A few Halloween safety tips

Trick-or-treat! In the spirit of October’s sweet and spooky holiday, Halloween, Weaver Orthodontics would like to remind all of our patients to be safe while celebrating with friends and family. The American Association of Orthodontists, or AAO, has provided trick-or-treaters with some tips for a ghoulishly good time.

A few Halloween safety guidelines:

• Young children should always be accompanied by an adult
• Carry a flashlight
• Wear a light-colored or reflective costume
• Choose face paint over masks for young ghosts and goblins
• Have an adult inspect all treats before the children dig in

Many treats can cause havoc for trick-or-treaters who are going through orthodontic treatment. If you happen to damage your braces, please give our doctors and staff a call immediately. Typically, small problems can be solved over the phone.

A Great Braces Friendly Halloween Recipe

Our team know how tempting this time of the year can be on our sweet tooth. With all of the caramel, candy corn, and lollipops that are often passed around to trick-or-treaters, we realize that it can sometimes be hard to find hard, chewy, sticky, and crunchy candy alternatives.

However, there is good news! Today, we would like to share a great braces-friendly Halloween recipe with all of our patients, courtesy of the American Association of Orthodontics, or AAO, and “The Braces Cookbook” by Pamela Waterman. This Spider Bites recipe is delicious, and provided that you remember to brush and floss after indulging, this is a cookie that won’t bite back!

Spider Bites

Ingredients:

• 1 cup shortening
• 1 cup sugar
• 2 Tbsp. water
• 1 Tsp. vanilla
• 2 eggs
• 2 cups all-purpose flour
• ½ cup cocoa
• 1 Tsp. salt
• ½ Tsp. baking powder
• 1 package black rope licorice, cut into 1-inch pieces**
• 1 small tube of white (or color of choice) frosting
• Toothpicks

Directions:

Preheat oven to 375 degrees.

In a large bowl, combine shortening, sugar, water, and vanilla. Beat until smooth. Add eggs into the mixture and blend. Slowly mix in flour, cocoa, salt and baking powder using low-medium speed. Drop tablespoon helpings of mixture onto ungreased cookie sheets and roll each helping into a ball.

Bake 9 minutes at 375 degrees. The batch should produce around three dozen cookies.

Let cookies cool for about 10 minutes. Then using a toothpick, create four small holes in either side of the cookie. Still using the toothpick, push one end of a piece of the cut licorice into each hole, creating the “legs” of the spider. Once all eight pieces are in place, create eyes or decorate at will using the white frosting. Then eat and enjoy!

**Licorice can sometimes stick to braces; parents should monitor

October is National Orthodontic Health Month

Can you believe October is already upon us? October happens to be National Orthodontic Health Month, and this month-long event is organized by our friends at the American Association of Orthodontists, or AAO.

Many treats can cause havoc for trick-or-treaters who are going through orthodontic treatment, and these treats may cause damage that could prolong your treatment time. The AAO recommends patients avoid the following Halloween treats, or recipes with these ingredients:

• Caramel
• Nuts
• Popcorn (including un-popped kernels)
• Taffy
• Jelly beans
• Hard pretzels
• Licorice
• Bubblegum
• Taco chips
• Ice

If you happen to damage your braces, please give Dr. Weaver and our staff a call immediately. Typically, small problems can be solved over the phone. Loose brackets or wires can usually be made more comfortable by applying some wax until the you can come into our office.

What do you love about Weaver Orthodontics?

From your very first visit to Weaver Orthodontics, our doctor and team strive to provide superior treatment in a pleasant, friendly atmosphere. We thought we’d ask you, our wonderful patients: Have you been especially impressed by Dr. Weaver's work? Did our team go out of their way to make your day? Are you in love with your new smile?

Whether you’ve just come in for a consultation or your family has been visiting our office for years, we’d love to hear your feedback. Or, you can tell us by posting on our Facebook page or by giving us a call!

Thank you!

Upcoming Fun at Weaver Orthodontics

Last week we let you know about our Football Helmet Knowledge contest that is currently going on in the office, but we have a few other upcoming events to share with you too!

Be sure to check out our office on Tuesdays, as our staff will be dressed in their local high school t-shirts. We are supporting all the local football teams and schools, including Glynn Academy and Brunswick High School. Go Red Terrors and Pirates!

October is next month, and that means Halloween is just around the corner. October also marks the National Orthodontic Health Month, and to celebrate will be holding our 5th annual Candy Buy Back Event. Just like last year, Everyone will receive $1.00 for every pound of candy surrendered!

Hope everyone's school year is going great so far!

Congratulations Traveling T-Shirt Contest Winners!

All summer long we ran our Traveling T-Shirt Contest, which asked patients to snap a photo of themselves in their Weaver Orthodontics t-shirt for a chance to win $50.00! Some patients took their contest photos while right here in the Brunswick and Jesup areas, while others sent in photos on vacation in far away places!

The winners for Furthest Distance were the Watkins Family, who traveled all the way to Turkey this summer. The winner for Highest Point was Caroline B, who traveled to 35,000 ft in an airplane on the way to Seattle, WA. Jamie R. won for having the most people in a picture- 50,000 fans at an Atlanta Braves game! Madison and Morgan B. won for submitting a photo with a celebrity...Mickey Mouse!

For most "unique photo", we had two winners. Tanner D, for being photographed sitting behind the US President's desk, and Kim T, who took a cool picture of Chicago with the Skyline in the reflection.

Be sure to head over to our Facebook page where we've shared a few photos of the winners. Congratulations to all our winners, and thank you to everyone who participated!

Finally, stay tuned for our Fall contest, "Test Your Football Helmet Knowledge.” Question sheets can be picked up at the office and the winner will receive a “Football package” which consist of a pizza party for the whole family and movie tickets! The contest will run throughout the season!

Regular checkups are essential in maintaining good oral health

Are you brushing and flossing daily properly during your orthodontic treatment? If yes, that’s great! But, don’t forget that it’s also important for you to visit your general dentist every 3-to-6 months in addition to brushing your teeth and flossing (and visiting our office, of course). Regular dental checkups are important for maintaining good oral health, especially during orthodontic treatment.

Your general dentist can check for problems that might not be seen or felt, detect cavities and early signs of decay, treat oral health problems early and show you how to properly brush and floss your teeth.

During an oral exam your dentist can check the health of your mouth, teeth, gums, cheeks and tongue. Checkups will also include a thorough teeth cleaning and polishing. If you have not been to the dentist in the last six months, let us know during your next visit and we will provide a few great references in the greater Brunswick and Jesup, NJ areas!