First, decide to get healthier.

That has to include becoming more knowledgeable about food, nutrition and exercise. Realize that you are in control of your own health.

Second, make forty percent of your daily intake fresh fruits and vegetables, preferably organic. Cut out the sugar and start to reduce carbohydrates like breads and pasta and processed foods. Add a tablespoon a day of flax seed oil. When you get up in the morning, drink a hot cup of water with lemon squeezed into it. If you do just those things for two weeks, you’ll notice a difference in how you feel. Losing weight will just be a side benefit.

The practice of replacing silver fillings with white, tooth-colored material for health reasons has been promoted by “biological” dentists who believe silver fillings are detrimental to your health. You may have heard these referred to as “silver”, “mercury”, or “amalgam.” These three terms are used to refer to the silver material which contains more mercury than silver, along with other metals.

If you’re confused about whether mercury fillings are safe or not, you’re not alone: even the FDA has seemingly changed their opinion. On June 4, 2008, the agency issued this statement on their website:

“Dental amalgams contain mercury, which may have neurotoxic effects on the nervous systems of developing children and fetuses.” And: “When amalgam fillings are placed in teeth or removed from teeth, they release mercury vapor. Mercury vapor is also released during chewing.”

The FDA also agreed to release a new ruling in July 2009, and alert consumers about potential related hazards.

Instead, on July 28, 2009 the FDA issued the following statement, as reported by Reuter’s:

“While elemental mercury has been associated with adverse health effects at high exposures, the levels released by dental amalgam fillings are not high enough to cause harm in patients,’’ the FDA said, citing an agency review of roughly 200 scientific studies.

The American Dental Association stands behind mercury filling safety, stating:

“Dental amalgam has been studied and reviewed extensively, and has established a record of safety and effectiveness.”

For cosmetic reasons 90% of our patients prefer the white, tooth-colored material. If you’re among those of us who grew up when mercury fillings were the only option and you haven’t had these replaced, you can whiten and update your smile by replacing these with this new tooth-colored material.

I don’t see enough hard science confirming claims that mercury fillings are linked to such conditions as Chronic Fatigue Syndrome or Alzheimer’s. However, I’ve been using the white, tooth-colored non-metallic filling material since 1987, thereby eliminating the issue for my patients. That said, some people are allergic to this non-metal material.

A “biological dentist” would recommend you remove these fillings for health reasons, believing that the longer you leave these in your mouth, the longer you are exposing yourself to metal toxicity.

I recommend replacing decades-old mercury fillings for two reasons: one is cosmetic and the second is tooth preservation. You see, as a dentist, my primary role is to enable you to chew. Since mercury expands and contracts with temperature changes, over time the teeth underneath can crack, which has been the case with some patients. Sometimes, the tooth can crack so deeply it must be removed and replaced with an implant and crown.

Ok, let’s address some common questions.

1. Are white fillings weaker than amalgams?

Yes, however, if you take the total result—the filling plus the tooth—the composites are stronger

because they bond to the tooth, making the tooth more resistant to fracture.

2. Why don’t all dentists offer white fillings?

Many dentists don’t feel comfortable using white filling material on back teeth—it requires special

training to do so. The experience and training ensures the filling isn’t vulnerable to leakage and

new decay. The material has been around since the 70’s, but it wasn’t until the mid-80’s that technology was developed to bond it to your tooth.

With a deep cleaning …called a “scaling and root planing” you get all of that trapped bacteria, plaque and calcification cleaned out. The result is your gum tissue can reattach to the bone. A deep cleaning, when necessary, is one of the most therapeutic health treatments you can get. Good gum health is a foundation of good overall health.

Correct the Problem and These Symptoms Go Away. That’s Done By Balancing Your Head, Neck and Jaw Before Doing Dental Work. That’s What Orthopedic Dentistry Is All About. It Also Ensures Your Cosmetic Enhancements Don’t Create An Imbalance.

In a perfectly constructed mouth, the teeth and jaw fit together to perform the function of chewing. The slightest adjustment to a tooth can throw this precise functioning off-balance. Even the replacement of a filling can make your bite feel different if it’s not balanced correctly and if not adjusted, can cause your jaw joints to move out of place.

If just a simple filling requires such precision, imagine the skill required in placing veneers or implants while ensuring they not only look great but are completely natural in their feel and fit.

Like a perfectly balanced bridge constructed to withstand the elements of weather and carry immense weight, your teeth and jaw are designed with a similar precision. The ability to work with the precision of an engineer and the talent of a master artisan ensures your dental outcome is both sound and beautiful.

When that occurs, instead of your teeth all sharing equally in the function of chewng, some are forced to work overtime to compensate for missing, broken or shorter teeth.

If you were driving your car with two bald tires and two new tires, it would create a rough ride.The analogy is comparable when it comes to your teeth. If you chew on an uneven surface a tooth can crack, resulting in more chewing force on the remaining teeth.

It’s not only for cosmetic reasons that you straighten your teeth position, get crowns or implants. These treatments improve the way your teeth mesh together. They also balance your bite. They can even enhance or even create entire body balance. You may not notice an immediate effect from imbalance and uneven chewing, but like the “perfect storm,” many health conditions are the result of long-term, non-optimum conditions that have been ignored.

The American Academy of Implant Dentistry reports, “As the Baby Boomers begin filing for Social Security, they’re replacing teeth weakened from periodontal disease with dental implants instead of bridgework and removable dentures. Further incentive is that highly precise computer-guided dental implant surgery has made the procedure faster, highly predicable and long-lasting with a success rate of 97 percent.”

Trend #2: Teeth straightening will increasingly become the first step in a cosmetic makeover. It’s been a common practice to place porcelain veneers on crooked teeth. While this gives the appearance of straight teeth, it does nothing to address the health conditions caused by uneven teeth. These create uneven bite pressure which can lead to health problems, including headaches and migraines. With more dentists understanding the connection between the bite and jaw joints and head, neck and back pain, concern for health will lead to correcting the uneven bite rather than covering it up with veneers.

Trend #3: Gum Contouring Will Become More Popular. Just like lip plumping or botox improve appearance without surgery, contouring gum lines will become popular as more dentists investing in acquiring and learning how to use laser dental equipment. With laser technology being used in everything from skin care to knee replacement surgery, it was only a matter of time before it would be more routinely employed in your dental care. In addition to gum contouring which, by the way, is also great for men, lasers can disinfect diseased gum tissue. They can also cut into the teeth, making it faster and more comfortable to get fillings.

Trend #4: 3D x-rays will enable more precise dental treatment. Technology called “cone beam” takes two dimensional x-rays and makes them 3D. This allows your dentist to provide more precise dental treatment. For example, with a 3d picture, your dentist can see the nerve tissue surrounding impacted wisdom teeth. This allows for a better surgery. With implants, we’re able to determine more exactly their correct placement.

Trend #5: Teeth whitening will become part of a daily makeup routine for women. Whitening pens like Liquid Smile will make a professional in-offce whitening last a lot longer. Instead of bulky whitening trays sitting in your mouth for an hour with saliva coming out the side of your mouth, pens allow you to touch up the teeth that are visible.

An old proverb states “simplicity is the seal of truth.” What I’m about to reveal here may be perhaps the most simple advice you’ve ever heard. It may sound so simple to you that you have a hard time believing it could actually change your entire dental experience. Well, I promise you this: if you try it, the worst result you’ll experience is an improved day.

Ok, so most people would agree that the skill of the dentist has everything to do with how pain-free your dental experiences are. But…and this is where I’m asking for a leap of faith…even if you have a skilled and experienced dentist who knows how to minimize discomfort, there is still another factor in the comfort/pain-free equation: YOU. Yes, there ARE steps you can take to face your appointments without apprehension. Here are my best-guarded secrets.

1. Eat a high-protein breakfast the morning of your appointment. No kidding. It’s a great way to start every day, but when you’ve got a dental appointment or any other activity that requires extra oomph, start your day with some high quality protein.

2. Don’t come to your appointment hungry. Ever notice how a child or baby gets cranky when they’re hungry? Big kids do the same. They don’t always recognize their irritability, impatience or feeling zapped as indications of low blood sugar. Just like you wouldn’t want to discuss an important subject with your spouse when you’re both hungry, you don’t want to arrive for a dental appointment with low blood sugar.

3. Go to bed earlier than usual the night before. Why? You want to make sure you get a good night’s sleep. If you have any trouble with waking up, get yourself to bed earlier. As you’ve probably noticed, life is so much easier to handle when you’re well rested. What you might imagine as stressful can become a breeze with just a good night’s sleep.

When you are physiologically unstressed, you can contend with far more emotionally. What reduces the body stress? Good, nourishing high-protein food, water and plenty of sleep. Not only will that prescription make your dental visit more enjoyable, it’ll affect your life!

2. Reduce your reliance on prescription drugs.
Pharmaceutical drugs can complicate your overall health and adversely affect your teeth and gums. According to Joe Graedon and Teresa Graedon, PhD, and authors of the multi-million copy best-seller The People’s Pharmacy, if you were to combine the numbers of deaths in hospitals and at home from drug reactions and interactions, you would have the third leading cause of death in the United States after heart disease and cancer. The Consumer Reports on Health asserts that “Any new health problem in an older person should be considered drug induced until proven otherwise.” Research any prescription you are taking. Pay attention to the listed “side effects,” since these effects can be quite serious and are minimized by referring to them as “side” effects.

The Physicians’ Desk Reference website offers comprehensive information on about 1000 drugs.

If you want to get healthy enough to end your reliance on prescription drugs, I recommend you contact Dr. Varsha Rathod at the Preventive Medicine Center (314 997-5403).

3. Get adequate rest.
The body needs sleep in order to function correctly. Often at midlife, hormonal shifts, stress and other factors can greatly reduce the ability to get a good night’s sleep. This begins a vicious cycle that can lead to poor health. If this is something you’re experiencing, you’d best correct the nutritional factors causing it.

4. Stress Less.
Not only does stress reduce the pleasure of every life activity, it can make life a drag. Your mental and physical well being is greatly affected when you have someone in your environment who does not have your best interest at heart and is actively suppressing you…often undetected. How to tell the signs? I’ve used the information in a booklet called: The Cause of Suppression by L. Ron Hubbard to address such situations and have experienced tremendous relief.

5. Read More Good Stuff.
Avoid the trash mags at the supermarket checkout and the gossip and tabloid tv shows. Instead, read literature that enhances your mind or non-fiction books that expand your professional skills.

6. Schedule an eye exam.
Aging can result in difficulty seeing at lower light levels, increased sensitivity to glare, inability to discriminate colors and other symptoms.

7. Reduce Processed Foods.
The article, A Simpler Lifestyle is Healthier and Lowers Dental Costs, says everything about how to do this.

8. Reduce Internal Inflammation with Omega 3.
It’s well documented that internal inflammation is a huge factor in disease. Studies show that increasing your Omega 3 intake could be the antidote. Most Omega 3 comes from fish oils and so much of our fish supply is contaminated. Barry Sears has a super refined Omega 3 oil that I take in liquid form every day.

9. Eat Clean.
Michael Pollan, author of The Omnivore’s Dilemma, advises readers to “eat clean,” meaning stick to stuff that’s easily recognizable as food. Steer clear of anything that looks like it was made in a lab or a factory.

10. Get more active.
You can walk with your significant other or acquire a new group of friends if you join a sport. For me, easing back tension from years of leaning over patients all day came from getting more flexible with yoga exercises. Balance, strength and flexibility increases dramatically from these postures.