Keeping tooth decay at bay: A holistic approach to preventing and treating cavities

One of the most rewarding aspects of dental practice is helping patients avoid oral problems. I know that even a simple cavity can cause physical discomfort, emotional stress related to appearance, and wellness of the whole person – body, mind, and spirit – I take the wellbeing of each patient seriously. I believe in preventing and treating tooth decay with a holistic approach.

concern over treatment cost and taking time off of work. As a healer concerned with the

How tooth decay occurs

Your teeth are covered with a thin coating of enamel, which protects the underlying porous dentin structure. Enamel is incredibly strong, but it is not impermeable. Your mouth is home to hundreds of strains of bacteria. Many are beneficial; they help to break foods down for digestion. However, like any living organism, as bacteria eat, they excrete. In this case the excretion is quite acidic. It combines with acids from sugars in sweet foods and carbohydrates, sticking to teeth in a gooey film of plaque. These acids infiltrate microscopic tubules in tooth enamel and begin to dissolve its mineral compound. The result is tiny lesions that, without care, eventually become holes in your teeth – dental caries, tooth decay, or cavities.

Skeptics ask, “Why consider amalgam removal?”

Dental amalgam has been used in the United States to fill cavities since before the Civil War. In those early days, the material was inexpensive. Even today, some dentists prefer amalgam because fillings can be completed quickly. Prep work doesn’t require a lot of finesse – the dentist simply drills out a substantial portion of tooth structure and presses the malleable material into place. Plus, amalgam lasts a long time. However, these “silver” fillings actually contain only a tiny bit of silver. This combination of metals includes about 50 percent mercury. Many health-conscious patients are choosing to have amalgam fillings removed because of the implications of having one of the most toxic elements known to mankind situated a few inches from the brain. Yet doubters continue to ask, “Why consider amalgam removal?” Let’s take a look at some of their common contentions, from a holistic perspective.

Skeptic claim #1 – “Mercury is harmless in an alloy.”

An alloy is a combination of metallic elements. Dental amalgam is an alloy of copper, tin, and silver, with mercury as a binding agent. Mercury does not become inert in this mixture. Friction (chewing, biting, and grinding) allows mercury vapor to escape from amalgam and be absorbed into the lungs, digestive tract, and soft tissues of the mouth.

Osteonecrosis: Death of the Jawbone

When one thinks about losing teeth, usually we think of periodontal (gum) disease, deep dental decay or maybe even trauma (getting hit in the mouth). But as baby boomers age, one has to consider how medication may play a part in this.

Osteonecrosis of the Jawbone

 
Osteonecrosis, or death of the jawbone, is on the rise. It has been reported in patients who are receiving treatment that includes bisphosphonates (for osteoporosis), chemotherapy (for cancer), and/or corticosteroids (for inflammation). The majority of reported osteonecrosis cases have been connected to dental procedures such as tooth extraction or implant placement. It is not that these procedures create it, but that they actually uncover it and expose its presence.

Biomimetic Dentistry

A relatively new phrase in the holistic dental community is "biomimetic dentistry".

The word "biomimetic" is derived from two terms: "biology," the science of life or living matter in all its forms, and "mimic," to imitate or copy. With the advent of adhesive bonding technologies in dentistry over the past few decades, materials and techniques have been developed that allow for the minimal removal of tooth structure, followed by adhering tooth-colored material onto or within the tooth. The philosophy behind this brings new meaning to the phrase “less is more”.

Historically, when prepping a tooth for a filling, dental schools taught students “extension for retention” and “extension for prevention”. In essence, the bigger you make the cavity prep, the more likely the filling will stay in and the less likely you will get a recurrent cavity around it. This no longer holds any truth in the modern dental arena.

Nowadays, decay is removed and a restoration is bonded that both strengthens and mimics the form and color of the remaining healthy tooth. Depending upon the individual needs of a tooth, it can be repaired either with a bonding material applied directly to the tooth, or with a conservative inlay/onlay (similar to a partial crown) fabricated in a dental laboratory.

Biomimetic Dentistry: Less is more.

In these cases, crowns and prophylactic root canals can be avoided. The integrity, form, esthetics and function of the tooth, as nature intended, can be preserved. Thus, biomimetic dentistry is achieved.

5 Ways to Detox from Fluoride

“Fluoride causes more human cancer death, and causes it faster than any other chemical.” - Dr. Dean Burk, PhD

Cleansing your body of fluoride is not the same as getting rid of heavy metals such as mercury. Fluoride is not a heavy metal. It's a halide (review your high school chemistry) in the same family as iodine, bromine and chlorine. Fluoride, bromine, chlorine all bind to the iodine receptors in the body and displace iodine. So it is not uncommon to find that fluoride toxicity is associatd with iodine deficiency.

Here are some simple ways to remove fluoride out of your body daily:

Is Fluoride Making You Sick?

Fluoride is found everywhere today. Not just toothpaste and mouthwashes, but in many antibiotics, medications, and even non-stick cooking pans. I think that most of us know that it is found in many bottled waters and municipal water supplies.
The fallout from this fluoridated water supply is that it is currently in just about everything we eat or drink that has been made from these waters. There is no escaping fluoride in the modern world, and as a result, there has been a plethora of diseases associated with this fluoride overdose.

Fluoridated water from the kitchen sink

Here are the top 7 fluoride related health challenges:

NAC: A Detoxification Revelation

Replacing your mercury fillings with a dental material that is more biocompatible and less toxic, is usually the goal of the vast majority of patients that come to see me. And I applaud each of you who actually take a proactive step to do so.

The question that usually comes up afterwards is: How do I remove the residual buildup of mercury from my body tissues?

There are many simple ways to detox, and you can actually read about many of them in my book My Secrets to Regaining Health or read through my blogs to get other helpful ideas.

However there is another simple method worth exploring. The use of NAC.

NAC (N-Acetyl –Cysteine) is a natural sulfur-containing amino acid derivative found naturally in foods. It is a powerful antioxidant. It helps the body eliminate free radicals and neutralize toxins, especially heavy metals such as mercury, cadmium and lead.

My Dog Ate My Night Guard!

I am a fairly organized person. So when my night guard went missing for a few days, I was a little concerned. Usually, it is in one of 2 places, but I couldn’t find it anywhere.

So imagine my surprise when it was finally located in Celeste’s (my dog’s) secret hiding place. It was still in one piece but nicely chewed. I couldn’t put that back in my mouth.

“My dog ate my night guard!”

I’ve heard this line from patients but I never thought it would happen to me.

Avoiding Root Canal

Root canal teeth are frowned upon in the holistic community. For those in the know, endodontically treated teeth are a source of chronic low grade infection and can create a stress on the entire immune system. Statistically, it has been shown to have a correlation with autoimmune diseases and some types of cancers.

As an integrative dentist, I have had many patients come to me throughout the years looking for an alternative to root canal. Conventional dentistry says that the only other choice to root canal treatment is extraction of the tooth. And this may be true if the nerve is irreversibly infected. But for many cases, root canal can be avoided altogether.

 

Photo credit Creative Commons: Larry Shaw

An Amino Acid to Prevent Dental Disease

A recent study (published in PLOS ONE), has found that the amino acid L-arginine destroys the bacteria which cause cavities and gum disease.

L-arginine is a common amino acid found naturally in red meat, poultry, fish, soy and certain dairy products. It helps rid people’s teeth of destructive biofilms that cause poor oral health.

 Foods with Arginine

Photo credit Creative Commons:  Poultry India

Dental biofilms cause the formation of dental cavities, gingivitis and periodontal disease. According to the NIH, 92% of adults (age 20 to 64) of the American population have dental cavities; and according to the ADA, nearly 50% have moderate or severe periodontal disease.

Curing Candida Naturally

Candida (yeast) infections are on the rise; mostly due to side effects from medications, poor diet and alcohol use.

It is one of those sneaky diseases that develops over the years, presenting with symptoms that are vast and non-specific. I would have to say that over 80% of my patients have some degree of this fungal infection, many of who believe it is something else going on in their body.

Candida Overgrowth (Thrush)

Photo credit Creative Commons: MariaJosse2

Small amounts of the Candida fungus are usually present in the mouth, digestive tract, and skin of most healthy people. It is normally kept in check by other (good) bacteria and microorganisms in the body. However, illness, stress, medications and poor diet can disturb this delicate balance, causing the fungus Candida to grow out of control and create a vast array of diverse symptoms.

Here is a basic list of Candida overgrowth symptoms: