Take Good Care of Your Tooth Enamel – It’s the Only Enamel You’ll Ever Have
Many a toothpaste ad these days tells you about the need to keep your tooth enamel strong, but how many of us know what all weakens it in the first place? Not many, according to survey results recently published in the BDJ. Participants were given a list of...
How Nuts May Boost Your Health, Oral & Systemic Alike
There was an interesting piece over at Quartz recently on foods that Americans are buying less of these days. Many of those changes – less cereal, less soda – are welcome ones. Still, there’s one trend you might find a little surprising. Except for almonds, we...
How Tea May Help Your Mouth Stay Healthy
Sure, tea is tasty, and as we noted before, at least some teas – green, in particular – may help support healthy gums. Now, new research suggests that tea may also help boost microbial diversity in the mouth. Your mouth is loaded with billions of microbes from...
The Scent of (Dental) Fear – & Ways of Dealing with That Fear
When a patient is nervous, it often shows. Even if they don’t say anything about it, the dentist or hygienist can see it in their body language, their posture, how they may grip the edges or armrests of the dental chair just a bit. And according to a new study in...
Teething Gel Trouble – and Some Natural Alternatives
Several years ago, the FDA began warning parents about using benzocaine-based gels to ease the discomfort of teething. Benzocaine is a local anesthetic that’s used in many over-the-counter remedies for not just teething but toothache, sore throat, canker sores, and...
For Cleaning Between Your Teeth, This May Be Better & Easier Than Floss
Don’t like to floss? We get it. But you still need to clean between your teeth and along your gum line. Even the highest tech toothbrush can’t reach those areas effectively. And because those areas are less accessible, pathogens can really thrive there. As they do,...
Even the Cleanest Mouth Contains Billions of Bacteria & Other Microbes
It’s kind of stunning to think about: Your body contains roughly as many microbes as human cells. If you could gather them all together and weigh them, they’d come to about two pounds. Most dwell in your gut, but billions live in your mouth, representing hundreds...
A Look Back at…Long-Term Solutions for TMJ Disorders
Originally posted April 13, 2017; updated Anywhere from 5 to 12% of the US population has TMJ disorder (TMD) – that is, a problem with the temporomandibular joints that allow your jaw to open and close. Typical symptoms include clicking or popping sounds when you...
Treating Gum Disease May Help with Arthritis
Considering that your teeth are connected with your body, physically and energetically, it only makes sense that tending to the health of one might improve the health of the other. Through recent years, we’ve seen more and more science supporting this fact,...
Essential Oils for TMJ Pain
One big difference between holistic, biological dentistry and standard approaches is the emphasis on treating causes, not simply easing symptoms. But, of course, there are times when symptom relief is desired, such as when pain from TMJ dysfunction (TMD) flares up...
A More Effective Way to Prevent Cavities
Weren't we all told in English class to avoid absolute terms such as “everyone,” “none,” “never,” and “always”? Maybe the writer of this Reader's Digest headline was absent that day: According to the list that follows, one thing dentists “always” do is use a lot of...
Concerned about Mercury in Your Mouth?
People who seek holistic, biological offices like ours aren't your average dental patients. For one, they tend to come in having already done a lot of research about the mouth/body connection and how dental conditions may be playing a role in their overall health....
Fluoride & Your Thyroid
As we’ve noted before, the thyroid is a small but mighty gland that sits just above your collarbone and plays a key role in every single bodily function. The thyroid itself regulates all of your cellular metabolism; your energy, how you grow, heal and regenerate,...
Guest Post: Which Plant-Based Milks Are Best?
Our thanks to the office of St. Louis biological dentist Dr. Michael Rehme for letting us share this post from their blog. The original is here. Cow’s milk is a complete food, at least for baby cows. It has a good balance of proteins, fats, and...
Why You Need Sleep – & Tips for Getting More of It (Better Quality Sleep, Too!)
A lot of people don't realize this, but sleep loss is second only to smoking as a risk factor for gum disease. And that's just the tip of the proverbial iceberg when it comes to why you need to sleep. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pwNMvUXTgDY This, of course,...
Ready to Start Brewing Your Own Probiotic Drinks at Home?
Recently, we were given a copy of a book called Kombucha, Kefir, and Beyond, which promised to be “A Fun and Flavorful Guide to Fermenting Your Own Probiotic Beverages at Home.” We’re happy to say that it lived up to its word, with authors Raquel Guajardo and Alex...
A Look Back at…Thermography
Originally posted June 29, 2017; updated Most of us are raised with a rather reactive and passive relationship with healthcare. You see your doctor or dentist only once something goes wrong and expect them to fix it. But functional and biological medicine remind us...
The Best Way to Treat Gum Disease? Avoid it!
But how do you go about doing that? You can start by not adding fuel to the fire: If you smoke or use tobacco, quit. It’s the number one risk factor for periodontal disease and tooth loss. Make sure you get 7 to 9 hours of quality sleep each night. If you brux...
Got Gum Disease? Treatment Could Save Your Life
Periodontal disease affects up to 80% of Americans. It’s not just a problem in the mouth, either. It’s been linked to many other conditions, including heart disease, stroke, diabetes, rheumatoid arthritis, and some cancers. The good news? Periodontal therapy can...
Mouth Guards May Protect More than Just an Athlete’s Teeth
With this year’s Super Bowl right around the corner, most Americans have at least a little bit of football on the brain – if not for the championship match-up itself, the unveiling of new, often over-the-top ads throughout it. But whether you watch it for the game...
