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Earlier this spring Dr Natalie Archer DDS sponsored a Good Dental Habits photo contest on Lenzr, which is a serial photo contest website that harnesses business to make art.

Dr Archer did this for a number of reasons:  First, she wanted to build awareness for her services in the digital contest space, which is very busy and quite good for making Google friendly links to her website. Secondly, she wanted to license the photo feed and make a visual repository of images on her website and third she hoped to learn some new and unusual methods of keeping teeth clean and healthy, and then to share these ideas with her readership here on the website.  The contest was big success on all three fronts!  You can see the images we collected here in the Good Dental Habits photo gallery.

“What are some of the things you do that protect and preserve your brilliant white smile?” she asked, “Do you have any outrageously healthy dental habits?”

The challenge was set to find images that really wow other web users and make them think about their own quirky dental habits.  Maybe not just the bathroom teeth brushing, although such images were certainly accepted and the practice was definitely encouraged, but people wearing mouth guards playing sports and using night guards to prevent their teeth grinding. And how about close-ups of people using flossing picks to get small pieces of meat and doughy bread stuck between their teeth?  The more creative a solution to fighting cavities the users could dream up, the better score they received in the voting, and from the seven judges who picked one winner from the top ten images collected.

Lastly, all submitters were reminded to use the 140 character caption to tell a story about their particular dental habits.  The Judges are photographers too and they were looking for quality images and short 140 character stories.

Mary Mah won the prize – an Apple iPad2

This contest ended at 12:01am on March 1st, 2012 with a user named Mary Mah being celebrated as #1 submitter. Here is a picture of her grandchild which she titled, Starting Early.

Thanks Mary for this terrific image and we sure do hope you enjoy your wonderful prize as much as we enjoy your photo.

Below is the 2nd runner-up which is also a very impressive picture – this is a very purple plaque attack!

Thanks to all the people who participated in this wholesome contest for making a repository of good images that will help convey good ideas and easy-to-implement dental habits that are sure to help save teeth and protect healthy smiles.

I get asked this question a lot at the clinic and rather than addressing it in our “Ask Dr. Archer” section, I thought I would dedicate a post to this particular topic.

I tell my patients that there is no particular age that they should start bringing their children into the clinic. It is better to gauge by when the child is interested.

I suggest that my clients bring their child along when they are coming in for their own dental appointment, that way the child can see what’s going on, and we can let him or her take a seat in our big red dental chair. Kids love it!

If they get in the chair, great. If they’re comfortable enough, then we can take a look inside their mouth and just count their teeth. If not, it’s not a big deal. Without the pressure of doing anything serious, they will be much more likely to be excited about visiting the dentist the second time around for their own visit, and hop right into the chair.

All of us here at Rosedale Family Dental Care clinic pride ourselves on making going to the dentist an exciting experience for children. We have a ‘treasure chest’ at the office that is filled with goodies for children to dig through when they are finished their appointment, and it’s a big hit. Our goal is to ensure that every child’s dentist visit is positive, fun and rewarding.

Did you like visiting the dentist as a child? Growing up, I loved going to the dentist, but then my uncle was my dentist, so he made it a fun experience for me. He may even have inspired me to be a dentist today. I’m proof that not all kids hate the dentist. Who knows, if you’re son or daughter enjoy the experience enough, it may inspire them to be a dentist as well.

- Dr. Natalie Archer

On Tuesday, I introduced you to our dental team. Today, I thought I would tell you a bit about the clinic and our philosophy.

Rosedale Family Dental Care is a boutique dental clinic, providing patient focused dental care. We are professional, proficient and personable with all of our patients. We take a conservative approach to dentistry. Any recommendations are made on sound scientific evidence.

We provide the treatment that you need for a healthy smile including:

• Bridges
• Crowns
• Whitening
• Porcelain Veneers
• Root Canals
• Oral Hygiene
• Restorative Procedures
• Implants

Our clientele are mainly from the downtown Toronto area and are made up of working professionals and moms and dads with busy schedules. If this sounds like you, and you’re looking for a dentist that will work with your schedule, you’ve come to the right place.

We ensure that all of our patients are promptly brought in at their scheduled appointment time, because we respect that your time is important to you.

To book an appointment:

• Call: 416.964.9070

• Visit: rosedale.dental@hotmail.com

Rosedale Family Dental Care, located at 600 Sherbourne Street, Suite 808 Toronto, ON, M4X 1W4