Dental Health

Natural Support For Healthy Teeth And Gums

Problems with the teeth and gums are a frequently overlooked cause of symptoms elsewhere in the body. Such dental-associated problems can range from cardiac irregularities associated with tooth and gum infections to neurological disorders associated with mercury toxicity from amalgam fillings. In addition, the mouth acts as a mirror to the rest of the body. Loose or demineralized teeth strongly suggest bone demineralization (osteoporosis) elsewhere.

Further, many holistic dentists also disapprove of root canal procedures which leave bone in the gum without a blood supply. They site compelling evidence that such unvascularized bone acts as a foci for bacteria. In Chinese medicine, the mouth is seen as an important site for the remainder of the body. Amalgam fillings, which contain a mixture of metals, are felt to interfere with the flow of energy (“chi”) through the meridians they cross. I once had a patient who began having serious heart problems shortly after having an amalgam filling placed in a tooth the was in the heart meridian.

From both a conventional and an holistic perspective, it is known that health of your teeth and gums have a profound effect on the rest of your health.

Diet And Lifestyle

- Practice good nutrition. The teeth need adequate calcium, magnesium, boron and other bone nutrients to stay healthy. Sugar, white flour and other acid-reacting foods can damage the teeth, especially with failure to brush promptly after eating them. (These foods aren’t health for the rest of your body, either!)

- Practice good dental hygiene. You’ve heard it before from your momma and your dentist. Now you’ll hear it from me. Take good care of your teeth and gums by regular brushing, flossing, and using gum massage when appropriate. Here are some “holistic” ways to care for your mouth:1) Brush. Baking soda makes an excellent, pure dentifrice. Add a drop or two of essential oil of peppermint to an ounce of soda and mix thoroughly for added flavor. Table salt can be added (just a pinch) once per week for extra whitening power. (Don’t use salt daily, however. It is too abrasive). Soda acts to neutralize the acid bacteria in the mouth that cause cavities. Although some dentists claim that baking sode is too abrasive, I’ve been using it as a dentifrice for over 30 years and always get great reports on my dental exams.
  2) Floss daily. Flossing removes bacteria-feeding debris between the teeth that brushing alone may miss. The new Teflon-coated dental tape is ideal for those who find that regular dental floss breaks off between the teeth.
  
  3) Check-ups: twice per year. A full-mouth x-ray is probably unwarranted every check-up, but is certainly needed every 1-2 years to check for infection under crowns, etc. Be sure your dentist uses a metal thyroid shield and body shield before taking x-ray pictures.

- Have a dental exam and cleaning twice a year. If you have been diagnosed with a new-onset heart irregularity, be sure to have a dental exam. Gum or tooth infections shed bacteria that can damage the heart valves and possibly even the muscle itself. If you do have an infection and the dentist recommends an antibiotic, it may be wise to take it. Some studies have shown a lower incidence of heart problems in people who have taken antibiotics for any reason. Again, an unrecognized source of harmful bacteria may be the culprit in such cases. Be sure to take pro-biotic (gut bacteria) replacement, such as Suprema-Dophilus, to keep the “good” gut bacteria healthy while taking any antibiotic.

Primary Support

Maxi Multi: 3 caps, 3 times per day with meals. Optimal (not minimal) doses of antioxidants (ACES), calcium, magnesium, boron, bioflavonoids and B complex vitamins are particularly important for good dental health.
Grape Seed Extract: 50-100 mg, 3 times per day.

Additional Support

For gum disease

CoQ10: 50-100 mg per day with meals. CoQ10 has shown impressive results in treating gum disease. (CoQ10 is also an important heart nutrient).
Essential oil of myrrh rubbed onto sore or bleeding gums with a Q-tip. Myrrh is both an anti-infective and a soothing agent.

For loose teeth

Cal-Mag Amino: 1 cap, 3 times per day in addition to the 1,000:500 mg from Maxi Multi (Basic Program).

Preparation for dental work:

Beginning 2 weeks before planned dental work

Vitamin C: 1,000 mg 3 times per day with or between meals.
Grape Seed Extract: 50 mg, 3 times per day with meals.
Immune Boost: 1 tsp., 3 times per day between meals.

Just after dental work

Continue above supplements for an additional two weeks.
Bromelain: 1-2 caps, 3-4 times per day between meals. Continue for 2 weeks or until all dental work is healed.

Dr. Myatt’s Comments

Finally, a caution about having mercury amalgam fillings removed. Although there is clear evidence that the metal, especially mercury, in dental fillings can cause neurological damage, there is also evidence that having amalgams removed can exacerbate neurological problems. If you believe that your dental fillings may be having an adverse effect on some aspect of your health, get a hair analysis first to determine mercury levels. Hair mineral analysis is one of the least expensive screening tools for high body mercury. It is considered to be an accurate test for this purpose. (But not for nutritional mineral determination).

If your mercury levels are high, DO NOT USE oral or IV chelation as a solution in lieu of having amalgams removed.

In my nineteen years of practice, I have seen a handful of patients with neurological diseases get worse when their filling were removed. The problem lies with the way these fillings were removed. Done incorrectly, removing amalgams can release more mercury than leaving the fillings in place. To find out more about the correct way to have amalgams removed, please read this article in HealthBeat News: The Hidden Causes of Disease Lurking in Your Mouth

Remember that the overall health of the body is reflected in the mouth and vice versa. Take good care of your general health, and your teeth and gums will benefit. Take good care of your teeth and gums and your overall state of health will benefit. Or, as your momma probably told you, “watch your mouth”!

Smoking Teeth = Poisonous Gas This video shows toxic mercury vapor outgassing from an amalgam dental filling. It is Odorless, colorless and tasteless — but it casts a shadow in black light!