Cavities

Cavities - Bacteria, Saliva, Or Acid Reflux?

Often times, patients hear that brushing, flossing, and the elimination of sweets is the solution to preventing decay. I have found that there is a large percentage of people that like you brush and floss regularly and conscientiously try and take care of their teeth. When I examine their teeth there is no plaque or tartar and they do not have bleeding gums, yet they still have decay. On the other hand, I know people that do not seem to take care of their teeth, they have tons of buildup on their teeth and they have no cavities.
About 8 years ago my daughter was working on a science fair project in which we were trying to determine if some denture adhesives were acidic and could cause teeth to decay. We found that the test kit for a swimming pool worked best. We decided to try the test kit to see if some patients had acid saliva and some had basic saliva. We began a year-long study in which we sampled and tested the saliva of every patient that came into our practice. We found that 70% of the cavities in our practice occurred in people with saliva that tested with a pH of 7.0 or less. On the test kit, the testing solution was deep red, but when the saliva was acid it turned the solution yellow. We also found that those patients that had a pH above 7.6 had lots of tartar buildup and no cavities.
Woman Brushing Her Teeth — Sequim, WA — Sequim Advanced Dental, Dr. Brooksby
We also found that a certain percentage of the patients that had normal saliva that tested about pH 7.4 still had decayed, but it was usually on the posterior teeth. These people had a history of heartburn and took a lot of Tums or medications for ulcers and heartburn. It seems that as the stomach acid surges from the stomach to the back of the mouth it causes heartburn, but it also decays the back teeth that are bathed in the acid.

In your situation, you may get a swimming pool tester and see if you have acid saliva. If you do not, but do have heartburn, this could be the cause of your problem. Your doctor could put you on Prilosec or Pepcid A/C. You may already be using Tums or Rolaids. If you do get the acid reflux into your mouth rinse it out immediately and do not brush. You can get a prescription for a fluoride gel toothpaste from your dentist that can help reverse some of the damage.

Unfortunately, if you have acid saliva the teeth are bathed in the acid 24 hours a day. The best solution is to find ways to make your saliva turn more basic. A urologist may have a medication that can do this, or you may try altering your diet to see if you can find a way to make the saliva more basic. Some purport that green leafy vegetables help make the saliva more basic. This is a very individual thing and you have to try to make the changes by trial and error. Thank goodness the cost of a pool test kit is really low.

One other cause of decay is acid reflux. If you get heartburn, the acid from your stomach may eat your teeth. If you do get reflux, medications like Prevacid can help. If you get the acid in your mouth, rinse quickly. Some even suggest rinsing with baking soda water.

The good news is that candy and sugar are not the big culprits we were taught, so while you are looking for ways to reduce the acidity have a candy bar. It may help and if it doesn't, at least it will taste good.

Ozone Is One Of The Greatest Advances In Dentistry Today

Ozone is one of the greatest advances in dentistry today. Ozone is formed when high energy electricity comes in contact with normal oxygen. It converts it to a very unstable, highly reactive form of Oxygen. When the cell walls of bacteria, fungi or the structure of viruses are exposed to this reactive form of oxygen, it breaks apart their molecular structure destroying them within seconds. It also breaks apart the components that makeup plaque.

Without the toxic products from these organisms, the body is better able to heal itself. Studies have shown the complete reversal of decay without having to do fillings. Gum disease begins to heal and even fever blisters or cold sores heal faster, and in over 25% of the cases of cold sores that normally reoccur, they never come back.

Bacteria that cause cavities are so small that a million of them fit on the head of a pin. When five or six of these bacteria eat a hole through the side of a tooth, millions can follow them, yet we as dentists can not see the holes until a substantial amount of tooth structure has been destroyed. Applying ozone to the teeth, either individually or in an entire arch using a custom fit tray, can kill the bacteria in these microscopic holes. The ozone then stimulates the cells within the tooth to begin repairing themselves. Doing this at regular checkups has the potential to literally stop cavities in their tracks. In our office, we charge $280 for each tray and that includes two ozone treatments. After that, we can use the trays after each checkup for only $30. If this works as the research seems to indicate, it is one of the least expensive ways to prevent dental disease and to avoid shots and drilling.

There are other things that can be done to help keep decay in check by helping to remineralize the saliva and the teeth. Check out our other recommendations for stopping decay and helping to rebuild the teeth.

Probiotics

Once the bacteria have been killed by the ozone, you have the option of letting the mouth recolonize as it wants or you can control what happens with the use of probiotics. In our office, we have a kit that starts you out with a large dose of good bacteria that do not cause cavities or gum disease in a lozenge form. You use one a day for ten days and then switch to a lower dose lozenge for 30 days twice a day. There are anecdotal reports that this works. I do not have extensive research to support the practice, but it does make sense so we provide it as an option. The kit costs about $30. For more information, call our office today at 360-207-2133.
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