The Biological Dentistry Path
Phases and Sequencing of Treatment Goals
Biological dentistry is a comprehensive healthcare approach that applies the latest dental and functional medicine principles to enhance your health. There is some crossover between conventional and biological dentistry, but there are also some stark differences. The topics below briefly describe the main components of biological dentistry. Keep in mind there's so much more to biological dentistry that isn't easily categorized.
The phases below are sequential. The success of the later phases is dependent on the earlier ones. So, in general, these steps should be addressed in order, leaving room for individualized variations.
Depending on your current dental and health condition, any number of these phases may apply to your biological dental health plan. During your initial biological consultation, we'll discuss the why's and how's of the steps that will help you best.
Modern health starts with a little "biohacking." Some fine tuning to lifestyle, diet, and/or supplements often goes a long way. Making sure our minerals are properly balanced and our autonomic nervous system is in harmony (yin and yang), for example, will affect teeth and bones long-term and will help later phases go smoothly and successfully.
Expect to learn about some easy tweaks that can dramatically impact your health journey. Correcting nutrient deficienciess, improving sleep hygiene, and using red light to tweak our nervous system are just some examples of how we can enhance our biological journey.
Safely removing mercury-amalgam fillings is one of the most important initial goals. We know mercury leaches out of amalgam fillings continuously in both vapor form (which is inhaled with every breath) and ionic form (which is swallowed with every gulp). This wreaks havoc on mineral balance, metabolism, inflammation, gut health, and immunity. Mercury bioaccumulates, and its toxicity compunds over time, contributing to many chronic diseases and a wide variety of esoteric illnesses too. Eliminating these fillings safely using the SMART protocol therefore is one of the most crucial steps in biological dentistry.
Read more about mercury on our blog.
Metal comes in other forms too. From gold to stainless-steel, including titanium, nickel, and palladium, all metal in the mouth is harmful to health in different ways. Galvanism occurs when different metals in the mouth react thru saliva or oral tissues to create electrical currents. These currents generate electric fields that overpower the delicate nerve action potential in our body, brain, and muscles. Metals, specifically gold, also increases the amount of mercury released from amalgam fillings by as much as 20 times, causing devastating toxicity! Lastly, metal in any form -- crowns, metal fillings, metal implants -- blocks energetic flow thru meridians, preventing the body's organs from working synergistically. All dental metal should be safely replaced with metal-free biocompatible materials for ideal health using the SMART protocol. Amalgam removal and other metal removal are generally addressed simultaneously.
Detoxing may also be a critical component of your healing journey. Optimizing your metabolism helps reverse years of damage caused by toxic dentistry and will help prevent cavities and other chronic disease too. Achieving this includes detoxing heavy metals and toxic halides (fluoride and bromide), replenishing depleted vitamins and minerals, and restoring gland and organ function. This is best done with the guidance of a naturopathic or functional doctor, but we will help too. Important areas to focus on are heavy metal chelation, combined with optimization of important nutrients such as magnesium, vitamin D and K2, iodine, and boron. We will discuss this in detail during your biological consultation or follow-up consultations. The outcome of subsequent treatment steps depends on this step.
The quality and depth of sleep is a huge part of our health journey. Unfortunately, sleep disordered breathing has become something of an epidemic due to incomplete skeletal growth. Jaw relationships determine the position of the tongue and shape of our nasal sinus which in turn govern airflow thru the airway (pharynx, larynx, and trachea). If the jaw size is less than ideal, then constrictions or obstructions can occur in the airway decreasing oxygen levels during sleep. This forces sympathetic arousals and blocks deep sleep, leading to a long list of dysfunction and symptoms such as fatigue, stress, grinding, anxiety, acid-reflux, dental disease, autoimmune disease, and even cancer.
Luckily, biological dentistry is well-equipped to address this epidemic and can help improve the quality of sleep. This is key in healing, detoxing, dental health, and bone quality, and is such a crucial step in our goal to increase lifespan and healthspan. To help solve this crisis, we are airway-trained and are certified providers for the Gelb airVata and Dr. Belfor's Homeoblock. We utilize tools such as myofunctional therapy, NightLase, and tongue-tie releases when appropriate also.
Alignment of the teeth and jaws is a very important part of overall health. Often orthodontics is passed on as a cosmetic option, but the truth is much deeper. Our goal in biological dentistry is always to preserve teeth and preserve health. Straight teeth last longer, lead to healther gums, less inflammation, fewer cavities, but it goes even deeper: Straight teeth help ensure well functioning jaw joints (TMJ), better posture, chewing, breathing, sleep, metabolism, pH balance, and resistance to chronic disease. Additionally, since each tooth is an "accupuncture" trigger, straight teeth even help enhance energetic flow, improving organ, joint, muscular, glandular, and many more functions. Minor to moderate alignment needs can usually be quickly and easily performed with clear aligners. We are a certified provider for Invisalign, ProMonitoring / Candid, and ClearCorrect.
Root canals are commonly performed in conventional dentistry to "save" teeth from extraction. They are convenient, but may not be harmonious with health. Avoiding root canals is a big part of biological dentistry. They all harbor toxic bacteria and may cause harmful effects to remote parts of the body in surprising ways. This concept is more advanced and warrants a deep dive. Your biological consultation will go into detail and help shed light on the effects your root canal treated teeth may be having on your health and why. Learn more about Root Canals.
Cavitations are another advanced topic in biological dentistry. When teeth have been removed (wisdom teeth or any tooth) without using the biological protocol, poor wound healing can result. Although the area may appear or feel perfectly healed, the jawbone often remains permanently unhealed, dead, or infected internally. Instead of healthy bone, the area will often harbor extremely toxic, inflammatory, and immune-disrupting tissue that may lead to a long list of esoteric issues including jaw pain, autoimmunity, and cancer. This issue is very common, occurring perhaps 92% of the time according to one study by doctors Hal Huggins and Tom Levy. Addressing cavitations is an integral part of biological dentistry and long-term health. Again, your biological consultation will go into detail and help shed light on this important topic.
Implants are a popular way to replace missing teeth. When faced with losing a tooth such as a dead or failed root canal treated tooth, many questions arise. How will I look? How will I chew? What will happen to the balance of my bite and the jaw joint? These concerns are very valid and can be addressed thanks to modern dental technology. Conventional dentistry relies on titanium alloy implants, but biological dentistry benefits from metal-free, biocompatible zirconia implants. Learn more about ceramic dental implants including the important differences between metal and ceramic.
Hopefully this introductory outline helps clarify some of the key goals in biological dentistry. But don't worry if you have even more questions now. During your biological consultation, you'll have the opportunity to discuss and explore these topics in much more detail.
To get a head start, web searches can provide some insight. Social media sites such as Facebook or Instagram can be good resources for alternative information. You'll find some helpful information scattered around our website too. Look around and feel free to write us with any questions or comments.