"The terms oral health and general health should not be interpreted as separate entities. Oral health is integral to general health: Oral health means more than healthy teeth and you cannot be healthy without oral health." Donna E. Shalala, Secretary of Health and Human Resources. "Oral Health in America: A Report of the Surgeon General."
For the Health Professional
I wrote this for the many physicians and health care professionals who believe they are now taking a whole body (holistic) approach to treating their patients. If that is your philosophy, I suggest you read through this and learn more about the important role oral health plays in overall health. You will discover that until you take your patients’ oral health into consideration when treating them for any existing health problem, you will not be taking a 'truly holistic' approach to health. Until you do, I believe any treatment protocol you use will not achieve the results you seek, and the patient desires and expects.
Bridging the Gap between the Medical and Dental Professions
The communication gap between the dental and medical communities began over 150 years ago when dentistry split from medicine. The result of this gap is that most patients and health professionals are unaware of the effect that dental disease (particularly gum disease), mercury from amalgam fillings, and other oral health issues can have on overall health. Vital and necessary information regarding this is not being shared between the two professions, and your patients are the ones who suffer for it.
The Relationship of Oral to Overall Health
Are you aware that dental disease can have a serious effect on overall health? The long held belief that gum disease is a localized, minor disease of the teeth and gums has not withstood the test of time. It is a serious disease of the body. It may originate in the gums and teeth, but left unchecked, the destruction it can cause is definitely not restricted to the mouth. An increasing body of evidence now shows that gum disease can increase the risk of:
• Heart attack by as much as 25%;
• Stroke by a factor of 10;
• Respiratory disease;
• Pancreatic cancer;
• Digestive disease; and
• Preterm low birth weights.
Gum disease can also make it more difficult to control diabetes and is now considered a factor in osteoporosis. It can also severely stress the immune system, lowering the body's resistance to other diseases and can actually reduce life expectancy.
A number of oral health issues can negatively affect systemic health. The most important of these are:
1. Gum (periodontal) disease;
2. Mercury amalgam silver fillings;
3. Infected root canals;
4. Cavitations (infected extraction sites);
5. Fluoride;
6. Non-biocompatible dental materials; and
7. Other Diseases of the oral cavity.
The impact of these oral health issues on overall health is determined by the seriousness and duration of each, and how many are present in the individual.
More Than One Oral Health Concern
There is a strong possibility that a patient could be affected by one or all of a number of the above oral health problems. For example, a patient could have periodontal disease (the most serious form of gum disease), suffer from chronic mercury poisoning, have an infection from a failed root canal, a cavitation infection, an allergic reaction to dental materials, and even fluoride poisoning—all present at the same time. Can you definitively say that none of your patients suffer any of those problems?
I have another question for you. How many of your patients are suffering from health issues related to degenerative diseases and a depleted immune system? I’d say a majority are and I strongly recommend you take appropriate measures to determine whether periodontal disease, amalgam fillings, or any of the other oral problems I've mentioned are contributing to the cause or severity of those diseases.
Determining and eliminating the source or contributing factor to any health problem should always be included in treating any illness. Not to do so would jeopardize the success of the patient’s treatment and preclude the desired outcome. While there is no legal responsibility for any health professional to include the state of a patient's oral health as part of his/her total health assessment, I believe there is an ethical and moral one.
Gum Disease: A Serious Infection of the Body
The role of gum disease as a contributing and even causative factor in systemic diseases is not debatable. You cannot afford to overlook this relationship when treating a patient with any serious health problem. I know you are aware that infection, especially such a serious and long lasting one as gum disease, will negatively affect the entire body. But are you aware of just how serious it is? It has been estimated that if laid out flat, the infected area in a mild form of gum disease would cover the size of a postcard. In moderate-to-severe gum disease, the total infected area would cover an area the size of a standard sheet of paper.
Gum disease can be a very serious infection, one that not only involves the skin and soft tissue, but the underlying bone as well. I am certain that if the area of infection from moderate to severe gum disease were transferred to the head and neck, or any other part of the body, you would consider this to be an emergency situation and initiate immediate treatment. Yet this condition exists in tens of millions of Americans, 24 hours a day, 7 days a week. Can you tell me how many of your patients have this form of gum disease, or the extent and severity of it? I’m not going into further detail about the cause, treatment and prevention of gum disease, because everything you and your patients would ever want to know about this subject can be found in my book, Tooth Fitness: Your Guide to Healthy Teeth. Additional information about the book is available by linking to Tooth Fitness.
Chronic Mercury Poisoning from Mercury-Amalgam Fillings
Possibly even more damaging to overall health is the chronic mercury poisoning that results from the release of mercury vapor from amalgam (silver) fillings. Many alternative health professionals are well aware of this health problem. If you are unfamiliar, or unsure of its effect on overall health, I highly recommend my latest book, Mercury Detoxification: The Natural Way to Remove Mercury from Your Body. The book explains how these toxic fillings affect the health and well being of everyone who has them, especially the fetus, nursing baby, and young child. It will also explain how devastating mercury is to the immune system and how the secondary (indirect) effects of chronic mercury poisoning will, over time, be even more destructive to one’s health. You can also read a summary of the relationship of amalgam fillings to chronic mercury Poisoning by Clicking Here.
My book will also be your A to Z guide as to how to effectively remove accumulated mercury from the body. I know that the book will add to your existing knowledge base and will be an invaluable source of information for you and your patients. More information about this important subject is found on my website, inlcuding an artilce I wrote on Autism. Chronic Mercury Poisoning: What You Need to Know
As a health professional, I know you’d be concerned if you knew a patient was suffering from chronic mercury poisoning. It wouldn’t matter whether the source of exposure was occupation, environment, or dental fillings. I also know you would want to support your patient’s efforts to determine the extent of the poisoning and initiate treatment to remove the accumulated mercury.
But did you know that mercury amalgam fillings are the number one source of chronic mercury poisoning, far greater than any other source, including seafood? If you’ve been under the illusion that mercury amalgam fillings don’t pose a health hazard, you'll see it in a far different way when you read my book. As you’ll discover, there is a simple and inexpensive and objective fecal metals test that will alleviate any skepticism you or a patient may have.
The symptoms of chronic mercury poisoning are many and the health problems mercury can directly, or indirectly, cause, contribute to or make worse is extensive. To review them, Click on Symptoms & Diseases Related to Chronic Mercury Poisoning.
Smoking Tooth Video: Mercury Vapor being Released from Amalgam Fillings
If you have any doubt that mercury vapor is released from amalgam fillings then I encourage you to view the video, Smoking Teeth = Poison Gas, produced by Dr. David Kennedy for the International Academy of Oral Medicine and Toxicology (IAOMT). This extraordinary video clear demonstrates that mercury vapor is released from amalgam fillings. There are many scientific studies that prove this, but it's one thing to read about it and yet another to actually see mercury vapor being released from these poison releasing fillings. The video can be seen on YouTube by Clicking Here. The short video also offers other evidence of the toxicity of mercury amalgam, silver, fillings and is well worth the few minutes of your time it takes to view it.
Referenced and Abstracted Articles
I've accumulated nearly 1,100 referenced and abstracted articles about mercury amalgam fillings, chronic mercury poisoning and mercury detoxification. For more information Click Here.
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