Top 5 Questions to Ask Your Family Dentist

A woman smiling at the dentist after receiving her dental bridge

Sometimes asking questions can be difficult, but asking questions is how we learn and we can then apply that knowledge to better improve ourselves. This principle applies to almost every aspect of life, including at your family dentist!

Since we care about you and your teeth at Snodgrass-King, we want to let you know that asking questions is not only welcomed but encouraged! As experts in family dentistry, we are excited to share our expertise with you.

Here are five questions we encourage you to ask us or your family dentist during your next appointment.

What Can I Do to Improve My Family’s Dental Health?

Every family is different and operates in its own way. Your family dentist will be able to come up with a plan that will best suit the needs and lifestyle of your family. Based on your family’s needs, your dentist can recommend things like:

  • Toothpaste
  • Toothbrush
  • Specific diets to follow
  • A future orthodontic plan if needed

Creating a customized plan for your family is the first step to achieving better dental health.

What Does My Dentist Need to Know About My Health?

Some problems with your overall health can actually start in the mouth. For example, heart disease and strokes can be caused by bacteria traveling from the mouth to the bloodstream. Make sure to ask if any dental problems you have can possibly lead to overall problems with your health. This can help you to take the right precautions to protect not just your oral health, but your overall health.

What is My Family’s Overall Dental Health Status?

Your family dentist can perform all the standard tests and x-rays needed to determine where you stand on the dental health spectrum. Asking about your family’s overall dental health status is crucial for catching any bad habits children have that can affect their dental health. A family dentist can also catch any bad habits mom and dad might be doing that can negatively affect the kids (after all, children do copy their parents). It’s best to get started on fixing these habits now before it becomes an issue when your child grows up.

What Recommendations Can You Make for My Family’s Diet?

As stated earlier, every family deals with different dental issues. A dentist can make recommendations on what foods and drinks to avoid or consume. Additionally, your dentist can make recommendations for what foods or drinks to consume that will fight against cavity and staining problems as well as friendly alternatives.

How Often Should We See the Dentist as a Family?

Creating a dental schedule with your dentist is important. Depending on your family’s overall dental health, a dentist can come up with a specialized schedule of when the visits are and what the visits will focus on. Make sure to stay actively involved in your scheduling and stay on top of all your appointments.

What to Look for in a Family Dentist

When you begin your search for a family dentist, several concerns may arise. How much experience does the dentist have? How good are they with kids? What is their office like? These are all questions that may come to mind when you are researching different dental practices.

Here are some qualities to keep in mind when you start looking for a family dentist:

Training

You will be going to your dentist for a variety of reasons, and will be visiting them for a number of years to come. Considering the investment that you will be making in the dentist you eventually choose, you need to make sure that the dentist and the staff at the practice have received the proper training in various dental techniques.

Every dentist has to go to dental school. However, there are many continuing education courses that dentists can make use of in order to stay up to date on new techniques or innovations. Dentists may also receive additional training through the various dental associations they might be members of.

When looking for a dentist, make sure to ask what they do to stay updated on new dental practices. Also make sure to ask if they are part of dental organizations. Being part of a professional organization is a good indicator that the dentist takes their job seriously and that they are interested in learning new information regularly.

Experience

When looking for a dentist, always make sure to ask how long they have been practicing. For you and your family, you will want a dentist who has many years of experience under their belt.

Make sure to ask how many years of experience they have in performing different dental procedures. If your child needs to get a filling or if you need to get a root canal, chances are you would want to find a dentist with ten years of experience in performing those procedures as opposed to a dentist who might only have five.

Services

Not all dental practices offer the same types of services. Some practices offer sedation services, some offer cosmetic services, and some may offer dental restoration services. Make sure to check if the practice you are looking into offers the types of services that your family needs.

Child Friendly

Seeking out a family dentist means that you want the dentist to treat everyone in your family, but a lot of focus will be placed on children.

A lot of children are afraid of visiting the dentist. Because of this, you will want to make sure that the dentist you choose is good with kids. Find out how they deal with common childhood fears and what methods they use to help kids calm down and have fun.

Atmosphere

Like with any business, the atmosphere in a dental office is important to take into account when choosing a dentist. Make sure the atmosphere is warm and welcoming for your children. Take your family with you when you visit various dental offices and see how they react to each one. It is important that you choose a dentist with an office that offers a comfortable environment for your whole family. No one gets excited about going to the dentist, but going to a dentist whose office has a welcoming and warm atmosphere can make the experience a positive one.

Choosing a dentist that is the right fit for your family can be a tough task. Hopefully, this list of qualities to look for in a dentist will help make the search easier for you and your family.

Finding a Middle TN dentist that is ready to care for your whole family is important. When you choose to come to see us at Snodgrass King, you’ll not only find a local family dentistry office for your whole family, but one which they can visit their whole lives.

Complete Dental Care for Middle TN Families at Snodgrass-King Dental

For Children

Snodgrass King can make the claim of being one of the most comprehensive Middle TN family dentistry offices thanks to the many different services which we provide. For the young ones, our pediatric dentistry includes:

For Teens

The teenage years, and the oncoming of all adult teeth, lead to different needs for teens than children. This usually means orthodontics, such as braces.

We’ll start off with an initial examination to determine what will be needed, relay our findings during a consultation where we discuss costs, and work with you through the entire usage time of your orthodontics.

For Adults

As you age your oral health care needs change. We keep up, and keep our claim as one of the top Middle TN family dentistry offices, by offering services to adults as well:

Make Snodgrass-King Dental Your Family Dentist

No matter what your age, the best Middle TN family dentistry office to visit is us, at Snodgrass-King Dental. From those first baby teeth, to straightening out your smile, to having dentures put in, our team can handle every need your family may have over the years.

With four separate locations surrounding Nashville, TN, you will be sure to find a location convenient for you and the entire family in either Franklin, Spring Hill, Murfreesboro, and Mt. Juliet. Visit our website to book your appointment today, and don’t miss out on our new patient specials.

We look forward to meeting you and your beautiful smile at Snodgrass-King Dental.