Anderson Dental Care - December 2021

Anderson Dental Care - December 2021

BRUSH - UP

ANDERSON DENTAL CARE Nathan Brooks, DDS, Inc.

7525 STATE RD., STE. A, CINCINNATI, OH 45255 | 513-438-8152 | WWW.ATOWNDENTAL.COM | DECEMBER 2021

It’s Not Christmas Unless ... WHY I LOVE HOLIDAY TRADITIONS

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There’s something profoundly comforting about holiday traditions, and it’s not just about reliving your own childhood nostalgia. I think holiday traditions — new or old — help give your children something to look forward to in the future, too. At the Brooks household, we enjoy a lot of little Christmas traditions, and most of them were passed on to us from our families. Some of those traditions were a little odd. For example, my family ate clam chowder and pizza on Christmas Eve, and I never really knew why. Other traditions are timeless and meaningful — we celebrate the meaning of Christmas during our church’s Christmas service, reflecting on the season and our faith. Then, there are some traditions that you get from important people in your life. In my case, my wife taught us an amazing Christmas tradition.

Before I was married, I rarely bought any pajamas or lounge clothes, relying on old high school tees and gym shorts to get me through. However, in my wife’s family, after looking for Christmas lights and caroling on Christmas Eve, the whole family comes home to open one Christmas present — always new pajamas. They put them on right away, so when they wake up to open presents they are wearing brand new festive PJs. Adopting this tradition means that I get a new set of pajamas every single year; I’m starting to wonder what to do with so many! Sometimes we even get on board with matching family PJs, and I can’t complain because it’s pretty awesome. Traditions don’t have to stay static to stay awesome, though. During the pandemic, we changed the Christmas pajama tradition to last all month long by opening them the first weekend in December while watching a devotional. This year, I think we’ll keep that going so we can enjoy the feeling of festive pajamas all month long! It helps when traditions feel like they truly belong to you. A Brooks family original tradition involves our family model train, which only comes out at Christmas time. We have a train car for every year we’ve been married, each one representing something significant for our family that year. The engine from year 1 is in our wedding colors; every year a child was born, the child got his or her own car added; other years have cars like a logging car for our DIY home renovation or a circus car for a year we felt we were juggling more than usual. We’re also big into Christmas caroling, and when out-of-town family isn’t with us, we recruit friends and neighbors to come singing with us.

Looking back, I hope my kids remember these traditions as part of my wife’s and my legacy. There’s no better tradition that shows the importance of remembrance and legacy than the standard “family photo by the Christmas tree” tradition. Growing up, all my siblings and I had to stand in age order on the stairs Christmas morning for a picture before we could open presents. It was so annoying! But as I look back on the photos now, I’ve realized how valuable those photos really are. And I’d be lying if I said I didn’t make my kids wait on the staircase on Christmas morning so I can capture our annual picture. It’s important to enjoy the moment in the moment, but I’m glad we have the technology to capture some of those moments too. I hope that my kids look back at our holiday traditions with nostalgia and fondness. Recently, we’ve started a brand-new tradition where we’ll turn off all the lights, light some candles, and listen to holiday music together. Those moments, completely separated from our day-to-day technology devices (besides the ones playing music), are something I know I’ll always treasure.

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Yes, Oral pH Matters

We Checked Your List Twice, and We’re Crossing Out ‘Chewing Ice’ Is Chewing Ice Bad for You?

You know Dasher and Dancer, and you definitely know Rudolph. Everyone’s favorite red-nosed reindeer was first born as a 1939 short story, but he truly shot to fame when his tale was adapted into a song by Gene Autry in 1949. Rivaling even the song’s fame is the Rankin/Bass stop-motion special that airs like clockwork every year around Christmas. Generations have now grown up with Rudolph, so it may be surprising to learn that his journey to the small screen started as a General Electric promotion. The company had a running television special on NBC called the “GE Fantasy Hour,” which they used to market their products directly to viewers. The better the story they told, the more viewers they got — and the more toasters they could sell. The script introduced crucial new characters like Hermey the elf, Yukon Cornelius the prospector, and of course, Bumble the abominable snowman. GE hired innovative Japanese animators to create the film using stop-motion techniques that were highly advanced for the time. GE invested the modern equivalent of $4.5 million into the production of “Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer,” and the special first aired in 1964. Those who are familiar with the film know that it ends with Rudolph enlisting Santa to save the Misfit Toys from earlier in the movie — but it didn’t originally. The version that aired in 1964 concludes with Rudolph leading Santa’s sleigh but forgetting all about his homeless friends. The backlash was swift, and viewers wrote in to express displeasure at the heartless resolution. GE decided the special had to be corrected and played again with the proper ending in 1965. And so, a tradition of annual airings was born. Today, “Rudolph” is the longest-running Christmas special in history, and our favorite misfit deer shows no signs of slowing down after 57 years. The movie has transformed into a marketing bonanza, with new Christmas decorations, figurines, and toys being produced each year. RUDOLPH, YOU’LL GO DOWN IN HISTORY BEHIND THE EVERGREEN CHRISTMAS SPECIAL

As you stand around the holiday party, you might be tempted to chew some ice. Well, don’t — please! We’re begging you. Here’s why. ICE MAKES YOUR TEETH BRITTLE AND MORE LIKELY TO CHIP. Ice is cold, and that’s a real problem for ice chewers. Imagine putting a solid bar of chocolate in the freezer. Now,

imagine taking a hammer to that freezing cold bar. It would shatter into tiny pieces, right? If you had taken a hammer to a room temperature chocolate bar, you would get a few medium size pieces worthy of a campfire s’more. Physics dictates that when things are frozen, they become brittle and are more likely to shatter. When you’re crunching through a cup of ice, your teeth start to freeze and become brittle. The brittleness of your cold teeth, mixed with the hard nature of ice cubes, can cause your teeth to fracture. While your teeth might not crack in half, chewing ice can cause microscopic cracks in the surface of your tooth enamel, which can lead to bigger dental problems over time like chipped teeth, problems with existing dental work such as fillings and crowns, and sore jaw muscles. You may also notice your teeth become extremely sensitive to hot and cold temperatures and are more prone to cavities. While crushed ice is less harmful than larger cubes, it still doesn’t have our blessing. CAN’T GET ENOUGH? CHEWING ICE COULD MEAN YOU’RE ANEMIC. If you or someone you know falls into the “compulsive ice chewer” category, there is a good chance there is a larger issue fueling the obsession. Craving or chewing ice is the most common symptom of pagophagia. Pagophagia is a condition related to iron-deficiency anemia where people compulsively crave and chomp on ice. The good news is that iron supplements tend to ease the cravings. About 20% of cases are pregnant women (Dr. Brooks’ wife has experienced this!), since their iron stores can easily get depleted while supplying both themselves and their growing fetuses. It shouldn’t be hard to stop chewing ice, but if you can’t, there could be a deeper medical issue at hand. Make an appointment with your dentist and/or primary care doctor if you’re concerned about the effects of ice chewing to your health!

Even with newer animations and technology, fond childhood memories mean that parents continue to pass this special down to their kids. Its timelessness is thanks to the creative animation and famous songs, which continue to bring joy and Christmas spirit to households around the country. Just as sure as Santa comes every year, so does Rudolph.

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MERRY AND BRIGHT

CUT THE STRESS FROM DECORATING THE CHRISTMAS TREE

BEADED GARLAND Beaded garland always looks so much

Decorating your Christmas tree should be fun, but the process often turns into anything but. Between finding decorations, untangling lights, and trying to get the tree picture-perfect, the happy event can quickly become stressful. Even if you love decorating the tree, you can likely make the experience (and the end product) even better. Here are the most common sources of frustration and how to fix them with minimal fuss. BARE SPOTS Whether your tree is natural or artificial, you need to fluff the branches. However, as important as this step is, you don’t need to spend more than 10 minutes on it because let’s face it: There are some bare spots no amount of fluffing will fix. Luckily, tinsel garland hides a wide variety of flaws and might be the easiest solution. If you don’t care for tinsel, tying large gift bows to the tree is festive and covers a lot of space. You can

also buy fake twigs that have berries, look like real tree branches, or are covered in glitter. Stick them in the bare spots to fill out your tree, then save them for the next year.

better in the store than it does on your own tree. No matter how much you fiddle with it, it just doesn’t lay right or have the even, dramatic swoops you see in display windows. The true problem is probably that you’ve been hanging your beaded garland incorrectly. You may think there can’t be too many ways to drape beads over branches, but draping itself is the entirely wrong approach. Instead of simply wrapping the beads around the tree and hoping they fall into place, you should attach ornament hooks to the garland along the string. Use the hooks to gracefully hang your garland from the branches and marvel at the simplicity. When your Christmas tree goes up this year, these tips should make the experience faster, easier, and more joyful. You can now use all that time you would have spent wrapping garland to wrap presents instead.

LIGHTS If you use an artificial Christmas tree, we

strongly recommend buying one that is pre-lit. If your holiday just doesn’t feel complete without a real tree in the house, hanging the lights can be one of the most frustrating parts of the tree- decorating process. Get on the right track by setting yourself up for success. Instead of shoving your lights in a box or bag at the end of the season, wrap them around the outside of the box or around a clothing hanger instead. Getting your lights hung properly around the tree can be a pain, too. This year, try hanging them vertically on your tree, from base to top and back again, until the tree is covered. It’s easier to do and helps camouflage the cord.

Crispy Fish With Brown Butter Sauce

HOW FAST DO YOUR NERVE IMPULSES TRAVEL? The speed of these signals depends on how fast the exchange of charged ions is inside and outside of the cell membrane. That means messages in the brain can travel at speeds up to 268 miles/hour. ARE PEANUTS REALLY A NUT? No! Peanuts grow underground and, along with beans and peas, belong to the single plant family Leguminosae (i.e. legumes). However, their protein structure makes them similar to walnuts, almonds, etc., that grow on trees and are sometimes referred to as “tree nuts.” WHY IS JAPAN CALLED “THE LAND OF THE RISING SUN?” If you stand on the nearby continent (in Korea or China), Japan is in the direction of the sunrise. This is why the Japanese began to call their country Nihon or Nippon, literally meaning “source of the sun” and often translated into English as “land of the rising sun.” Your Monthly Need-to-Know

INGREDIENTS • 1 tbsp olive oil •

• • • •

6 tbsp unsalted butter, cut into pieces 1/2 cup blanched hazelnuts, chopped

4 5-oz Chilean sea bass or salmon fillets, skin-on

2 tsp lemon juice

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Salt and pepper, to taste

Lemon wedges, for garnish

DIRECTIONS

1. In an unheated skillet, add oil. Season fish with salt and pepper, then add to skillet (skin-down). 2. Heat the skillet to medium and cook for 4 minutes. With a spatula, press each fillet down, rotating between fillets every few seconds. When the skin begins to crisp, stop pressing and cook 8–10 minutes, then flip and cook for another minute. Remove the fish.

3. Wipe the skillet clean and return to medium heat. Add the butter and hazelnuts. Heat, swirling continuously, until butter foams and browns. Remove from heat. 4. Stir in lemon juice and season to taste. Pour over fish, garnish, and serve with salad.

Inspired by BonAppetit.com

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ANDERSON DENTAL CARE Nathan Brooks, DDS, Inc.

PRST STD US POSTAGE PAID BOISE, ID PERMIT 411

7525 STATE RD., STE. A, CINCINNATI, OH 45255

Make Decorating Your Christmas Tree Less Stressful INSIDE THIS ISSUE 1 2 2 3 3 3 4 Crispy Fish With Brown Butter Sauce December’s Need-to-Know The Simple Tooth: Holiday Edition How Rudolph Became a TV Institution Is Chewing Ice Really Bad for You? Traditions Are About Legacy

THE SIMPLE TOOTH 5 Fun Facts About

December (and the Holidays)

NO. 2: THANK PRINCE ALBERT FOR MODERN CHRISTMAS TREES. When Prince Albert of Germany got a decorated tree for his new wife, Queen Victoria of England, the idea spread like wildfire. A drawing of the couple in front of a Christmas tree first appeared in Illustrated London News in 1848, and it instantly became a fashionable, seasonal decor for hundreds of years to come. NO. 3: COCA-COLA GAVE SANTA CLAUS A MUCH-NEEDED REBRANDING. Kids, most adults don’t really know what Santa looks like — he’s so powerful and magical, he’s always gone before we can see him. That’s why, before the 1930s, Santa’s appearances were more spooky than friendly. Then, in 1931, Coca-Cola hired illustrator Haddon Sundblom to depict a jolly old elf for Coca-Cola magazine ads. Now, kids are way less scared of Santa Claus!

NO. 4: THE MOST POPULAR SHOPPING DAY IS … NOT BLACK FRIDAY? We all fear the Black Friday crowds, but they’re not actually the worst shopping crowds of the year. In fact, we must be a nation of procrastinators, because the most crazy, busy days of the year for shopping are the Friday and Saturday before Christmas. So, if you don’t want to be stuck in the chaos, try shopping before then! NO. 5: ‘SILENT NIGHT’ IS THE MOST RECORDED CHRISTMAS SONG OF ALL TIME! Move aside, “Joy to the World.” As it turns out, “Silent Night” is the most adapted and recorded Christmas song ever. It has more than 733 copyrighted versions since 1978 and 26,496 total published tracks.

The holidays and December are inherently intertwined, which brings us to a very special holiday edition of “Simple Tooth” — December trivia and fun facts!

NO. 1: DECKING THE HALLS WITH EVERGREEN PINE STARTED WITH ANCIENT EGYPTIANS AND ROMANS. Yes, Western civilization took up on the evergreen tradition, but it didn’t start with them. It goes as far back as the ancient Egyptians before spreading throughout the Roman empire. Families from both civilizations decorated using evergreens during the winter solstice to signify that spring would return, so if you’re

doing the same this season, you’re a part of a long line in history.

Until next time, have a merry holiday season and see you next year!

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