How to Take Better Care of your Teeth

There are two things I’ve learned about dental heath: it doesn’t always make sense and it’s complicated.

Take my brother Bob as an example. Bob is as good at laundry as he is poor at brushing his teeth. He folds better than I ever will, but what he does with his tooth brush does not qualify as brushing. And yet, Bob has perfect teeth. The guy has never had a cavity. My husband didn’t visit the dentist for over three years. Actually, he doesn’t know how long it was, which definitely means it was too long. He got his teeth cleaned, they were in perfect condition, and now we wonder, does he really need to go to the dentist every six months?

Max and Bob. Two gentlemen with extraordinary style and oral health.

The boys in my house have questionable dental habits and excellent teeth and oral health, while other people I’ve talked to experience the opposite phenomenon: excellent dental habits and dismal oral health. Oral health is so complicated because it’s influenced by genetics, how you were born, what you were fed as an infant, your environment, everything you’ve put in your mouth, and your dental hygiene. For people with ovaries and a menstrual cycle, it’s extra complex because we experience dynamic hormonal fluctuations that impact the health of our mouth. There are 5 significant hormonal events, and in the case of the pill choices, in women’s lives that affect oral health, these include:

• Puberty

• Monthly menstruation

• Oral contraceptives

• Pregnancy

• Menopause

Fluctuating levels of hormones, especially heightened levels of estrogen and progesterone, cause increased blood flow to the gums and inflammation, and effect the oral microbiota and saliva composition and flow. Saliva and the bacterial populations in our mouth play a key role in our metabolic, immunologic and physiologic functions. When our oral ecosystems are out whack and not working together, or in a state of dysbiosis, we may suffer some consequences in our oral and overall health. Supporting optimal health, in all ecological systems, means encouraging abundance and diversity.  

How do we feed our good bugs and limit the deleterious effects of the other bugs? While you can’t control how you were born, you can make choices about what you eat and how you take care of your teeth. Here are some examples of foods to prioritize for your mouth and whole body health.

• Probiotic foods

-Yogurt, cultured butter, cheese, kefir and other cultured dairy products
-Kimchi, sauerkraut, lacto-fermented vegetables, and other fermented foods

• Prebiotic foods

-Asparagus, peas, alliums like leeks, onions and chives, zucchini and other vegetables
-Bananas, avocados and jicama
-A mix of raw and cooked greens like kale, chard, dandelion, spinach, etc.  

• Vitamin, mineral and fat rich foods

-Bone marrow, bone broth, slow cooked meats, collagen, and organ meats
-Eggs, grass-fed beef, lamb and wild game, pastured pork and other sustainably raised meats
-Oily fish like salmon and sardines, fish eggs and seaweed

• Foods to avoid

-High sugar foods like candy, especially the chewy, sticky variety, and fruit juice
-Soda and energy drinks, with or without sugar
-Processed food like chips and crackers
-Excessive alcohol intake

I have to enjoy some of my favorite foods in moderation. These include honey, maple syrup, dates, dried fruits and other fruits high in sugar like grapes and cherries. Sugary and acidic foods can soften enamel, alter oral pH, and feed acid-producing microbes that may cause tooth decay and cavities. One of my favorite strategies to combat these unfortunate effects and enjoy some of my favorite foods comes in the form of tasty combinations, think cheese and wine or yogurt with fruit. These cultured dairy products help neutralize highly acidic foods and balance out sweetness.

I always figured I knew how to brush my teeth. But, there is so much I didn’t know. Here’s a few of the top hygiene habits that help keep your mouth healthy:

• Daily Habits Matter

-Brush gently, in a massaging fashion
-Don’t miss the gum line
-Use soft bristles and brush for the whole two minutes
-Avoid toothpastes with disrupting chemicals like triclosan and artificial sweeteners
-Swoosh water around in your mouth after eating acidic and sugary foods
-Wait to brush around 30 minutes after eating to protect enamel
-Floss!
-Head to the dentist every 6 months

Overall systemic health is associated with and impacted by oral health and our shifting hormonal landscape over our lifespan can predispose us to gingivitis, cavities and other periodontal problems. Most of these issues respond well to improved diet and oral hygiene. We can’t all be Bob and experience perfect oral health, but we can make choices that might get us one step closer.

 

Note: In my book, How to Grow a Baby, I explore oral health and the microbiota more in depth, aka I geek out about what’s happening in your mouth and how it changes during pregnancy.

References

Dawes, C. (2009). Salivary flow patterns and the health of hard and soft oral tissues. JADA, 139. Retrieved from: https://jada.ada.org/article/S0002-8177(14)63878-2/pdf

Hormones and oral health. (2018). Retrieved from: https://my.clevelandclinic.org/health/articles/11192-hormones-and-oral-health

Takahashi, N. (2005). Microbial ecosystem in the oral cavity: Metabolic diversity in an ecological niche and its relationship with oral diseases. International Congress Series.

Kessler, J. L. (2017). A literature review on women’s oral health across the life span. Nursing for Women’s Health, 21(2), 108-121. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.nwh.2017.02.010

Kilian, M., Chapple, I. L. C., Hannig, Marsh, P. D., Pedersen, A. M. L., Tonetti, M. S., Wade, W. G., & Zaura, E. (2016). The oral microbiome—an update for oral healthcare professionals. British Dental Journal, 221(10), 657-666. Retrieved from: https://www.nature.com/articles/sj.bdj.2016.865.pdf

Kunin, A. A., Evdokimova, A. Y., & Moiseeva, N. S. (2015). Age-related differences of tooth enamel morphochemistry in health and dental caries. EPMA Journal, 6(1). doi: 10.1186/s13167-014-0025-8

Nagel, R. (2014). Cure gum disease naturally. Montpelier, VT: Golden Child Publishing, Inc.