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Click here to Order Tooth Fitness: Your Guide to Healthy Teeth
Chapter 1: Know Thy Enemy: The Truth about Tooth Decay
Dental disease is not an obscure and mysterious ailment. You didn’t inherit dental disease from your mom or your grandfather. It’s not something that was left behind by visiting aliens. You don’t get it from kissing, and in spite of what some people believe, it certainly isn’t part of a secret plot by the dental profession to stir up business.
Dental disease is not only a disease of the mouth but also a disease of the body. Any time a part of your body becomes diseased, it affects your entire body’s immune system. The stress can become most harmful when the disease is a chronic one, which is the form of dental disease that most people suffer from.
Dental disease, especially gum disease, starts slowly, increases in severity, and then tenaciously hangs on. It doesn’t take long for it to overload your body’s protective defenses twenty-four hours a day, for as long as you have the disease.
Not only does it drain your energy, it ends up dramatically lowering your body’s resistance to any other disease to which you may be exposed. When you look dental disease in this way, you can no longer afford to think of dental disease as an insignificant or harmless condition that affects only your teeth.
Chapter 2: Gum Disease & Health Risks
Gum disease is less commonly known as periodontal disease. Although the term gum disease is a familiar one and easy to remember, it’s not an altogether accurate term and it doesn’t convey the seriousness of the disease.
The dental community acknowledges two main stages of periodontal (meaning around the tooth) disease. The first is a disease of the gums, or gingiva, called gingivitis. Uncared for it will lead to a more serious form or gum disease, periodontitis, which is a disease of the ligament and bone that hold your teeth in your jaws. While tooth decay may wound a tooth, the real killer of teeth is periodontal disease. If we had a criminal penal code for classifying the seriousness of dental disease, decay would be considered a misdemeanor and periodontal disease would be a felony.
It’s one thing to think you might have a ‘little’ gum problem. It’s another thing entirely to realize that this disease actually infects and destroys the tissues, ligaments, and bones of your body. If you knew the tissues, ligament, and bones in your arm were slowly being destroyed I’d venture to guess that you would immediately see a doctor. Am I right? Well the only difference between the two is where they are located and the tissues, ligaments, and bones of your mouth are every bit as much a part of your body as those of your arm. Ponder that for a few moments.
In the process of infecting your gums, ligaments, and surrounding bone, bacteria and toxins can gain access to the blood supply and can cause, contribute, or make worse just about every disease we know of. There can no longer be any doubt about the seriousness of gum disease and the harmful effect it has on overall health. If you truly want to be healthy you can no longer afford to ignore the relationship of oral health to overall health!
Chapter 3: Oral Self-Examination
You need to understand health before you can understand disease, so in this chapter I will describe the look, feel, and smell of healthy gums. After that I’ll tell you how to spot the telltale signs of gum disease, using my home method of oral self-examination. Then, in the second part of this chapter, you’ll examine your teeth. And in the third part, you’ll take a look at your tongue, glands, and saliva.
By examining your own mouth before you are professionally examined at the dental office, and before you begin your new oral hygiene program, you’ll get your own visual reference point from which to monitor your progress.
If you repeat your oral self-examination after spending three to four weeks on your dental disease prevention program, you’ll see for yourself how much can be accomplished through your own efforts at oral hygiene. Because the improvement you will witness will be the result of your efforts, seeing it for yourself will be very motivating and empowering. I am confident that your oral self-examination will show you things about your mouth that you have never seen before. Amazing when you think that you’ve lived with your mouth your entire life.
Chapter 4: The Tools of Your Trade
Your Guide to Healthy Teeth will make you a specialist in dental disease prevention. Like any specialist, you need to be thoroughly knowledgeable about the tools of your trade. You’ll need to know which tools are available and how to pick the best tools for your unique oral condition. How and when you use these tools is a critically important part of a successful oral hygiene program. When you finish this chapter you will know how to use every important dental preventive tool and why. If you want your dental disease prevention program to be successful you can’t afford to skip this chapter.
Chapter 5: Dental Disease Prevention Program
Well, we’ve covered a lot of ground together. Now you understand the cause of tooth decay and gum disease. You also know how to perform an oral self-examination and which tools you need to fight these diseases. But acquiring knowledge is not enough. You must turn that knowledge into action. If you’re ready to do that, this is the chapter that will show you how.
When you have integrated what you learn in this chapter with the instructions and guidance your hygienist and dentist provide, you will have a dental disease prevention program that is customized to your mouth. However, understand that no matter how well your hygiene program is designed, you must also be willing to include all of the following actions as part of your total prevention program.
• Have existing tooth and gum disease treated. Remember, you must first get rid of the disease before you can prevent its return.
• Do as much as you can to change your diet from a dental disease-promoting one to a dental disease-preventing one.
• Resolve to brush, irrigate, floss, pick, or perform any combination of these activities immediately after eating any refined or processed foods.
• Periodically do an oral self-examination.
• Follow the cleaning recall schedule established by your hygienist.
Chapter 6: Finding a Dentist and a Dental Hygienist
If you don’t have a regular dentist, or if you are looking for a new one, this chapter will help you find one. Finding just any dentist is about as easy as breathing or falling off a log. Finding the right one for you is not so easy, but with a little effort, it can be done. Dentists are not stamped out like auto parts. As such, they have different personalities and different attitudes and approaches to dental treatment, prevention, and their patients’ oral and overall health. And they are not all the same when it comes to the quality of their work—some are definitely better than others. This makes it especially important to find the right one for you. This chapter will help you do just that.
If you are looking specifically for a mercury free dentist you will find the world’s largest database listing by going to www.dentalwellness4u.com. If you already have a dentist and a dental hygienist who you feel comfortable with you can skip this chapter and go on to Chapter 7.
Chapter 7: The Dental Office: Making it Work for You
Every visit to the dentist begins with the front office. But if you do not understand what the office staff does, you’re not likely to appreciate how important they can be to your quest for oral health. They interact with a lot of people each day and not all meetings are pleasant encounters for them. So make sure yours is one of the positive ones. Treat them with kindness and you can expect to get the same in return. Not only will they appreciate it but they will be on your side and may go the extra mile to get you the appointment time you desire or be more understanding if you happen to be late on a payment. This chapter will teach you what you need to know about the front office.
Chapter 8: Working with the Dental Hygienist
Because this book’s main focus is on prevention, this chapter is devoted to the person who will, if you let her or him, play the most critical role in your overall dental disease prevention program—the registered dental hygienist (RDH). (Many dentists perform hygiene therapy as well, so when I refer to the hygienist, I’m also including them.)
In this chapter you will discover what she does and why, as well as how to take full advantage of her knowledge and experience. Establishing a positive relationship with the dental hygienist could make the difference between a successful or unsuccessful oral hygiene program. And as with any harmonious relationship, both participants will benefit from it, a classic win-win situation.
This chapter is also intended to help make your dental hygienist’s work easier and certainly more rewarding. There are other sections in the book you may be able to browse through or skip altogether, but this is not one of them. In fact, if you have moderate to advanced gum disease this could be the most important chapter in Tooth Fitness.
Your dental hygienist is not a dentist but she can certainly be called a preventive dental specialist. Not only is she qualified to perform oral hygiene therapy and be a great source of knowledge but she is also your in-office oral guide and support person.
As your personal guide to dental disease prevention, your dental hygienist will be one of the best values you may ever get in the dental office. When all is said and done, her primary role is to help you save your teeth. As the preventive expert of the dental team, her role is to “save them so the dentist can fix them so you can smile and eat with them.” It doesn’t take a rocket scientist to figure out that no matter how good a dentist is at repair, he or she can’t fix them if you don’t have them.”
Chapter 9: Working with the Dentist
While the dental hygienist is the most important person for your dental disease prevention process, the dentist is the key to the repair process—your tooth repair specialist. Believe me, no one else can fill this role and he or she is the one who will restore your teeth to health and function.
You can do a lot on your own to cure and prevent dental disease, a lot more with the help of your dental hygienist, but until you actually get the damage that has already been done repaired, you’ll never be able to take control over the health of your mouth.
Oral hygiene is as important to your teeth as it is to your gum health. You could find the best dentist in the universe and then spend your life’s savings for the best dental repair work, but if you’re not willing to take care of the best dental work it won’t last as long as poor dental work that is well taken care of.
As long as you need your dentist to repair the problems caused by dental disease, there are some valuable things you should be aware of to make the best of your relationship.
Chapter 10: Dental Fear
The American Dental Association (ADA) estimates that half the people in the United States have some fear of dentistry. Other sources estimate that as many as 40 million people are so afraid of the dental experience that they avoid dental treatment altogether. Because of their fear they would rather risk losing their teeth than seek dental treatment.
Whatever you want to call it—fear, anxiety, worry, or apprehension—you pay for it in many ways, none of them beneficial. For one, you suffer the psychological trauma of the fear. This generates stress and when this stress is combined with the stress on your body generated by dental disease, your health will be severely undermined. Remember, gum disease can cause, contribute to, and make worse, every disease we know of.
Your dental phobia can also cost you a great deal of money because if it could even keep you from the dentist until you need to have all of your teeth extracted. Yet even having them extracted is costly and you’ll end up with the ongoing expense of dentures.
Avoiding treatment because of your dental fear will also affect your social life and ultimately your self-esteem, because dental disease causes unsightly tooth loss, ruins your smile, and is the leading cause of bad breath. No matter how you look at it, you suffer far more from not dealing with your fears than you ever would from seeking the necessary treatment for dental disease.
There are many reasons people develop dental fear and they all can be dealt with but it all begins with your willingness to look at and deal with it. If you’re so anxious about going to the dentist that it delays—or worse prevents—you from seeking regular treatment, this could be the most important chapter for you in Tooth Fitness.
Chapter 11: Dental Emergencies
As far as I’m concerned, you have an emergency situation as soon as your teeth or gums have become diseased. You can either catch it early (while it is still a little emergency), through regular dental examinations and repair, or wait until your body’s defense mechanisms can no longer fight off dental disease. The problem with that approach is that it leads to a big emergency situation.
You can have a dental emergency even if there is little or no pain involved. This means you cannot afford to let pain be the sole indicator of what constitutes a dental emergency. Millions of people are walking around with a dental emergency just waiting to happen—all because they believed that it must always be associated with pain.
Much suffering and expense have resulted from patients not recognizing this fact. A tooth can literally be rotting away inside and you may never see or feel it until it’s too late. Likewise, the bone and ligaments that hold your teeth in the jawbones can slowly but surely be dissolving away from gum disease—and you many only get hints of the destruction taking place. When it comes to a dental emergency, whether it is a big one or a little one—the sooner you deal with it the better.
I sincerely hope you’ve never had a dental emergency, and never will have one, but in case you, or a family member, or a friend, ever find yourself in an emergency situation, you should know what to look for and what you can do about it at home. This is important information because dental emergencies always seem to show up when you can’t immediately access a dentist. This is a chapter you don’t have to worry about memorizing but having access to it will be invaluable if you ever have a dental emergency.
Chapter 12: Dental Specialists
It was a big step for humankind when barber-dentists dropped their combs and razors and became dentists only. For one thing, it meant there would no longer be hair on the floor when they worked on someone’s teeth. It was just as big a step when dentists began to specialize. It was also a logical step and one that, in spite of some of the drawbacks of specialization, has positively benefited the dental patient.
Every dentist has some training in each of the specialized areas of dentistry and in many cases your dentist can provide you with the same quality treatment as the specialist. But there’s a point at which he or she won’t be able to offer you the same skill and experience. Most dentists are aware of what they can and cannot do and will refer you to a specialist when necessary. Whenever your dentist wants to work in any of the specialized fields of dentistry, there’s only one question I’d want you to ask: “Doctor, if this was your mouth and you needed this procedure done, would you refer yourself to a specialist?”
From my experience, most dental patients will have need of, and benefit from a visit to a dental specialist at some point in their lives. It would be great if general dentists took the time to explain what a particular specialist does but usually they don’t have that time. This is also true of the dental specialist and many aren’t inclined to discuss their specialty with you. The purpose of this chapter is to fill in the gap, so to speak, and make you aware of the various dental specialties and what you should know about them.
Chapter 13: Cosmetic Dentistry: Looking Good
Cosmetic dentistry is pretty much what the name implies, dentistry that makes you look better. More accurately, cosmetic dentistry is designed to make your teeth look better. And if your teeth look better you will feel better about your teeth and yourself.
Cosmetic dentistry, also referred to as aesthetic dentistry, has always been a part of the practice of dentistry. The problem was that the choices available to you in the past were expensive and limited. Recently there have been tremendous advances in materials and techniques and cosmetic dentistry has now become one of the most innovative, exciting, and affordable areas of modern dentistry. Although not officially recognized as a dental specialty there are so many dentists whose practice is literally devoted to it that I predict it will soon become one.
Because new materials and techniques are continuously being made available I will not deal with specific names or brands. That information you can get from your dentist but I do explain your options and if you plan on having any cosmetic dental work done this chapter would be a good place to begin.
Chapter 14: Dental Restorations
After your oral hygiene therapy, the dentist will present his treatment plans and you must then decide which one is best for you. The information presented in this chapter is intended to help you understand what the dentist is talking about so you won’t be intimidated by the choices. You’ll be introduced to a wide array of dental restorations: from mercury amalgam fillings, composites, gold, porcelain, porcelain-to-metal, to partial and full dentures. No matter how good it is, a book can’t see and it can’t tell you what type of restoration you’ll need (that decision is ultimately up to you and your dentist). But with a basic understanding of the available restorations, you’ll be more able to make an educated decision. This chapter will provide you with the information to do just that.
Chapter 15: Dentures and Implants
If you happen to be one of the tens of millions who have lost all of your teeth, the phrase dental disease prevention won’t have the same meaning for you as it does for the rest of the population. But even though it may be too late for you to save your teeth, there’s still a lot you can do to make the best of a difficult situation. You can take advantage of the latest in denture and implant technology. Not only can dentures be made better than ever before, but implants (devices implanted into the jawbone to which an artificial tooth, bridge, partial, or denture can be attached) have dramatically improved the options available for those who have unfortunately lost their teeth.
If you fall into this category and have considered dentures or implants this chapter will be a good place to begin your education. But before I begin I want to mention that dentures and implants are very technique sensitive and in most cases you would be best served by finding a specialist in these areas. It is also important to note that, in regard to implants, the number one reason why they fail is a lack of good oral hygiene. So don’t’ think that just because the implant and tooth are artificial that it doesn’t have to be properly taken care of. The fact is that it needs even more attention than a natural tooth and if you go this route you had better be committed to your oral hygiene.
Chapter 16: Nutrition and Your Teeth
Although it’s possible to eat an unhealthy, sugar filled diet and still prevent dental disease, you can do so only if you strictly (and I do mean strictly) follow the procedures outlined in the home care chapter (Chapter 5). This means spending extra time with your toothbrush, and other preventive tools, and establishing a permanent relationship with your dental hygienist and dentist. This is the only way you can compensate for a poor, dental disease causing diet and ward off what could be prevented easily and naturally by a healthy diet.
The amount of time you must spend taking care of your teeth and gums will be directly proportional to how unhealthy your diet is, especially if you’re decay prone and have, or have had, gum disease. Or, put in another way: eat better, spend less time; eat worse spend more time! But just because you can, with a great deal of effort, keep your teeth and gums relatively healthy while eating a dental disease causing diet doesn’t mean the rest of your body will be so fortunate.
Wouldn’t you suspect that if a dental disease causing diet promotes dental disease, it might promote other diseases as well? In fact, that’s precisely the case. I’m absolutely convinced that the health of the mouth reflects the health of the rest of the body. This is why it is so important to understand the relationship of oral health to overall health. This chapter introduces the concepts of diet in relationship to oral health.
Chapter 17: For the Parent and Child
When it comes to dental disease prevention, you have the unique opportunity to exercise much more control and influence over the health of your child’s oral health than the dental hygienist or dentist ever can. If you’ve given up your parental responsibility to the dentist or dental hygienist, it’s now time to take it back. Let the dentist do the repair and let the dental hygienist give the preventive support. But you can only be your child’s teacher if you understand every aspect of dental disease prevention, by setting the right example and by providing the motivation and guidance. Remember they only see your child a few times a year but you see her everyday.
(Before I go any further I want to explain that I will be referring to the child as “she.” No offense to the male child but I hope this will somewhat offset the overuse of “he” in our conventional usage.)
One of the key roles of a parent (or guardian) is to pass along information to her child that will make her life better. But if you don’t have that information how can you pass it along? You can’t and it will mean your child’s dental fate will only be a repeat of yours. So your role, in regard to your child’s oral health, is to learn your lessons well and to pass along what you have learned.
This chapter deals with your child’s dental experience from preconception through the age of about 15, or until she can effectively read and understand Tooth Fitness. It also discusses the role the pediatric (children’s) dentist plays and how to ease your child into good oral hygiene habits. It is a must read chapter if you truly care about your child’s oral and overall health.
Chapter 18: Fluoride and Mercury: Understanding the Controversy
If there are any more controversial subjects in the field of dentistry I don’t have a clue as to what they would be. Millions of dollars have been spent and millions of words have been written in an attempt to decide whether or not to fluoridate water and whether or not the use of mercury in dental fillings is harmful. To date, all efforts to resolve these often emotional controversies have failed. If the experts on both sides still can’t agree, where does that leaves you? You’re right—about half way between the rock and the hard place.
My aim here is to untangle the threads of the controversy and clear up your confusion. I believe that with the information in this chapter you’ll be able to make informed decisions regarding these subjects. The approach I take is a practical one, exploring what will work for you in the real world. But if you happen to be interested in the nitty gritty, scientific details, I’ll tell you where to look at the end of the chapter.
(Author’s note: When I wrote Tooth Fitness: Your Guide to Healthy Teeth my intention was to take a objective approach to these subjects. My subsequent research has shown that regarding mercury amalgam fillings there is really nothing good to say about them and nothing to defend. Consequently, I suggest you go to my website www.dentalwellness4u.com and decide for yourself. My suggestion is to review the two books I wrote about mercury amalgam fillings, chronic mercury poisoning and mercury detoxification: A Mouth Full of Poison: The Truth about Mercury Amalgam Fillings and Your Complete Guide to Mercury Detoxification: How to Remove Mercury from Your Teeth and Body. These books are the most informative and easy to understand books on these subjects ever written.)
Chapter 19: Aids, Hepatitis and the Dental Team
AIDS (acquired immunodeficiency syndrome) is real and it is scary. It is also no longer someone else’s problem and you can’t escape from it by hiding your head in the sand and hoping it will go away. Over the years I’ve spoken to thousands of dental patients who had concerns about getting AIDS at the dental office. The truth is that these concerns were unfounded but that doesn’t mean you shouldn’t be aware of facts.
The fact is you owe it to yourself to gather all the information you need to understand what AIDS is and what your chances are of acquiring AIDS at the dental office. If the information you now posses about AIDS stems from ignorance, fear, or prejudice, and you are using it as a reason to avoid dental treatment, you don’t have the right information. Going to the dentist will not increase your chance of getting AIDS and there is no reason to lose your teeth or undergo undue suffering because of unfounded fears.
Of course AIDS isn’t the only infectious disease you could be exposed to at the dental office. Hepatitis and other diseases can be contracted at the dental office. But because of the AIDS scare dental offices have provided both the patient and the dental team with more protection against these diseases than ever before. If “catching” something at the dental office is a concern, this is an important chapter and it should resolve any fears and anxiety you may have about these health issues.
Chapter 20: The High Cost of Dental Repair
By now you’ve figured out that this book isn’t only about preventing dental disease and saving your teeth; it’s also about finding the motivation to get involved, free yourself from this disease and improve your oral and overall health. If the destruction dental disease can cause, to your health has not motivated you to take care of your oral health, maybe the high cost of dental repair will! By participating in a dental disease prevention program and practicing sound oral health, you’ll not only save your teeth and gums, you’ll also save a great deal of money and time in the process. And I’ve heard it said a thousand times, time is money!
This chapter will not only show you why prevention is the only way to deal with the high cost of dental treatment but how to creatively fund any dental repair work you may need.
Chapter 21: Graduation
Well, you’ve made it through the book. I congratulate you because you’ve just received your bachelor’s degree in dental disease prevention. Remember, graduation is both an ending and a beginning. In this case the ending of dental disease in your life and the beginning of oral health. It means you’ve been empowered. It means you now have control over the health of your mouth. It means you can decide whether or not you want to keep it healthy. The information I’ve provided works—but only if you put it to use. Do the best you can, using the knowledge you now have to motivate yourself to eliminate dental disease from your life. If you’ve been a victim of dental disease and its related cost and suffering you can appreciate what I’m offering you.
I want to thank you for sharing this journey with me, for letting me talk to you throughout these pages about a subject that is very important to me. Its been fun and I wish you well.
I want to leave you with one last thought: Your health is your responsibility and no one will ever care more about you than you do yourself.
In health,
Dr. Tom
Click here to order Tooth Fitness: Your Guide to Healthy Teeth
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