How about that Thunderstorm on Labor Day Night?

We had quite a light show on display across the region on the evening of Labor Day and into Tuesday's wee hours. More unsettled weather is in the forecast as the week progresses. Worry not however, the temps are comfortably mild and the sun shall return for one final curtain call before Autumn lowers the proverbial boom :)

One of my followers has sent out a press release on behalf of a local Dentist here in the 'Couv'. It seems that Dr. Bowyer is offering free dental mouth guards to athletes in the area as a community service. Below is a copy of that press release, get out there and soak it up my friends, soak it up and by all means be safe about it.

With the start of the new school year, Vancouver dentist Dr. Bowyer is giving away free mouth guards to student-athletes.  “Every year, I treat children with chipped or breaking teeth from their student activities, which can easily be prevented with consistent use of a mouth guard,” says Dr. Bowyer.

The National Youth Sports Safety Foundation estimates that more than three million teeth and over would be knocked out each year without the use of mouth guards.  This includes preventing over 200,000 serious dental injuries.  Student athletes are over 60 times more likely to suffer a dental injury when not using a mouth guard.  The most common injuries are flying elbows to the mouths, and impact from sports equipment.  Traditional contact sports, such as football, boxing, and martial arts require mouth guards.  Mouth guards should also be used in non-contact sports, including basketball, baseball, soccer, and wrestling.

Likewise, mouth guards help protect athletes from concussions.  Upon impact, a mouth guard helps an athlete clench the jaw muscles, thereby helping to stabilize the skull and neck.  Mouth guards distribute and dissipate the force of an impact, minimizing the severity of traumatic injury to the head and soft tissue.

Finally, a common mistake students make with mouth guards is infrequent replacement and sanitization.  Unsanitary mouth guards increase the intensity of mouth cuts and abrasions, increasing chances of infection from bacteria, yeast, and fungi that mouth guards routinely collect.  Also, mouth guards should be replaced regularly, or when edges become sharp or jagged, or if the mouth guard no long fits and promotes oral irritation.

“I can not stress enough the importance of athletes wearing a mouth guard, especially for those wearing braces” says Dr. Bowyer.  “Parents should consider a mouth guard as mandatory safety equipment.”

From Sept. 4th to Sept 30^th (M-TH), Dr. Boywer is providing these free mouth guards to anyone who stops by his office – children and adults alike.  Dr. Bowyer’s office is located at 300 SE 120^th Ave, Suite 700, Vancouver, WA  98683, 360-253-2640.

About Dr. Bowyer: Dr.  Bowyer is a Vancouver native.  He earned his undergraduate degree from the University of Washington, and a dentistry degree from the Columbia University School of Dental and Oral Surgery.  After completing his second year, Dr. Bowyer was one of two students selected  to participate in an honors program at the 5^th Avenue Manhattan Dental Clinic.    Dr. Bowyer has taught at Clark College School of Hygiene, and has taught as an assistant to 1-3 year dental students.  Dr. Bowyer has been awarded from the Academy of General Dentistry and honored by Columbia University as the Best General Practitioner in his class.  Dr. Bowyer is a member of the American Dental Association, Washington State Dental Society, American Academy of General Dentistry, AAOI (Academy of Osseointegration) and the American Academy of Cosmetic Dentistry.

August is in the Books

Another gorgeous Northwest month has come and gone. August was stellar, with near perfect weather the whole month long. It started off a touch on the cool side and offered up a little wet stuff towards the end. Even the wet days were quite pleasant however.

The stats were pretty standard for the month of August. I showed not one day above 90 degrees. The official station at Pearson logged two at exactly 90 degrees, however. The warmest day here in Northeast Vancouver was 88.3 degrees on the 6th the coolest afternoon high was the 63.3 on the 1st. The warmest evening was the 64.5 on the 29th and the coolest temp was recorded on the evening of the 21st with a low of 51.6 degrees. We had five days with precipitation exceeding 0.03 inches with the only real soaker being the 26th with a damp 0.49 inches. El sol blazed the big blue sky for 20 days. The total rainfall for the month was a less than average 0.89 inches.

It was yet another month of paradise in our 75 days of summer. Alas, it is now September. The Autumn plunge is lurking on the near horizon. Tomorrow is Labor Day and we could see some showers, although the NWS suggests that is only a slight chance. The remainder of the week should be unsettled with scattered thunderstorms.

We will likely have a few warm to hot days as the first part of September fades to the latter half and we start to feel that fall chill. The plunge begins now with the historical average temperature for the 1st of September at 80 degrees and the average for the 30th is just a touch above 70. The 10 degree plunge is followed in October by a 14 degree drop, then November with her 11 degrees till we bottom out around the end of the year. It happens fast so get out and enjoy these last few 80s and maybe a bonus 90 before the plunge puts a chill on your outdoor activities. You know what to do. Soak it up my friends, soak it up :)