Recent studies are showing a correlation between premature birth and gum disease. Up to 12% of births in the United States are premature. Although many things may contribute to premature births, it is important to be aware of the factors that are within your control. Gum disease can be prevented, controlled and monitored by maintaining a regular schedule of dental care with your hygienist. The best time during a pregnancy to receive dental care is during the second trimester. Before you put your oral care on hold, consider the risks. Schedule your cleaning and exam with your friendly staff at Elmbrook Family Dental Partners if you are considering pregnancy or during your second trimester.

Visit the ADHA website for more details: http://adha.org/oralhealth/premature_birth.htm

Did you know that every time you go to the dentist, we check your head, face and mouth for abnormalities and skin cancer? As professionals, we take our time to observe and document moles or birthmarks. We have been trained to identify lesions that appear suspicious so we may refer our patients out for further care if necessary.

Skin cancer is the most common form of cancer in the United States. It is important to protect yourself and your loved ones from sun exposure. The CDC recommends protecting your skin by covering up with clothing and wearing hats.  Wear a sunscreen with an SPF of 15 or higher to protect exposed skin. Check your skin often and if you see a lesion that is asymmetrical, has irregular borders or an inconsistent color, it is time to consult your physician. Many skin cancers are highly treatable if they are caught in time. Ask your Hygienist or Dentist at your next visit for more information.

On Saturday, June 4th, the Hebron House of Hospitality will be hosting a 5K walk to raise money for their organization. Since 1982, the Hebron House has been providing woman in need with a safe place to go in emergency situations. Expanding their services over the years, they now provide rental assistance, housing and transitional living for those recovering from addictions or with mental illness.

With homelessness being a real local issue, it is important that we recognize the needs of our community and support a good cause. For a registration fee of $25.00 for adults or $5 for children, you will receive a t-shirt and enjoy a cook out for the whole family. Visit the web site to pre-register, or you can arrive early to register the same day. Auction items will be available for bidding. We hope to see many of you there to support a good cause!

 The walk begins at Wisconsin Memorial Park

13235 W. Capitol Drive.

Brookfield, WI 53005

Registration begins at 9am. The walk will begin at 10:30am.

www.hebronhouse.org

Major league baseball players are known to commonly chew tobacco products during practice and games. With 75% of oral cancers being caused by the use of smokeless tobacco, the ADA is encouraging major league stadiums to go tobacco free in the year 2012.

Although minor leagues have banned chewing tobacco since 1993, a reported 30% of major league players still chew. The first steps to decreasing the mortality rate to oral cancer is education. Through the efforts of the ADA, health care professionals hope to bring awareness to major league baseball players.

Visit our sources for more information:

http://www.cdc.gov/OralHealth/publications/factsheets/oc_facts.htm

We held our 2nd Annual NCAA  competition this year and  it was a hit! After almost a month of nail biting basketball games, UCONN took home the championship. Our three winners are listed below. Watch for a news letter next year at this time on how you can participate!

1st place- custom whitening: Jim K.

2nd place-Sonicare: Jim P.

3rd place-Jose’s Blue Sombrero: Meaghan C.

Dr Brunner and his wife Lauren hosted the office holiday party this season in their home. Because nothing is boring with our staff, we themed the party as “Ugly Sweater”. All of the staff and their spouses set out to find the ugliest sweaters possible to compete in a competition with each other. John S. gained the most votes and won with his “ugly” neon green and pink sweater.

We enjoyed a tapas style menu with delicious fresh made food. Each dish was paired with wine and served every 30 min. The food was provided and catered by Chef Britta Kramer who focuses on healthy specialty foods with no preservatives. We enjoyed everything from crab cakes and lamb to chocolate torte!

The whole staff enjoyed everything so much. We can’t wait to see how we will celebrate next year!

Check out Britta Kramers’ page for details on her services: http://privatepalate.com/

Check out our facebook page to become a fan and view more photos: http://www.facebook.com/home.php#!/pages/Elmbrook-Family-Dental/49037228118

We have to give a shout out to all of our wonderful staff, patients and building partners for their donations to the Hunger Task Force food drive. We collected over 600lbs of food to donate to families in need. Thank you so much for all of your help and support. Those who donated were entered to win a gift basket. Ann was drawn as our winner on December 1st.

Congratulations to Mindy and her new husband Cory who were married on December 5th. The ceremony and reception were beautiful. One of the staffs’ favorite highlights was a photo booth available for all of the guests to take pictures. Silly hats and glasses included! They celebrated their honeymoon in the Turks and Caicos enjoying warm weather and sandy beaches.

Did you know that an infant’s gums and newly erupted teeth should be brushed? After bottle feeding, using a soft bristled brush on your infants gums can eliminate decay and disease causing bacteria. At the age of about 2 years old, you may start using a pea sized amount of toothpaste on your child’s brush. Be sure to use a toothpaste low in fluoride until your child is able to spit into the sink after brushing.This will help to avoid fluorosis of the teeth. Although your child may want to brush on their own, be sure to brush following them to ensure that it is done accurately. Some sources say a parent should participate in brushing until the age of 9 years old.

We recommend your child have their first dental visit between the ages of 2 and 3 years old. Our staff will work with your child to build a positive and trusting relationship. We want your child’s first visit to be enjoyable!

Last year, the patients and staff at Elmbrook Family Dental collected 500lbs of food for the Hunger Task Force! Because of our past success, we are going to be collecting non-perishable food donations in our front lobby throughout the remainder of October and all of November. As a special thanks to those who donate, we will be holding a drawing for a gift basket! If you stop in to donate, you will receive one form to be entered into this drawing. Our gift basket will include: a Sonicare toothbrush, toothpaste, floss, Listerine, a certificate for free custom whitening trays and gift cards to Jose’s Blue Sombrero!

There are no limits to how many times you can enter, but there is a limit of one entry per person per day. The more often you donate the more chances you will have to win.

Our goal is to collect 700lbs of food. Any non-perishable items such as peanut butter, pasta, rice, cereal, canned fruit, canned veggies or soup will be collected until Tuesday, November 30^th. Our winner will be announced on Wednesday, December 1^st. Stop in during any of our normal business hours to make your donation.