Longevity and Your Healthy Mouth

Dental health can have wide-reaching effects on overall health.

Poor oral health can make you susceptible to other health conditions.

A clean mouth contains several hundred billion bacteria, and this number increases tenfold when the mouth is not sufficiently cleaned.

Periodontitis is a chronic inflammatory oral disease that affects approximately 75% of U.S. adults. Periodontitis has harmful effects on overall wellness. It predisposes people to:

• Diabetes
• Insulin resistance
• Respiratory diseases
• Rheumatoid arthritis
• Obesity
• Osteoporosis
• Complications of pregnancy
• Cardiovascular diseases such as –
  • Atherosclerosis
  • Hart attack
  • Congestive heart failure
  • Coronary artery disease

If you are planning to enjoy longevity, it helps if you still have your own sound teeth. Poor dental health is as life shortening as smoking.

Here are a few suggestions to care for your teeth and gums.

One of the best things you can do for the condition of your mouth is to gargle, or even better, WaterPik® with warm salt water. The salt water will kill many of the bacteria that inhabit your teeth and gums and will do a more effective job of removing and dissolving food debris than water alone.

Brushing and flossing are of course absolutely necessary for most of us but cannot always reach all the food particles in your mouth. That’s why we suggest using a WaterPik® as part of your oral hygiene routine. Any bacteria you have in your mouth are there because they have a food source. A WaterPik® can remove nearly all the remaining food particles in your mouth.

Then finish the job with an Oral-B 500 electric toothbrush. It’s the best I have found. And don’t use detergent, commonly known as commercial toothpaste, on your teeth and gums, especially if you have red or swollen gums. Instead, rejuvenate your teeth and gums with Revitin Oral Therapy. You can find it at www.Revitin.com.

If you are really curious about how you are doing with your oral hygiene, you can buy plaque staining tablets at most pharmacies. The plaque will be temporarily dyed red on your teeth. Once you know where your problem areas are, you can focus on them better. But while brushing and flossing are important, they are not even close to the most important factor for healthy teeth and longevity. What is most important is your diet.

Even your regular dental checkup may be damaging to your teeth.

If you are already experiencing difficulties with your teeth or gums, we suggest you be wary of dentists who are overly eager to drill or perform root canals. Gum abscesses, for instance, are often mistaken for nerve abscesses, which require a root canal. Gum infections can be cured without any surgery, simply by your own aggressive steps, with good oral hygiene or by using antibiotics.

When you have teeth scraped free of tartar, you assume a risk of scraping some of your enamel off as well. It is much more effective to simply dissolve away tartar than to scrape it.

It may also be untrue that you cannot regenerate your teeth if damage has occurred to them. You may be able to remineralize your teeth with a highly concentrated solution of calcium and phosphorus – for as long you have life with longevity.

For more information on these subjects, look at Dr. Robert O. Nara’s work. Dr. Nara founded an oral hygiene program called Oramedics. He wrote a book on the subject: Money by the Mouthful: Everything That You Need to Know About the Health of your Mouth and Body That No Doctor’s Going to Tell You.

Finally, should you have your amalgam (silver) fillings removed?

Some studies show they cause mercury poisoning from the mercury leeching from the fillings. Other studies show the levels of mercury are too low to cause harm and that we are well-adapted to resisting mercury poisoning. It seems some people who are highly sensitive to mercury are the ones most affected, and some are seriously affected.

My recommendation is to never get amalgam fillings if you need your teeth filled. Opt for composites. It may be a good idea to have existing fillings replaced as long as they are removed properly. If not done correctly, removing them could release toxic amounts of mercury into your system. Research and interview dentists. Specialists may belong to the International Academy of Biological Dentistry (IAOBD).