Do you know about two simple methods that may benefit the health of your teeth?

Throughout his entire life, my grandfather (on my father’s side) had only two cavities that needed filling — a fact that was truly shocking and hard to believe. When I first heard it, I really doubted that it was true. I didn’t think that my father, who is a man of great integrity, was not conveying correctly the words of his father. I thought that, we as people, often add details to a story to make it more exciting in the eyes of others and that we often believe what we prefer to believe, irrespective of what, in reality, is happening. However, even though the above observations about human behavior are often true, in the case of my grandfather’s statement, I was utterly wrong.

My grandfather had a brilliantly white smile until his last days, according to my father. His friends and family often commented on how good his smile looked for his age.

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My grandfather was not a selfish man. He shared his secret with my father who did not pay much attention to it and so I didn’t either, until later in my life, when I changed my mind. Going back, I wish I had done it earlier since now I sincerely believe that if I had followed the advice of my grandfather at the time I first heard it, I could have saved myself from many dental problems and procedures.

So, what is this golden secret?

My grandfather told my father: “…Son, take a pinch of baking soda and place it in two inches of warm water.

Then swish this liquid in your mouth for three minutes. Do this every night, just before you go to bed. If you do this every night, you will never have any dental problems ….”

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When I was young, I had a myriad of dental problems. My mother and grandmother had them too, so I was told that this was genetic. Initially, I believed it, since I brushed my teeth to the point that I wore my enamel off and I flossed until the corners of my mouth were raw from rubbing against the string. In spite of my efforts any time I went to a dentist, I had yet another cavity to deal with. I was devastated. My grandmother got dentures at a very early age, and my mother had a partial. Despite my grand efforts to keep my mouth clean and healthy, I was heading in the same direction until two events happened that changed my life.

The first one was that I started using my head. I started thinking and investigating the cause of tooth decay. I discovered, to my amazement, that my pitiful situation had nothing to do with my genes.

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Instead, there were two simple reasons why I had so much tooth decay.

The first one was that my mouth was too acidic. The second one was that there were food particles caught between my gums and my teeth that I was not able to clean with brushing and flossing alone.

Let’s first deal with the fact that my mouth was too acidic. Through research, I discovered that it is a scientific fact that increased mouth acidity (pH bellow 5.5) promotes the formation of cavities.

Bingo!

My grandfather’s words flooded all my brain cells, at once. It was clear that a pinch of baking soda, which is a weak base, could help neutralize an acidic mouth environment. How sad, that even if one is given gold, she cannot use it until she is mentally ready for it, as it was in my case with my grandfather’s advice. Of course, once I was aware of the cause of the problem, I broke through the spell of ignorance and started using the precious baking soda pinch regularly before going to bed.

After a while, I noticed two things. In the mornings, the taste in my mouth was very “clean”. I realized that I was actually capable of sensing and tasting the morning mouth acidity. The second observation was that it was more effective if I swished the baking soda for the entire 3 minutes and not just for a few seconds. In addition, I used a second, but this time fast (30 sec) baking soda swish in the mornings, after getting out of bed.

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There is one more fact about baking soda that it is useful to know. To preserve the enamel (which is the hard covering on your teeth), we need to use abrasive substances as little as possible when brushing our teeth. This is so important that the dental associations around the world developed an index called the RDA: the relative dental abrasion index, in order for one to know how much potential damage to the enamel a substance can do. The index ranges from zero - which is a lack of abrasiveness - to 200 - which is the maximum allowed by FDA abrasive index.

The RDA of baking soda is 7, while the average toothpaste is often rated above 100.

I solved the second problem, the fact that using a toothbrush and floss was not adequately removing all food particles in my mouth, with the help of one of my patients. She told me that she uses a water pick device and that these types of devices (there are many types available on the market) are capable of flushing retained food particles even after brushing and flossing. Initially, I did not believe her, but I remembered my ignorance with my grandfather’s indispensable advice so I didn’t want to make the same mistake twice. I gave a water pick device a try. To my disbelief, the device did flush out food particles, even after I brushed and flossed until I was blue in the face.

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Did it work? Oh yes it did! Combining the two methods changed my life. Now, when I go to my dentist, I have no problems. There are no more cavities and no more procedures. I only go for my biannual teeth cleanings which are now fast and mild because now I have very little dental plaque. Amazing! I am so grateful and I am so blessed with this knowledge. That is why I want to pass this wisdom on to you my precious reader and virtual friend.

From my heart to yours,

Dr. Ani

Disclaimer:

Though I am a medical doctor and I share my experience and knowledge with you, please be advised that I am not your medical doctor, so you will need to seek and follow the directions of the medical professionals involved in your case. This article is purely informational and cannot be taken as medical advice.

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