J.G.Simp…@bristol.ac.uk

————-

- Hide quoted text — Show quoted text -

>shree…@holmes.ece.orst.edu (David Shreeve) wrote:
>>    I have a theory that cavities may be able to heal.  I’ve had some
>>small pits that have disappeared with time.  One I had pointed out to
me
>>by a dentist who wanted to fill it.  But it went away! <snip>

>Once cavities have broken through the enamel, there is nothing that
will
>make it right again. Incipient lesions (the very beginning stage of
tooth
>decay) can remineralize and not progress to real cavities. It’s
important
>to ask the dentist if the lesion he/she sees is at the incipient stage
or
>if it has progressed to the carious stage. If it’s incipient, then you
>don’t have to have it filled, but keep an eye on it, keep oral hygiene
at
>a maximum, eat healthy foods, and stay away from sugar.

>Cheers, Elke

I would like to elaborate on Elke’s fine reply, by saying that
incipient lesions can sometimes recalcify better with the application
of some type of topical fluoride. The most common source would be the
use of a toothpaste containing fluoride. These lesions typically appear
as white areas on the enamel surface next to the gum line, or at the
contact area between teeth. Plaque accumulates in these areas because
they are harder to keep clean, and as a result causes the enamal matrix
to break down and eventually turn into a cavity. As Elke stated, a good
working definition of a "cavity" is when the lesion has penetrated the
enamal or hard outer shell of the tooth. Once this occurs, bacteria eat
or break down the inner softer structure of the tooth known as dentin.
At this stage, unfortunately, only a filling can repair the damage.
There is no herb or any other medicine that will regenerate decayed
dentin.

Hope this helps      Mike Kempf, DDS

>>- plenty of minerals from foods
>>- cut out fluoridated water and junky fluoride toothpastes

>Yeah, we all know that stuff inevitably does horrible things to your
>teeth.  Curious how I’ve been using flouridated toothpaste and getting
>semi-annual flouride treatments all my life and have had exactly one
>cavity (which I probably could have avoided if I had been a little
>more responsible about flossing).  Not bad for a 38-year-old.

Dave,

I didn’t know it does "horrible" things to your teeth.  Thanks for
pointing it out!  I do think it would be counterproductive to use it
to "remineralize" a pit at the expense negative health affects.  I
also believe that teeth can be "remineralized" without fluoride
supplements and that is preferable.

>>- brushing or at least rinsing mouth out after meals
>(but don’t use that sinister flouridated toothpaste — at least not
>unless you’re wearing your aluminum foil hat)

At least if you’re wearing your aluminum foil hat, you are still
supporting the aluminum industry so they won’t feel so bad about not
pushing toxic fluoride compounds down your throat.  Good idea!

>Now, if you’ve got an actual cavity that goes all the way through the
>enamel, that’s another story entirely.  I don’t recall hearing
>anything about non-drilling methods of fixing those.

I have known it to happen with some effort on the part of the persons
it happened to.  But these people probably don’t run in sci.skeptic
circles so you probably would have never met them.

I may give it a try sometime soon.  But whatever I do, I’ll keep my
mouth off of the toxic emission scrubbers at fertilizer plants and pass
on the fluoride compounds.

Best regards,
                         - Mark
                      mg…@tiac.net
        http://www.tiac.net/users/mgold/health.html

>   Dave
>(please reply at shree…@ece.orst.edu, too– thanks!)

Once cavities have broken through the enamel, there is nothing that will
make it right again. Incipient lesions (the very beginning stage of tooth
decay) can remineralize and not progress to real cavities. It’s important
to ask the dentist if the lesion he/she sees is at the incipient stage or
if it has progressed to the carious stage. If it’s incipient, then you
don’t have to have it filled, but keep an eye on it, keep oral hygiene at
a maximum, eat healthy foods, and stay away from sugar.

Cheers, Elke
—
************************************************************************
       http://www.santarosa.edu/~dmontgom/fluoride.htm
       http://emporium.turnpike.net/P/PDHA/healthb.htm
************************************************************************

>>From: shree…@holmes.ece.orst.edu (David Shreeve)
>>    I have a theory that cavities may be able to heal.  I’ve had some
>>small pits that have disappeared with time.  One I had pointed out to me
>>by a dentist who wanted to fill it.  But it went away!  Of course, I’ve
>>had others that have not.
>>    Has anyone every heard of a treatment- perhaps an herb, that might help
>>facilitate the healing of cavities?
>Don’t be ridiculous!  You couldn’t have healed your cavity!  It must
>have just been a "spontaneous remission!"  :-)

No, the space aliens are behind it.  Don’t you read the news??  Geez,
you young people today.

>There are people who have experience with this theory – looking into
>scientific explainations as to why it might occur in some cases and
>techniques that would facilitate it.  Most of the techniques would be
>pretty much common sense:

Some of them, anyway.

>- reasonably healthy diet and lifestyle

e.g. cut down on sugar, probably the single best step you could take

>- plenty of minerals from foods
>- cut out fluoridated water and junky fluoride toothpastes

Yeah, we all know that stuff inevitably does horrible things to your
teeth.  Curious how I’ve been using flouridated toothpaste and getting
semi-annual flouride treatments all my life and have had exactly one
cavity (which I probably could have avoided if I had been a little
more responsible about flossing).  Not bad for a 38-year-old.

>- brushing or at least rinsing mouth out after meals

(but don’t use that sinister flouridated toothpaste — at least not
unless you’re wearing your aluminum foil hat)

On the other hand, at one point I had an ominous-looking pit in one of
my molars.  My dentist suggested a flouridated gel (Gelkam, or some
such name, made by Colgate if I remember correctly; you need a
prescription to get it) as a supplement to my toothpaste.

It sounded less painful, not to mention cheaper, than a filling, so I
gave it a try.  It helped.  The idea, I guess, is that the pit
"remineralizes" and thus fills in.

Now, if you’ve got an actual cavity that goes all the way through the
enamel, that’s another story entirely.  I don’t recall hearing
anything about non-drilling methods of fixing those.

  — David Wright, Hitachi Computer Products (America), Inc.  Waltham, MA
     wri…@hi.com  ::  These are my opinions, not necessarily Hitachi’s,
     but you’re free to disagree, you poor deluded creature
     "We cannot go around shooting people who have no reason to live, or
      else there would be no TV evangelists." — Judy Tenuta

    Has anyone every heard of a treatment- perhaps an herb, that might help
facilitate the healing of cavities?

   Dave
(please reply at shree…@ece.orst.edu, too– thanks!)