It seems inevitable: you go to the dentist, or take your child to the dentist, and you get diagnosed with caries, otherwise called cavities. So, the dentist makes an appointment and you go back to get your teeth numbed, drilled, poked, filled with some sort of amalgam (metal or plastic of some kind), and the fillings are cured and then shaped. Then you’re good as new, right? And your dentist says nothing about what you can do to prevent them other than by following a good mouth care regimen.
What would you say if you found out there’s a way you can not only prevent future dental problems, but also to actually reverse the damage you already have, without getting “drilled, filled, and billed”? Would you do it?
It’s quite possible that if you’ve been eating a grain-free, whole-foods diet high in good fats and vitamins and minerals, that you already are most of the way there.
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Dr. Weston A. Price
Weston Andrew Valleau Price was born in 1870 and became a dentist known for his travels to lands far away, to study the diet, nutrition, and health of different cultures. He was particularly interested in those cultures that lived in an “ancestral” manner; in other words, the people had not yet been influenced by the modern world and hunted and gathered and cooked and ate exactly as they had for hundreds and possibly thousands of years. Some of the discoveries he made were quite shocking.
Dr. Price came to the conclusion that all of the aspects of a modern way of eating, also called the “Standard American Diet” or “SAD” contributed to nutritional deficiencies and thus caused dental problems. These aspects of diet, such as processed vegetable oils, sugar, and flour, caused issues with proper development of the facial structure and led to dental problems later. Both a mother’s nutrition while pregnant and a child’s early nutrition will contribute.
For more information on Dr. Weston A. Price and as well as people who follow his suggestions when it comes to nutrition and health, go here (http://www.westonaprice.org/).
Human vs Animal Dental Issues
Have you ever noticed that the mammals that live in nature in their natural habitat have no dental problems? They have no crowded teeth, the teeth are straight, and aren’t rotting out of their heads. They don’t need dentists! In 1922, Drs. Mellanby discovered that mammal’s teeth are strong and stay cavity-free (and even heal when needed) with the correct diet. So why do humans (outside of ancestral cultures) require dentist intervention?
To read more about the Drs. Mellanby and their discoveries, go here (http://www.thedentalessentials.com/Dr_Mellanby_s_trials_s/38.htm).
Current Dentist Recommendations
If you ask your dentist what you should do to help prevent cavities, he or she will probably tell you to floss and brush daily, and to limit your sugar intake; that’s if he doesn’t just say, “Sorry, there’s nothing you can do.”
Most people will be disappointed to find out that even when they follow these instructions, their cavities remain. They may see a slight decline in the future development of cavities, because there will be less food to feed the bacteria that damage the surface of the teeth, but a person’s nutrition will dictate whether he or she can actually heal the teeth.
Tooth Structure and Healing
The outermost part of one of your teeth is covered in enamel, while the innermost part is called the pulp. Within the pulp are nerves and blood vessels. Between the pulp and the enamel is the dentin. Dentin can regenerate, which is really amazing, no matter how much damage you do to it, as long as you eat the right foods.
So what helps with dentin regeneration? Regeneration requires fat soluble vitamins and minerals like magnesium, zinc, phosphorus, and calcium. Basically, the idea is to not only get good sources and amounts of these minerals, but to ensure that they gets absorbed and used.
And guess what makes minerals like magnesium, zinc, phosphorus, and calcium useless? Eating grains. Grains are loaded with phytates, which bind to minerals and make them unavailable.
(Related: How To Cure A Toothache Naturally)
The fat soluble vitamins we’re mostly talking about here are Vitamin D and Vitamin K2. If you don’t eat enough of these, your teeth and bones won’t easily remineralize. To be properly absorbed, these vitamins require decent amounts of fat in the diet.
Vitamin D can easily come from fatty fish or daily sun exposure. If you spend a lot of time inside, or live where you don’t get enough sun, then you might want to consider a good-quality liquid D3 supplement. Alternatively, or perhaps ideally, fermented cod liver oil is not only a great source of Vitamin D, it’s also a healthy source of Vitamin A, another fat soluble vitamin.
Vitmain K2 can is only found in a few foods like butter from grass-fed, pastured cows and duck fois gras. K2, we now know, is an activator for Vitamins A and D, and was called “Activator X” by Dr. Price. If you’re goal is to heal tooth decay, you need to supplement or ensure you’re getting enough of both Vitamin D and K2.
If you’re looking to increase the minerals you need to help heal your teeth, you can eat a lot of meat protein and drink bone broth/stock.
Recommendations for Healing Tooth Decay
When you accept the fact that it is possible to not only prevent tooth decay, but reverse any existing dental issues that you have, you can start the steps that will help you.
First of all, cut all grains from your diet. White rice is fairly benign with few phytates, so if you must eat a grain, choose that one. Reduce the amount of natural sugar in your diet (stick to dark berries and other less-sweet fruit), and get enough Vitamin D, Vitamin A, and Vitamin K2. Eat generous amounts of cooked vegetables, bone stocks and broths, and meat. If you can tolerate it, liver and other organs from pastured animals are chock-full of fat soluble vitamins and minerals that your body will love.
(Related: The Complete Guide to Perfect Teeth) [author_bio name=”yes” avatar=”yes”]
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