Holistic Dental Treatment: The Most Common Questions

What is a holistic dentist?

A holistic health practitioner looks at all parts of the human body as connected and believes no part works in isolation from another. A holistic dental treatment approach recognises the mouth is connected to a whole person’s body and understands many aspects of oral health can have an impact on an individual’s general health.

At Sydney Holistic Dental Centre these principles inform everything we do and are the reason why every initial consultation starts with what we refer to as, ‘a comprehensive oral health assessment’.

Your mouth and your general health

The mouth is the gateway to the respiratory tract. The size and shape of your upper and lower jaws literally determine the size and shape of your upper airway, including the available space for your tongue NOT to obstruct your airway….and this restriction can predispose you to some health issues which might surprise you.

A consistently good night’s sleep (which is a function of quantity…getting 7-9 hours/night), and quality (breathing well while you sleep); as well as breathing well (nasal breathing NOT mouth breathing) during the day…. all of which affect every system in your body.

Sleeping well and breathing well are foundational pillars of good health.

The mouth is also the beginning of the digestive tract. Having a well-functioning masticatory system (the ability to chew efficiently) is an important first step in the proper digestion of your food.

The mouth is also the site of the two most common infections – gum disease and tooth decay.

Gum disease has been linked to cardiovascular problems, diabetes, autoimmune conditions, some cancers and much more….the common link is chronic inflammation.

Clenching and grinding of teeth, narrow jaws and crowded teeth, chronic headaches, neck aches and jaw pain are also aspects we also explore and treat at SHDC.

Two other major questions about Holistic Dental Treatment:

1. Mercury Amalgam

Tooth decay means we must fill and restore teeth.

At Sydney Holistic Dental Centre we also give serious consideration to the biocompatibility of materials we use on our patients.

We have not used mercury-amalgam filling since 1985 and take great care in their removal, protecting patients and staff alike by using SMART (Safe Mercury Amalgam Removal Technique) protocols. Mercury amalgam.

2. Root Canal Treatment

A common question we are asked is… ‘do we do root canal treatment?’ This is a more complicated issue than just a simple ‘yes’ or ‘no’. The answer is, ‘it depends’.

It depends on a lot of factors, some of which include:

• The quality of the existing root canal treatment… to be done well; this is a very technically challenging procedure.
• The anatomy of the tooth is more complicated than simple diagrams show
• The immune system of the patient both presently and carefully monitored in future
• What are the alternatives to doing such a procedure? Some are potentially more expensive, invasive and complicated.

At Sydney Holistic Dental Centre, we use digital radiography, which has significantly less radiation exposure than the normal old-fashioned X-ray machines.

We also use 3D cone beam x-rays, which reveal far more diagnostically and anatomically than the 2D x-rays of the last 100+ years. These 3D radiographs allow for an assessment of possible infections and also the complexity of the root canal anatomy.

We also use microscopes with magnification up to 25 times, which is an important part of the technical challenge…. being able to see as clearly and accurately as possible.

If a tooth needs to be removed, there is a holistic protocol for this, too… which is a subject for another article.