Let’s talk a little bit about tooth enamel. Made from hard minerals, enamel is super strong – the hardest tissue in your body. But it’s not invulnerable. Some of those minerals are constantly being lost, mostly due to acids interacting with the tooth surface. Those acids can come from the food and drink you consume, […] The post Hydroxyapatite and Tooth Enamel: A Natural Match appeared first on Pride Dental ..read more

Gum disease raises your risk of diabetes. Diabetes raises your risk of gum disease. Each condition can make the other one worse. But did you know that diabetes can make you more prone to tooth decay, as well? A 2022 study found that while 67.9% of all participants had experienced caries – that’s the clinical […] The post Diabetes Can Raise Your Risk of Cavities. More Fiber May Help Lower It appeared first on Pride Dental ..read more

About a year ago, an Illinois man sued CVS, claiming that its dry mouth dietary supplement discs are falsely advertised as promoting a healthy mouth by providing lasting moisture. However, the product’s high acidity may erode or demineralize teeth, according to the lawsuit. Just how acidic is that product? According to the suit, its pH is 5.3 – not as bad as a sugary soda, about the same as carbonated mineral water. Anything with a pH lower than that of a healthy mouth – 7, or true neutral – has the potential to damage tooth enamel. This, in turn, raises the risk of tooth sensitivity, decay ..read more

In case you needed a reminder of just how important your teeth and gums are to your overall health, check out a study that just dropped in the Journal of the American Dental Association (JADA). Its authors set out to explore the link between gum disease and overall mortality via people’s self-reports on their oral health. They used two big sets of data for this – one from the Women’s Health Study and one from National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey (NHANES). In the Women’s Health Study, women who said they had gum disease in 2006 were more likely to report having worsening dental heal ..read more

Originally posted September 22, 2022 Allergic to Dental Floss: Bad Joke or Real Deal? “I’m allergic to dental floss,” sounds like a joke or maybe a weak excuse to your hygienist about why you haven’t followed their home care advice. But some people actually may be, according to a recent paper in the Journal of the American Dental Association. The paper presents four cases of periodontal (gum disease) patients who had not experienced any improvement despite extensive treatment. When tissue samples were analyzed, researchers found a wealth of plasma cells, which are often seen in allergic reacti ..read more

  A few years back, we took a brief look at some of the early research on how CBD and other cannabinoids could help control harmful bacteria in the mouth. Since then, more studies have been published that support this possibility. One of these compared cannabinoid-infused rinses to chlorhexidine, a powerful antimicrobial rinse that’s often used to treat gum disease. Plaque samples were taken from 72 adults with varying degrees of this infection. Those samples were then exposed to several different mouthwashes: a popular alcohol-based mouthwash with essential oils; a popular alcohol-free f ..read more

  When we first wrote about probiotics and oral health, products like probiotic toothpastes and rinses were only just starting to appear. Now, a simple Google search will bring up loads of options, as well as oral supplements to help good bacteria thrive in the mouth, keeping harmful bacteria in check. By the next time we blogged about probiotics, prebiotics had become a thing, too – substances that set the stage for helpful bacteria to work their magic in helping us stay healthy and resilient. Now, here we are more than five years later, and there’s a good deal more evidence supporting a ..read more

  When you think about the consequences of obesity, you might think about things like diabetes, heart disease, and joint pain. You probably don’t think about oral health problems. A couple of recent studies may have you thinking a little differently. We’ve actually known for some time now that obesity and gum disease are linked. Some studies have shown that overweight and obese people have double the incidence of periodontitis, the advanced form of gum disease in which tissue damage occurs. The relationship was most recently confirmed by a 2022 systematic review. This study also found tha ..read more

  We’ve blogged before about erythritol, a sugar alcohol that’s become increasingly popular and, like xylitol, may offer some protection against tooth decay and gum disease by controlling harmful bacteria. Because it’s a zero-calorie sweetener that doesn’t seem to affect blood glucose levels, it’s become especially popular in both food and drink for those who want or need to watch their sugar intake. The side effects you usually hear about are the ones that apply to other sugar alcohols: If you eat too much, your gut may complain – a lot. But recently, other potential side effects have em ..read more

    It’s hard to believe, but next year will mark our blog’s 10th anniversary – a blog that began as another way to help our patients take charge of their mouth/body health, as well as teach others about holistic and biological dentistry. Teaching, after all, is central to a biological practice like ours, where we emphasize prevention first – no teeth are better than the ones you were born with – and truly informed consent when treatment is needed. That means understanding not just what the procedure is and how it works, but why it’s needed, its risks and benefits, as well as altern ..read more