Does having Diabetes make someone more likely to have gum problems?

Yes it does. Not only does your diabetes make it more likely that you have periodontal disease, recent evidence shows that gum disease can make your diabetes control worse. Studies have shown that periodontal disease can affect the pancreas' response to insulin and make it more resistant to it.
Diabetics get more infections in their gums and experience more bone loss. When their diabetes is under better control, their gum condition also improves. Accordingly, all diabetics in my dental practice are placed on a 3 month recall schedule for their cleanings. It is good for their teeth and gums and also important for their overall health.

How often should I have my teeth cleaned?

The answer to this question is dependent on a person's oral hygiene, but for most people under 40 years of age, twice a year is enough. For patients with poor oral hygiene or those over 40 years of age a more frequent cleaning schedule is recommended. In my New York dental practice, patients over 40 are advised to have their cleaning 3-4 times a year, since they are at greater risk for periodontal disease. Some patients, with active periodontal disease come more often.

When you say my teeth have potholes, What do you mean?

When I am doing an examination I often note teeth that have potholes, and recommend repairing them with bonding material. Potholes are little perforations in the enamel of teeth ,usually located at cusp tips of posterior teeth or the incisal edges of anterior teeth. The enamel is lost and a depression in the tooth gradually develops, since exposed dentin wears at a faster rate than enamel. Over time, the enamel rods surrounding the pothole get undermined and minute pieces of enamel chip off resulting in slowly enlarging potholes. The potholes get deeper and get broader.
If a small composite is placed in the pothole than the continued erosion of the dentin can be eliminated(for the time being) and the filling functions as"artificial enamel". The preparation of the potholes prior to restoring them is minimal and no local anesthesia is necessary. This sort of dental care falls under the category of minimally invasive dentistry.

Whats wrong with tongue piercing?

Aside from the fact that it hurts a lot to have your tongue pierced, there are some health concerns involved. Tongues that have piercing can become infected and certainly can cause dental problems. I have examined patients who have multiple cracked teeth with their tongue jewelery. The metal ball on the end of the piercing is much harder than tooth structure and if a patient plays with it between their teeth it is easy to cause a bad crack. Do not pierce your tongue!

Who's your Dentist?

People ask me this all the time. Although I would like to work on myself, it's not feasible. Today I was eating dim sum in flushing and I felt something crunchy in my dumpling and it turned out to be part of my tooth. I had no pain and my tongue told me I was missing a big chunk of a upper tooth, but from what I can tell it's not a super emergency. I called Dr Bradley Cuttler and had a nice chat with him and I will see him sometime next week to start work on a crown. If a piece of a tooth cracks off cleanly and the patient has no pain afterwards or cold sensitivity , than it's usually not an emergency that has to be dealt with on the same day and can wait 72 hours.

My temporary crown came out. What should I do?

While you are waiting for your permanent crown to be fabricated, it is important to keep your temporary crown in your mouth, since it prevents shifting of the teeth. If a temporary comes out, shifting of teeth can take place in a matter of days.
While the temporary is out of the mouth , inspect the inside and see if it looks clean and whether the cement is still in place. If its clean and free of loose debris, often it can be put back in place, assuming the inherent retention of temporary is good enough. If you can't get it to stay in place, it's best to call a dentist to have it recemented temporarily, preferably within 48 hours.