You would think that since the first root canal (probably around the second or third century B.C., where archaeologists found a wire sticking out of someone’s tooth at a site in Israel) that there would be improvements over the years.

There have been. In fact, root canals have even improved since your parents got theirs done and complained about it vociferously years ago. So fearing a visit to an endodontist makes little sense.

In fact, endodontists not only save your tooth so that you don’t walk around with a holey smile, but they can do so with very little pain these days. Numbing gels and anesthetic injections have come a long way. And if you’re really scared, there’s always nitrous oxide. But honestly, you probably won’t need the gas. And if your root pulp is so far gone that the nerve in your tooth has died, you won’t feel much there at all, will you? Not that we recommend you let the infection progress quite that far.

Not only can your endodontist hopefully save your tooth, he or she can save you from future pain. Your gums and teeth will feel a lot better once you get your canals cleaned.

So what’s the success rate of root canals? They range between 92 and 97 percent, depending on who you ask. Chances are really good that you’ll be relieved you went!

The last thing I want when I have toothache pain is even more pain. So when I did an online search for toothache remedies, I was a little scared of what I found in the search results.

For example, who in their right mind would sprinkle ground aspirin or ground cloves on a toothache? Everyone knows the first rule of dealing with tooth pain is to clean the tooth. Get rid of aggravating food particles clinging to the cavity and rocking your house of pain. 

I can understand the faulty logic though.

Aspirin is great for general relief. Clove oil has been used for centuries. But neither item in solid forms should be mashed up and rubbed directly on your tooth because the abrasiveness might just damage your gums or exposed nerve endings - and add grit to your source of grimace.

Your best toothache remedy is a trip to the dentist. But to lessen the pain before you can get there, swallow the aspirin or baste the tooth with oil of cloves. Keep your mouth clean, swish gently with warm salt water (make sure the salt is dissolved) or buy a bottle of toothache reliever with benzocaine.

There is one experimental remedy I’ll try if I ever have a toothache again though. It’s an ice massage on my hand – on the web right between the thumb and forefinger. If that doesn’t work, I’m heading to the bathroom cabinet or the clove oil for relief!

A friend of mine smoked heavily, over a pack a day. I say “smoked” using the past tense because he got a rather painful scare a while ago.

It started when he noticed a white patch spreading on the top left side of his tongue, the side where he normally parked his burning butts to inhale. Then he noticed it getting a little larger.

Being a rather resourceful and self-sufficient kind of guy, he did an internet search and found that this little carpet of white could be leukoplakia, one of the precursors to, or symptoms of, oral cancer. So off to the dentist he went, thinking less about the actual tongue biopsy and more about whether or not he had oral cancer. Who could blame him?

To make a long story short, the dentist used a scalpel to scrape the spot off the tongue. My friend described it as a quick flick of the wrist he barely saw coming - and a pain so intense it brought tears to his eyes. He came out of the doctor’s office still in pain and barely able to speak because it hurt so bad.

As it turned out, he’s glad he had the test done because he found out he did have leukoplakia and that it was not cancerous. Yet.

But ever since then he’s been doing everything he can to prevent any more leukoplakia and tongue biopsies. That means no tobacco of any kind. I hope this all works out for him. He’s not the kind of person who deserves to get his tongue sliced ever again, much less oral cancer.

He’s been smoke-free, leukoplakia-free and oral cancer-free for over a year now.

I’m not a germ-a-phobe; not really, anyway. I don’t make my guests decontaminate with antibacterial wipes on my doorstep and I don’t wash off my milk jugs in hot soapy water when I return from the grocery store.

No need to be freakish about this and promote the generation of super bugs, is there?

I do have some quirks though - and some may label them eccentric, but I think most of you will just call it common sense: WASH YOUR HANDS.  

After using the restroom, it’s obvious. What’s not quite as obvious is the fact that you should wash more often when there’s an infection going around. And now I’ve come to discover that you should do it especially when you have a cold sore.

I never knew that, though the logic stands up in retrospect.

Here’s why: Cold sores are an outbreak of the Herpes Simplex Type 1 virus. (Type 2 is the genital variety.) When you get a cold sore outbreak, you tend to spread the stuff around when you touch your mouth.

That means it can get onto other body parts, your towels, your eating utensils and anywhere else your mouth may touch. Hopefully you won’t forget and rub your eyes, because then you can get ocular herpes, which may lead to blindness. It’s very contagious stuff.

So here’s what you do if you’re not taking antiviral medications: Ride it out. They’re going to be around for a week or two and there’s not much you can do about it aside from applying some ointments to curb the outbreak. But while riding it out, keep everything clean, don’t share your toys and wash your hands!