Tooth decay is something you associate with adults, but more and more it’s happening to children. Recently ABC aired a special called Children of the Mountains that dealt with children in the Appalachian region and the rampant tooth decay that is prevalent there. One of the main culprits is the soft drink Mountain Dew. While all sodas have caffeine and sugar, apparently Mountain Dew is more acidic than most and has a devastating effect on teeth when combined with poor oral hygiene and diet.
I’m a recovering Dew addict myself so the story is timely for me. My last new cavity was over ten years ago, but recently I had a stressful situation at home and I fell back into some old habits. End result? A new cavity. It’s not a huge one so I did a bit of research to see if modern dentistry had come up with something other than drilling a bigger hole in my head and filling it with toxic metal.
Do you know you can cure tooth decay with diet? I was blown away after reading that, but apparently it’s true. I found several authoritive sites that talk about remineralization of teeth, but Ramiel Nagel’s book, Cure Tooth Decay gave the best explanation.
We’re taught that bacteria causes tooth decay, but sweets made from refined sugar and flour do not attract bacteria. The nutrients that bacteria like to eat have been removed from sugar and flour so theoretically we could cure tooth decay by chewing on sugar all day—if bacteria were the reason for tooth decay.
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Let’s say you place a cup of sugar and some raw meat on your kitchen table. Which will rot? Of course bugs and bacteria will swarm the meat. This disproves the current explanation that bacteria causes tooth decay since bacteria cannot live off sugar. The real reason for tooth decay is malnutrition. Our bodies don’t have the building blocks to build new enamel as it wears away.
In his book, Nagel says that there are several variables for tooth decay such as genetics and even the type of birth control you use, but primarily a lack of fat-soluble vitamins that act as activators for minerals is the culprit. He quotes liberally from studies done by Dr. Weston Price, the first research director of the National Dental Association which later morphed into the American Dental Associaton.
Price spent years doing field studies of indigenous people and their diets. He found common denominators in populations that didn’t even use tooth brushes but have healthy cavity-free teeth. At the end of one study, Price wrote,
Tooth decay is not only unnecessary, but an indication of our divergence from Nature’s fundamental laws of life and health.
Nagel, who is a father of two girls, was prompted to write the book after one of his daughters developed cavities even though her diet was closely monitored for sugary foods. I’m finding it a gem of information and think you’ll benefit as well. At any rate, the cost of the information in the book is far cheaper than what you’ll pay your dentist.
Resources: Dental Care Secrets | ABC Video
tooth decay can be cured with a good diet. I’m glad you were a recovering mountain dew-aholic, soda isn’t worth the teeth trouble in the long run.
I have decays too, and my doc said it for some bad stuffs on my drinking water.
That picture of that kid’s mouth is gross. That’s why I don’t drink Mountain Dew.
Having healthy teeth is important to our general health. Flossing and brushing as well as a good cleaning once in a awhile can be very beneficial.
.-= Ken @ Best Tooth Whitening´s last blog ..About Us =-.
Children are more prone to tooth decay because of their love for sweets, and sometimes the laziness when it comes to brushing their teeth
Agreed. Diet is key to cavity protection, try to avoid acidic food and beverage or at least keep it to a minimum. Investigation reports showed that while all sodas have caffeine and sugar, apparently Mountain Dew is more acidic than most and has a devastating effect on teeth when combined with poor oral hygiene and diet. Being a Dew addict before, I now repent.
Some people smile when they are nervous or when they don’t want people to know how they’re really feeling inside… Maybe you smile rather than show that someone has really pissed you off…Smiling might make them think that what they say or do really has no effect on you[..]
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in that first picture the tooth is highy erosed via acidic substances.
fluoride taking is advised
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That picture is so gross. If my teeth ever get to be like that, I will have them all pulled and just wear dentures. It looks so painful and gross. Good post, thanks for sharing.
Tooth decay is a bad problem. That picture looks bad and now I know to stay away from mountain dew and my favorite drink is mountain dew voltage.
.-= meka@how to get white teeth´s last blog ..The Easy and Affordable Way To Get White Teeth =-.
I got Ramiel Nagel’s book last month. What a great read — we bought a copy of it for the office coffee table since we cater to dental clients as well.
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really? mountain dew have such bad effect? huh! thanks that i am not a fan of it! anyway, the book sounds interesting to me, I want to know those gems of information that you found in there and benefit from it as well…
armil invites you to read . . . Choosing a Dental Clinic
Children learn a lot more from what you do than by what you say, so if you want them to have good health habits, you should examine your own lifestyle choices first. If they see you taking good care of yourself, the chances are higher that they will follow suit themselves.
Yuck! Pop is so gross. I don’t let my kids have any type of sugary drink. I don’t want my children’s teeth to fall out.
I knew sodas were terrible for teeth, but that photo is really disgusting! I removed soda from my diet and that helped prevent my teeth from getting more discolored.