What Do Your Teeth Say About Your Health?

Do your teeth reflect your health?  Dr. Weston A. Price believed so.  This world famous dentist pioneered the belief that nutrition directly affects our teeth.  Even in the early 1900’s, he believed that our modern day diet of processed and refined food directly affected the health and longevity of our teeth.  Dr. Price made it his mission to find out what our teeth really needed holistically to stay healthy and cavity free.

After examining the teeth of many native tribes around the world (all of which had remarkable teeth even without brushing), Weston Price put together a diet he felt would prevent and treat dental decay.

Using his nutritional approach, Dr. Price was able to prevent over 95% of cavities!  He was also able to see cavities heal themselves, once the diet was followed correctly and for an adequate amount of time.  This may seem crazy, but if bones can heal themselves after a fracture or break, why would a tooth not be able to heal?  We can literally remineralize our teeth and holes from cavities can fill in!

Dr. Price’s dietary recommendations to prevent and treat dental decay include:

• Eliminating processed foods like white flour and sugar.  He also suggests eating soaked or sprouted grains.  Soaking and sprouting breaks down the phytic acid, which can damage your enamel.

• Eliminating hydrogenated and other toxic oils and replacing them with healthy ones like extra virgin coconut oil. This means tossing your vegetable and canola oils into the garbage!  They are not good for you, are toxic and processed. Olive and sesame are okay to use, in addition to extra virgin coconut oil.

• Taking cod liver oil.  I recommend Carlson’s brand, although many of those who follow Weston Price’s teachings prefer the fermented Blue Ice brand cod liver oil.

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  Making your own bone broth stocks that are packed full of minerals and gelatin. This is very easy and inexpensive.  Get soup bones from your local butcher and use your crock-pot to cook the broth.  Drink a mug or two a day or make a delicious soup.

• Eating fermented foods like kefir, yogurt, and sauerkraut and drinking kombucha.  These are packed with good bacteria, which help keep bad bacteria in your mouth and digestive system under control.

• Using raw pastured dairy for your milk, butter, and cheese. Dr. Price believed butter oil was extremely important in healing the teeth.  You can get it naturally through eating a lot of pastured butter, or you can buy it in pill form from Blue Ice.

• Increasing your foods high in K2 like cheese, bone marrow, butter oil and liver.

• Getting adequate vitamin D. Make sure you’re out in the sun 30 minutes a day or take at least 5000 IU of D3.

For more information on what to eat, I would recommend the book “Nourishing Traditions” by Sally Fallon.  You can also read Dr. Price’s book called “Nutrition and Physical Degeneration” for more on his research.

The Tooth – Organ Connection 

Many of you may be familiar with acupuncture or even reflexology. In acupuncture, special needles are applied along different meridians or pathways, which connect to different parts of the body. The needles are used to help align imbalances along those meridians.  In reflexology, it is believed that the foot is essentially a map of the body.  Applying pressure to different parts of the foot can balance its corresponding body part.

Chinese Medicine believes that our teeth also have meridians that correspond with body parts.  Every tooth contains nerves, which are connected to our brain. These nerves send messages to specific places throughout your body.  If you have a decaying tooth, the energy flow to the body part it is connected to may suffer.  For example, if your upper right 3 has a cavity, the energy flow to your gallbladder may be compromised. This may not cause any noticeable symptoms, but in many cases it does.  A sluggish gallbladder could result causing digestive discomfort.

A diseased tooth can cause disease in an organ, or vise versa.  Many other things can also disrupt the meridians that are connected to your teeth.

• Poor dental work
• Toxic tooth materials like amalgam
• Non-vital teeth
• Granulomas
• Root Canals
• Gum Disease

Look at the chart and compare your cavities or tooth problems.  It may just amaze you how accurate it is. 

Holistic Dentistry is Key

To fix your tooth imbalances, it is best to find a holistic dentist.  They can fix your problem both safely and naturally. You can also check the Holistic Dental Association, but many natural dentists aren’t registered.  I’ve found this to be the most comprehensive list:[am4show guest_error=’noaccess’ ] http://www.greenpeople.org/HolisticDentistry.html

If you have a cavity filled at a regular dentist, ask for composite.  DO NOT GET AMALGAM!  Amalgam is toxic and contains 50% mercury.  Also, never have your old amalgams removed by a dentist who is not trained in holistic dentistry.  If amalgams are not removed properly, the vapors from the mercury in the filling can outgas during drilling, causing mercury toxicity in the body.  Holistic dentists have special equipment that keep you safe.  Even if you have to drive several hours,  your health is worth amalgam removal.

Cavity Healing Toothpaste 

Your toothpaste also plays a very important part in tooth repair and remineralization.

There are a few very important things you want to avoid in your toothpaste.

• Fluoride: Fluoride is toxic and we already get way too much of it our water supply.  Adding it to toothpaste is not beneficial and only leads to higher toxic levels in the body.

• Glycerin: Although glycerin is natural, it coats the teeth impairing remineralization.

• Sodium Lauryl Sulfate: This is a really harsh soap that should not be swallowed.  Avoid it in your body wash and shampoos, as well.

• Artificial Sweeteners and other “Chemical” ingredients: These things are toxic to the body and should never be used in a toothpaste.

I have found that even “natural” toothpastes contain one or more of these ingredients.  Glycerin seems to be the hardest to avoid.  I believe the solution is to just make your own!  It will also save you money!

Make Your Own Remineralizing Toothpaste!

I have come across what I’ve found to be one of the best toothpastes for tooth remineralization.  This is not toothpaste that you buy, but one you make yourself.  This toothpaste is free of chemicals and packed full of minerals and bacteria fighting ingredients.

Here is how you make your own remineralizing toothpaste.

Remineralizing Toothpaste Recipe

What you’ll need:

• 5 tbsp calcium powder or dolomite powder: This contains the mineral calcium our teeth need for optimal health.
• 1 tbsp diatomaceous earth: Contains many minerals including silica and is a mild abrasive 
• 3 tbsp xylitol: This natural sweetener actually inhibits the growth of bacteria in the mouth.
• 3-5 parts coconut oil (to desired consistency): Coconut oil is anti-fungal, anti-viral and anti-bacterial.
• 10 drops of grapefruit seed extract (optional): This is a natural preservative that is also anti-viral, antifungal and anti-bacterial.
• 10 drops of essential oils: This is for flavor.  Peppermint oil is most common, but kids enjoy orange. You could also add germ-fighting oils like myrrh, clove and tea tree oil.
• 10+ drops of stevia (optional): This helps to naturally sweeten your toothpaste.  Some don’t mind toothpaste without, but my kids and I prefer it added.

Directions:

Mix the dry ingredients one at a time, in your bowl.  Slowly add the coconut oil and grapefruit seed extract while stirring.  Add your essential oils and taste for your preferred flavor.

You can apply the toothpaste with a popsicle stick or dip your toothbrush into the paste.  Brush as usual!

You can watch me make my very own remineralizing toothpaste in this video I created for Home Cures That Work members!  So easy to follow and worth every tooth you want to keep.  Watch the How-To video here.

If you don’t want to make your toothpaste from scratch, OraWellness and Eco-dent both make great toothpaste powders with remineralizing ingredients.

With the proper diet and the proper remineralizing toothpaste, you can have the kind of teeth dentists praise.  Give natural dental health a shot and watch those cavities disappear!

Did you compare your teeth to the chart above?  I would LOVE to know if you had corresponding tooth and body issues.  Let’s talk below!