed loved ones and signified a change in the cycle of the seasons. The Celtic people viewed Halloween, then called "Samhain," as a very special day – almost like our New Years day in fact, as their new calendar year began on November 1st. Samhain was the last day of autumn, so it was the time to harvest the last of the season's crops, store food away for winter, and situate livestock comfortably for the upcoming cold weather. The Celts believed that during this day, the last day of winter, the veil between this world and the spirit world is the thinnest, and that the living could communicate with departed loved ones most effectively on Samhain due to this.

Modern Halloween

Halloween as we know it today started because Christian missionaries were working to convert the Celtic people to Christianity. The Celts believed in religious concepts that were not supported by the Christian church, and these practices, which stemmed from Druidism, were perceived by the Christian church as being "devil worship" and dangerous.

When Pope Gregory the First instructed his missionaries to work at converting the Pagan people, he told them to try to incorporate some of the Pagan practices into Christian practices in a limited way. This meant that November 1st became "All Saints Day," which allowed Pagan people to still celebrate a beloved holiday without violating Christian beliefs.

Today, Halloween has evolved into a day devoted purely to fun, candy, and kids. What a change from its origins! We encourage all of our patients to have fun during the holiday, but be safe with the treats. Consider giving apples or fruit roll-ups to the kids instead of candy that is potentially damaging to the teeth and gums.

Remind kids to limit their candy and brush after eating it! Sweets can cause major tooth decay and aggrivate gum disease, so to avoid extra visits to our Appleton, WI office, make your Halloween a safe one!

It’s estimated that about one in every five people is affected by tinnitus, which is a ringing or noise in the ears. But tinnitus isn’t a condition in itself; it’s actually the symptom of an underlying condition. Some of these underlying conditions could be hearing loss, injury to the ear, or some sort of circulatory disorder.

Another common cause if tinnitus is a dental injury or dental issue, whether it involves the jaw or the temporomandibular joint, better known as the TMJ. “Somatic tinnitus” is the term given to the version that is attributable to injuries to the head or neck area. Symptoms of somatic tinnitus may include noticeable fluctuations in sound volume, intermittency, headaches, memory loss or increased forgetfulness, and an increased likelihood of being depressed or sad.

Dr. Dale Scharine and Dr. Mark Pflum will tell you tinnitus usually isn’t serious and is more common in older populations. For that reason, many people won’t even seek an answer to what’s causing it. But people can also experience more severe cases of tinnitus that can affect a person’s ability to complete everyday activities, which has a larger impact on their lives. For people facing these more severe cases of tinnitus, treatment may be necessary to increase their quality of life. It’s also worth noting that tinnitus seems to worsen with age, so while symptoms might not be a problem one year, they may be more significant and distracting the next.

If you have tinnitus that is caused by the misalignment of the TMJ or an injury to the mouth, that’s a condition that can be corrected by Dr. Dale Scharine and Dr. Mark Pflum and our team at Elite Smiles Dental. We will work to relieve your symptoms by realigning the jaw or adjusting your bite with routine dental care. Sometimes we won’t even have to go this far, because an oral infection or gum infection may be causing your problem. We might also recommend other life changes, such as dietary adjustments and medication.

If you're experiencing tinnitus-like symptoms and have ruled out various other reasons for it, contact our Appleton, WI office today. Dr. Dale Scharine and Dr. Mark Pflum and our team will carefully analyze your situation and put you on a treatment course so that you can kick the symptoms for good.

Looking back at childhood photos, you may notice picture after picture of yourself with a mouthful of shiny white teeth. When you look in the mirror today, you wonder what happened to that beautiful smile. Many adults struggle with tooth discoloration and find it embarrassing to show off their teeth in a smile. Once you identify the cause of your tooth discoloration, there are treatment options at Elite Smiles Dental that can restore your teeth and your confidence.

What Causes Tooth Discoloration?

There are a host of factors that may cause your teeth to discolor. Some are directly under your control, and others may not be preventable. Here is a list of common reasons that teeth become discolored.

• Genetics: Much of your dental health is determined by genetic factors beyond your control. Some people naturally have thinner enamel or discolored teeth.
• Medications: Several medications lead to tooth discoloration as a side effect. If you received the common antibiotics doxycycline or tetracycline as a child, your teeth may have discolored as a consequence. Antihistamines, high blood pressure medications, and antipsychotic drugs can also discolor teeth. If you think a medication may be leading to tooth discoloration, talk to Dr. Dale Scharine and Dr. Mark Pflum. Never discontinue the use of a medication without consulting your doctor, however.
• Medical Conditions: Genetic conditions such as amelogenesis or dentinogenesis cause improper development of the enamel, and can lead to yellowed, discolored teeth.
• Poor Dental Hygiene: Failing to brush your teeth at least twice a day or regularly floss may lead to tooth decay and discoloration.
• Foods and Tobacco: Consumption of certain foods, including coffee, tea, wine, soda, apples, or potatoes, can cause tooth discoloration. Tobacco use also causes teeth to turn yellow or brown.

Treatments for Tooth Discoloration

There are a variety of treatments available to individuals with discolored teeth. One of the easiest ways to reduce tooth discoloration is through prevention. Avoid drinking red wine, soda, or coffee and stop using tobacco products. If you drink beverages that tend to leave stains, brush your teeth immediately or swish with water to reduce staining.

After determining the cause of tooth discoloration, Dr. Dale Scharine and Dr. Mark Pflum can suggest other treatment options. Over-the-counter whitening agents might help, but in-office whitening treatments provided at our Appleton, WI office would be more effective. When whitening agents do not help, bondings or veneers are among the alternative solutions for tooth discoloration.

If you are worried about your teeth becoming yellow or brown, think carefully about your diet and medication use. Talk to Dr. Dale Scharine and Dr. Mark Pflum to identify substances that may be causing the problem. After treatment for tooth discoloration, you will have a beautiful white smile you can be proud to show off.