As I have stated many times, I have a mouth full of mercury and crowns. Ryan has many fillings. Colson has NONE.
By the time I was nine I had two fillings. By ten I don’t know how many more. My cousin and I used to see who could get the most fillings without Novocain. Sick game, yes? But a game that Ryan played with me about seven years ago. I was telling my dentist about the game I had with my cousin, and when it was time for Ryan to get his first filling under her care, she teased him about it. What was he to do but get the filling without Novocain?
Ryan’s brave and boneheaded feat still couldn’t best me, though. I needed a new crown when I was nursing Colson. The temporary was put on, with Novocain, before I gave birth and the permanent after. My dentist said she didn’t want to numb me for the permanent because it would mess up my milk and I would have to pump and dump. So…deep breath, I got the permanent crown with no numbing agent. Whew! Then my birthing educator told me my dentist was full of beans and I could have had the Novocain. Go figure. My dentist used to climb Everest so maybe she lost some brain cells. (Weird thing there, as both my dentist and my old back doc, who finally discovered that I had broken my back, have climbed Everest multiple times. He was kind of wacky too.
That is the kind of sick dental life Ryan and I lead.
Until the Weston Price/GAPS/Whole 30 way of eating. Since adopting a healing diet, no cavities.
I think Colson is an example of what a healing foods diet can do. After Colson’s dental cleaning today (without Fluoride ever), his hygienist said that he has the least amount of tarter that she has seen in a kid. Apparently boys often have more tarter than girls, making his dental health even more remarkable.
My now nine year old boy has never been a good brusher, and we have worked hard to get him to be sure to brush ALL PARTS of ALL OF HIS TEETH with the Oral Braun 3D electric toothbrush. Our success has been fairly minimal and his gums and teeth look fantastic.
I haven’t read Ramiel Nagel’s Cure Tooth Decay, but I have heard great things about it from those who have. If winging it the way my family has isn’t for you, this might be a book to check out.
It's true that, aside from brushing and flossing your teeth, having a healthy diet and lifestyle can keep them stronger against cavities. But I wonder why the Whole 30 program doesn't include milk as one of the accepted foods. After all, it contains calcium which has huge benefits for our teeth. Just asking.
Posted by: Williams Schermer | March 21, 2012 at 01:18 PM
Thanks for reading, William!
Here is what the Whole 30 says about milk: http://whole9life.com/2012/02/what-about-calcium/
My family has reintroduced some dairy. My son is drinking kefir smoothies from raw milk, and occasionally we eat raw cheese and ice cream. Other than ice cream, if it isn't raw, I am not touching it. And I find that being off of dairy I do better than on. I think it is that way for a lot of people.
We also replace our calcium intake with lots of bone broth - if you search my blog you will see that I am quite passionate about it and even blogged about the main amino acids. That stuff rocks!
Posted by: Laura Combs | March 21, 2012 at 07:42 PM