In this episode of Dentistry for Kidz, we sit down with Dr. Vanna Truong, a passionate kid’s dentist whose journey from immigrating to America in high school to becoming a beloved dentist is nothing short of inspiring. Dr. Truong shares what sparked her love for treating children and why creating a positive dental experience is essential for kids. We dive into her expertise in helping children with dental fears, working with special needs kids, and providing care in surgery centers.

Dr. Truong also answers common parental concerns about kids' dental health, from tips on oral hygiene to understanding treatments like sealants and fluoride. Plus, you’ll hear about her three rescue dogs, who sometimes bring extra smiles to the office, and even a fun story of a young patient who conquered their dental fears! Don’t miss this heartwarming and informative conversation filled with practical tips for parents and fun insights into pediatric dentistry.

About the Guest:

Dr. Vanna Truong is the co-founder and co-owner of Mighty Smiles Dentistry, Las Vegas, NV. Dr. Troung has been living in the Vegas area since 2009. She graduated from the University of California, San Diego in 2007 and attended the University of Nevada, Las Vegas, earning her DMD in 2013. She is a general dentist that has been treating both adults and children, but her heart has always been with working with kids, especially in underserved areas.

Dr. Vanna Truong has been doing pediatric dentistry since 2015, both in regular office setting and in surgery centers. She is experienced with treating special needs children and those who are afraid at the dentist. She is dedicated to give her patients the best dental care while creating a fun, happy experience at the dentist. Her motto is “The best smile is a happy smile.”

Dr. Truong came to America when she was in high school and she is the oldest of 3 children. She enjoys going to music concerts, traveling and hiking. Dr. Truong has 3 rescued dogs, and if you happen to hike at Red Rock Canyon on the weekends, you will likely see them there. Her favorite dessert is salty caramel ice-cream, a perfect treat after a long day of work or after even a trip to the dentist.

About the Hosts:

Angelina Huang, Founder

Angelia is a nationally top ranked junior golfer at her junior high year. Angelina is also ranked number one academically among seven hundred students at Clark High School, Nevada. Angelina hopes to play college golf and pursue a career in the medical field or dentistry. Her passion is Neuroscience and Statistics. Angelina has been travelling around the country competing against the best junior golfers in the world since age of seven. She is also the Amazon published author, “I Want to Play College Golf”. Since Year 2021, Angelina and Cameron have donated over $17,000 their book proceeds back to the community for the underserved family and patients who are in need of cancer treatment. Aside from daily golf practices and school, she enjoys listening to music and watching chilling crime shows.

Cameron Huang, Founder

Cameron is also a nationally top ranked junior golfer at her sophomore year. Cameron is ranked top 5% academically among eight hundred students at Clark High School, Nevada. Cameron also hopes to play college golf and pursue a career as an orthodontist in the future.  Cameron is the coauthor of “I Want to Play College Golf” with Angelina, and they have donated over $17,000 their book proceeds back to the community for the underserved family and patients who are in need of cancer treatment.  When Cameron isn't on the green or studying, she's enjoying her free time watching K-drama and studying makeup and skincare with her friends.

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Welcome to the Dentistry for Kidz podcast. We are Angelina and Cameron and we love candy. Do you all love candy? We've learned how to enjoy all the candy we want without getting cavities or getting in trouble with our dentist. Want to learn our magic. Join us discover how to enjoy sweets and have nice, bright, clean, shiny, white teeth. Let's go.

Welcome back to the Dentistry for Kidz podcast today, we have a very special guest who's all about making dentist visits fun, fearless and full of smiles. It's Dr Vanna Truong from Mighty Smiles Dentistry, Welcome Hi, Guys and so. Dr Vanna has been calling Vegas home since 2009 but her journey started from long before coming to the United States in high school and rising to become the amazing dentist she is today. She graduated from UC San Diego and earned her DMD from UNLV. Dr Vanna discovered her true calling, helping kids, especially in underserved areas. Love their smiles. Since 2015 she's been working her magic with kids in both regular office settings and even in surgery centers, giving the best care to all her little patients, including those with special needs and those feeling a bit nervous about their visit. Her motto is the best smile is a happy smile, and she's made it her mission to create a happy dental experience for every child. So our first question is, what inspired you to become a Kid's Dentist?

Dr. Vanna Truong: I do not have any like magic answer like, oh, I always want to work with kids before it was just a journey. Actually, I used to be very afraid of working with kids, and I just say that, and then the more that I would see these patients, the adult patient, the kids patient, and everything, and they're like, Oh, I actually like interacting with the kids, you know, interact with the parents and see how that and that's just how it is, yeah, then it's not just thinking, yes, it's always been kids. To me, it wasn't. It's a discovery for me, just that. And it's, it was great,

perfect. And so why do you think it's important for kids to have a positive experience at the dentist?

Dr. Vanna Truong: It is very, very important, in my opinion. And a lot of people say, oh, it just, you know, like baby teeth, it's fine. They're gonna come out. There's no problem. But people do not realize that it's super important for this diabetes to be always there until the adults one will be coming in on time, because if you lose your baby teeth early on, the adult teeth will not be erupting correctly, and then it they will be like, going left, going right, going all the places, and then, you know, it will not be turning out right, and then You have to go to the orthodontist and all the other things. So we would want to keep all the baby teeth very healthy, and then just that, yes,

perfect. And so let's switch it up to a more fun question. We saw that you even have dogs in your office, and that sounds super fun. Can you tell us a little bit about that? And do your three rescue dogs ever make appearances a lot at your office? Yes,

Dr. Vanna Truong: they do. We love dog. We love animal with our offices. It's always we always have some talks at the office. Yeah. So I have three rescue dog Doctor Amanda is the other doctor at the office. He has seven dogs, and all of them are, you know, from the shelter and the rescue. Some of them are blind, so at that also, and we bring some of them to the office, and the kids love the dogs, and myself the dog too. It just great today at the best employee ever. Like it just make everybody happy. In fact, they are right next to me right now at home and not doing anything but just snoozing.

That's so fun. And another random question, what's your favorite flavor of toothpaste? If you could choose one? I.

Dr. Vanna Truong: I would just get mint because, you know, I'm an adult, but I'm gonna let you know we are seeing kids. We have been trying all kind of flavors, all kinds, and for some reason, Mint is almost at the bottom of the list, the flavor that we found that the kid consistently hate the list. I'm not going to say like the most. I'm going to say hate the list is small and Ooh,

yes,

Dr. Vanna Truong: that's one interesting but it's on the fluoride. We tend to not taste the best anyway, but small is the answer. So

and on the topic of fluoride, can you go like, can you tell us what a fluoride treatment is?

Dr. Vanna Truong: Um, there's multiple types of depth, the lowest one that we normally have at home is, you know, just your regular toothpaste, it has some fluoride in there, and you brush this morning and at night, and that how you can get The fluoride to make your teeth stronger. We also have some fluoride in the tap water. But the thing is, right now, most of us do not drink tap water. We drink, you know, bottled water, filter water, so it's not really a source of fluoride for most of us. And then when you go to the dentist every six months, they also apply fluoride for you. It's just a higher strength for older kids that have a lot of cavity. We normally prescribe some toothpaste that have even more fluoride than that, just to help them. You know, making it stronger. We also have glucoritic treatment in the dental office. Only Is he the highest strength? And that's about it, perfect.

And diet is a very important part in maintaining good dental health. Do you have any foods that you particularly like that are good for the teeth, or any bad ones that you don't recommend kids eating a lot,

Dr. Vanna Truong: Amy kind of I mean, if you eat anything in moderation, it would be fine, but like, the things that I would like to stay away from would be things that really chewy or Sticky, sticky to your teeth, like Starburst, all the caramel stuff. I love it. I love it so much, so good. I can having that they keep getting stuck to your teeth for a long time. And that's how you can have all the cavity, definitely no hard candy, because you can break your teeth. Um, yeah, and if you are like young, young kid, I would always tell the parents do not have their the the milk and choose over time, like eight hours overnight or something like that, and that won't have a lot of cavity, even though they don't have a they soda or candy. Uh huh,

perfect. And do you have any other advice for parents to make sure their kids maintain good hygiene, oral hygiene at home,

Dr. Vanna Truong: I would always tell the parents, have the kid brush their teeth by themselves twice a day, and that will make them feel like, Oh, I am doing a good job. You know, we'll build their confidence and, boom, we'll build the habit. But I also tell the parents, they have to go back in and brush for the kids themselves, because that is how all the plaque and all the stuff in the mouth are taken out. So that is the main thing that I will be telling parents.

And this next question is all about what you like. It's all personal preference. Do you have a specific order you like to do when you when it comes to flossing mouthwash or brushing your teeth?

Dr. Vanna Truong: Actually, no, I'm not very old today, about like, oh, because. Up my husband and I will will brush out it at the same time. So if he have to have the toothpaste first, and you still brush, and I just get my floss or virus or things like that, or whatever I feel like, as long as you do all of those those steps, it's it's fine to me. So I'm not very, very picky, but yes, really, yeah.

And do you have any age that you recommend children come visit the dentist first? And why do you think coming and starting early is more important

Dr. Vanna Truong: the age that we recommend a parent to bring the kids to the dentist the first time is by one year, or when the first kid to come out? Most parents could be like, Why so early? You're not going to do anything. And that's the home point. We don't want to do anything, yeah, the the first visit could be, you know, like, say hi to the parents. I have the kid and and the kid will be like, Oh, this is so fun. They're not doing anything. They're not giving a shot. They're not doing anything. And then it's another important part is we want to educate the parents on what to do and what not to do, so the kid will not have any cavity. Because a lot of time parents will bring the kid when, like, four or five and they already have some cavity, some pain, and it was like, oh, so the first time they go to see it the dentist, I have to do something on them, alright? So it's unfortunate, and they're gonna be terrified of the dentist for a long, long time. And we don't want that to happen. We just find, oh, you come to dentist. Will be fun? Gonna brush your teeth, give you, you know, Flores fun. We have TV in a room. We have some toy afterwards. He has your toothbrush and to pay Bye, bye. See you in six months, and everybody's happy,

perfect. And what would you say is your favorite part about working with kids, or even special needs children in general?

Dr. Vanna Truong: Baby poem with kids was, I think just how you talk to them, like, how do you they would answer you. Sometime we would say, instead of talking to them, and they would the answer will be so cute. I was like, Oh, hi. How are you today? I'm doing good. And it's like, Oh, you're so handsome. Have any girlfriend, and the boys are, like, four or five. You're like, Yes, I have three girlfriends. And Mom, no, that's not your girlfriend. That's your cousins and things like that. That's super cute when we talk to the kid, you know. And sometimes, oh, you having anything hurting in your you know, anything causing you pain. Amy owie and the kid, very often, will point at their arm, their knee, because they just fell some way. And is that? And I was like, okay, oh, what happened to you? And say, Oh, I ran into the door, whatever. Then he was like, how about something in your mouth? Because I can't help you much with your needs, or whatever that super cute. That is for mainly, you know, young kids and stuff like that. For Tesla needs, Haitian like with Autism NOW syndrome, we see adults and kids also, and it's harder because they don't get to tell you, you know, those kind of thing, and sometimes it's it's hard, it's affecting you with break your heart, like they are in pain, but they can tell you, and you can see that they have pain. What is more rewarding to me when we see those patient is that we can help take care of pain for them, and we can see in the parents eyes that, you know, it's a big relief for them, and a lot of time it's these patients do not have their parents with them. They the home in the group home. So it's heartbreaking a lot of time, but somebody had to do it to to help with them. So we just take comfort and pride in the fact that we can help them. Uh huh, get out of pain.

That's amazing of you to be doing such great work. And so for our final question today, it's pretty simple. It's just, if you could tell any kid something that they could do to make sure they grew up with beautiful smiles. What would it

Dr. Vanna Truong: be? It was so much. Your bed, if I'm you know, if the dentist in me was like, brush your teeth and flour some candy, I think it's just probably just that and just smile, because that's all you need. And then if you feel anything way in your mouth, just tell your parents, so they can bring it to the dentist and we can take good care of you. Don't be afraid of a dentist. We are nice people.

Well, thank you so much for joining us today. That's everything I have for you. Thank you very much.

Dr. Vanna Truong: All right, thank you so much for having me.

Thank you for listening to the Dentistry for Kidz podcast. If you enjoyed today's episode, please share with your family member or friend. Make sure to like and subscribe to our channel too. Help us complete our mission to see bright smiles from all around the world. Thank you.