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Little Emily was not around when I was a little lad so I missed out on her inspections -- and now I have no teeth left to inspect. That doesn’t stop Little Emily. “Stick out your tongue, all the way out.” Humoring Emily is one thing, back home again is another matter. Today, it dawned on me: Emily may be right! Maybe I don’t have any teeth left, but my tongue is still hanging in there. Maybe taking care of the tongue is a life-long crusade? There is Nothing like searching the Internet to find out. This turned out to be an eye-opening journey of discovery for me because it turns out that Little Emily is right, BIG TIME. Dr. Shapira says: "Your tongue is covered with little hairlike projections, which under a microscope look like a forest of mushrooms. Under the caps of the ‘mushrooms,’ there’s room to harbor plaque and some of the things we eat. That causes bad breath.” His advice? While brushing, gently sweep the top of your tongue, too, so that you don’t leave food and bacteria behind to breed bad breath. Marleen left a bowl of beans out on the counter 2 days ago. It's a standard 70 degrees in here. Today the entire top of what used to be beans is yucky white and green stuff. This Stuff promulgates so fast it could be THE answer to our energy crisis. If you have beans for breakfast every morning like I do, you are sold on brushing the tongue right. But let's continue anyway.
http://www.dentalgentlecare.com/tongue_scrapping.htm is easily
the most helpful site I found.
It turns out that China is striving mightily to corner the market on tongue cleaners. One ad was a special gem: (This) "is the new device for cleaning the human tongue is disclosed and includes an elongate handle having a support frame extending from one end thereof and a fibrous cleaning member slidably carried on the support frame. The opposed end of the handle is disposed substantially normal to the longitudinal axis of the handle to form a pistol grip or handle. The cleaning member is carried by the support frame in depending tracks and is slidable along the longitudinal axis of the tool so that when the fibrous cleaning member is brought into contact with the dorsum or top surface of the tongue and either held in place and the tongue moved against it or being moved back and forth against the tongue, the fibrous material is capable of removing foreign matter which might otherwise remain on the surface thereof." Even though tongue cleaning improves the sensation of taste and seems to reduce the substrata for putrefaction, I know in my heart that most of us will elect to remain with the common, or not so common, toothbrush. An American ad proves that the Chinese don’t have a corner on bad English in their advertising. Okay, so now that we realize just how essential it is that we overhaul the tongue in its wag, there comes that human reflex to scrubbing the tongue.. the retched gag. How do we get in there to do the job right without gagging?
Is this getting too deep? How about just a good old gargle or two? One good swish from left to right and front to back ought to kill all the flora and fauna hiding in there. The good old gargle in most medicine cabinets is almost certain to contain alcohol though. What’s wrong with that? Alcohol has a drying effect on the oral tissues and this promotes the growth of bad bacteria. Consequently, alcohol is probably the worst mouth rinse ingredient around because it promotes the growth of anaerobic bacteria. Plus there is the possibility that long-term use of alcohol rinses may cause the onset of oral cancers. In short, alcohol is a Stay-Away-From-It-Substance! The best part of all this is how cheap the solutions are. On the Internet the best I could do was $6.95, but today I waddled into Walgreens and asked the prettiest clerk there for a "TONGUE BRUSH" My thespian talents were wasted on her. She bid me follow her and led me right to them. The Walgreens price for the best Tongue Brush was $5.95 but when I let my eye wande,r there was another one -- just like it -- and it was on sale for just 99 cents. I raised a fuss about the taxes, of course, but I am now the proud owner of my own Tongue Brush. So, here’s what I’ve come away with: “Floss FIRST. Brush next. Scrub next (gently so you don’t hurt the little mushroomies in there) and finally, gargle a good non-alcoholic mouth wash in there. Swish from left to right and from front to back to kill all the flora and fauna still hiding in there. Oh, I'm an expert! Ooops, there is still one last step.. "Emily, come see if I missed anything!" |
Actual, real, dental insurance carriers are scarcer than
hen's teeth. There are some insurance carriers that add
dental coverage to their health plan, a very wise move, in my
opinion. On this page I link to all of them I could dig
up. Dental Insurance Plans web sites tend to throw up names, plans, and strange options, kind of like trying to navigate through a minefield. HOW STUFF WORKS has tried to resolve the most important issues for you. My personal favorite dental insurance provider, acquired from happy years of working with the company's customer service staff is Delta Dental. You may have heard something vaguely to the point that Delta is strictly for businesses. Actually, individuals and families too can be covered by a visit to the company web site. Delta Dental's web site is quite educational all by itself. The Good Old ADA web site is exemplary. Check it out from stem to stern. "Most dental needs and treatments are predictable, non-catastrophic, low cost and low risk. Dental disease is most often preventable; with the exception of damage due to an accident, dental treatment begins with relatively low-cost diagnostic procedures, such as exams and x-rays. If decay or disease is detected, the sooner it is treated, the less expensive that treatment will be." Alfa Dental is underwritten by Delta Dental insurance Company. AARP Dental Insurance is covered by Delta Dental. IF you qualify I'd endorse AARP. I worked with Assurant Insurance for a short time and loved the service environment there. "At Assurant Employee Benefits, we specialize in helping small to mid-size businesses maximize their benefits investment without sacrificing quality." Blue Cross, Blue Shield varies its dental coverage from state to state, therefore I can't list all of them for you. Illinois is typical of the best. Anthem Blue Cross, Blue Shield Aetna is on the list -- and I'll let it go at that. Aflac wants you to have all the information you need to ensure you have the right coverage for you and your family. That’s where Aflac.com comes in. Aflac also wants you to have the opportunity to ask questions and get the personal service you just can’t get from a Web site alone. That’s why we will provide an experienced insurance agent to handle every aspect of your account. Maybe it’s old-fashioned, but we still believe in the personal touch. Ameritas is For People Cigna, health and dental Comp Benefits has just been acquired by Humana Dental Care and Dental Insurance: We are not one of the "company driven sites" but rather a place for personal, practical oral dentistry care information provided to you by dentists and dentistry students. In combination with information about different costs, benefits, discounts, choices and services to compare dental insurance plans around. Dental Health Services.. only covers 3 states. Dominion Dental -- Go ahead and smile, because we've got you covered. We're Dominion Dental Services USA, Inc. (DOMINION) — a leading Mid-Atlantic dental benefits provider. Dental benefits are our only business. As a result, we have the flexibility to design dental programs that meet your specific needs. The Encore Dental Plan is covered by the Stonebridge Insurance Company. Golden Rule: With dental insurance plans for you and your family, we can help make it easier to keep your smile healthy.
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Guardian Life is one of the largest mutual life insurance companies in America, with 149 years of experience in providing diversified financial solutions, including life insurance, disability income insurance, retirement services, employee benefits, and investments. Now (Lin Stone Speaking) MUTUAL means sharing risks and benefits. They have had a trend of dying out because of the way human nature has been changing in the United States. But a few of them are growing much stronger, and Guardian Life is one of these.
HUMANA:
As one of the nation's largest dental benefits companies, Humana
offers group dental insurance to employers. Job losses can affect dental health. Oh, gee. My mouth is hurting already. MetLife, the Snoopy dog company that you see advertised every 5 minutes on television. Multiflex is an extensive dental insurance plan created to offer you the protection and dental care flexibility at an affordable cost. This indemnity dental insurance plan allows you to select any licensed dentist for service... QCD of America, Inc. (QCD) has specialized in the delivery of dental and vision benefits/insurance to employer groups and individuals since 1992. We have established a proven track record of innovation and value for our customers. Safeguard became a part of MetLife in 2008 Security Life: Employer groups from 2 to 5,000, voluntary or employer paid, can be served with the dental expertise of Security Life. Whether employer sponsored or stand-alone, our customers; including seniors, can purchase dental insurance for themselves and their families. The Standard is a marketing name for StanCorp Financial Group, Inc. and subsidiaries. Sun Life Financial: All of our group dental insurance plans feature coverage for preventive, basic, and major services, with the convenience of extensive national and regional networks. You know you're getting a group dental plan backed by the power of an employee benefits leader. We're proud of our 99% claims accuracy,* and back it up with a money-back guarantee. With over 35 years of experience in dental insurance, United Concordia understands the importance of a healthy smile. That is why it partners with producers and employers to offer flexible, value-driven group dental benefits backed by excellent customer service. |