Dr. Andersen and team, wishing you a relaxing and memorable Memorial Day weekend

Memorial Day weekend is a time when Americans everywhere stop and remember all those men and women who bravely gave their lives for our country.

Memorial Day also marks the unofficial start of summer 2011, and for many folks in Utah, getting out of town for three days after being cooped up in the office or in the classroom means sweet, sweet relief. At Dr. W. Clark Andersen's office, we also know Memorial Day weekend is ripe for travel. After all, it’s a season of vacations, adventures and great memories. Whether you are headed to a barbecue, a camping trip, hitting the great open roads or hanging out in your backyard this weekend, we want to know about it!

Have a nice and relaxing Memorial Day weekend!

Ask Dr. Andersen: If you weren’t an Orthodontist, what would you be?

Utah orthodontist Dr. W. Clark Andersen loves making his patients' teeth straight and and healthy! He enjoys improving the smiles and confidence of our patients, and providing the best orthodontic care for everyone who visits our office. But we thought we’d ask him what profession he would pursue if it wasn’t for orthodontia. Here's what Dr. Andersen said:

"I would love to be a chef! First of all I LOVE good food, and secondly there is an art to fine cooking, much like there is an art to fine orthodontics!"

Foods to Avoid During Your Orthodontic Treatment

There are a variety of foods Dr. Andersen wants you to avoid while you're wearing braces. Some foods can occasionally damage braces, but certain foods can bend the wires or even break the brackets on your braces. If you’re wearing braces, you should avoid starch, sugar and gummy foods, as these foods can be difficult to remove during brushing. Foods that are high in sugar and starch tend to cause plaque, cavities and even tooth decay.

Avoid tough meats, hard breads and raw vegetables such as carrots and celery. Before long, you'll be able to bite a cucumber again. But you'll need to protect your orthodontic appliances when you eat for as long as you're wearing braces.

Foods you should avoid include:

• Chewy foods: bagels, hard rolls, licorice
• Crunchy foods: popcorn, ice, chips
• Sticky foods: caramels, gum
• Hard foods: nuts, candy
• Foods you have to bite into: corn on the cob, apples, carrots

Also, chewing on hard things (for example, pens, pencils or fingernails) can damage the braces. Damaged braces will cause treatment to take longer.

If you have any questions on which foods you should be avoiding and why, we invite you to give W Clark Andersen a call or ask our staff during your next visit.

What’s on your reading list?

With the school year close to winding down for a lot of our patients at W Clark Andersen DDS, we wanted to remind all our patients about the importance of reading. Sure it’s easy to keep putting off reading this time of year, but reading is a vital step in brain development and literacy. And if you needed any more reason to read, May marks “Get Caught Reading Month.”

Today, we thought we’d ask: What's on YOUR reading list? What are some of your all-time favorites? Out of ideas for great reads? Ask us for suggestions, and Dr. Andersen and our team would be happy to provide a few. You may also ask a local librarian for some ideas on what to read next!

Happy reading! Be sure to share with us your book picks or your all-time favorite novels or literature on our Facebook page!