On average, people spend about 60 to 90 minutes each day eating, which translates to approximately 15 to 30 minutes with food in their mouths. While this might seem like a small portion of the day, the impact of the food we consume on our oral health can be significant. But what happens once we swallow our food? The consequences extend far beyond the mouth, affecting our entire body in ways that are often devastating. I will explore the profound effects of diet on both oral and overall health and highlight the importance of a whole-food diet devoid of processed carbohydrates and vegetable oils.
Read MoreIn the modern food industry, many products marketed as healthy or beneficial are often far from it. Their names suggest wholesomeness and health benefits, but a closer look reveals that they are highly processed and can contribute to various health issues. I will delve into several examples of such misleadingly named foods, shedding light on the discrepancy between their marketed image and actual nutritional value.
Read MoreWhen I started out as a dentist, I believed that if people would simply avoid sugar, brush twice daily, floss once a day, come in every six months for their cleaning and check-up, and use fluoride, they would be fine. I was wrong. I had good company; many dentists believe that the problems our patients suffer are their fault. There is much more to understand, and it has been omitted from dental education curriculums, leaving dentists and their patients bewildered. This post will explain why this is so, why it happened, and what we can do to solve the problem.
Read MoreBrushing twice and flossing once daily is a smart idea if your diet contains processed carbohydrates. Toothpaste always comes along for the ride on our brushes. Did you ever stop and wonder how necessary it is? I have. I say no. I will explain my rationale in this post.
Read MoreOur teeth are constantly losing and gaining minerals. Hopefully, the process equals out. If we lose more minerals in our teeth than we gain, the teeth erode. This post will discuss tooth erosion: what it is, what it looks like, how to prevent it, and what to do about it. It is quite common, but many dentists don’t know how to diagnose and treat it correctly.
Read MoreWhy are so many Americans overweight or obese? Are we weak? Are we addicted to unhealthy foods? The answer is probably not. I took a look at how our food supply has changed over the years, and it may explain our ever-expanding waistlines. This post will cover the trends, investigate some of the science, and, finally, talk about what we can do to lose weight and become healthier.
Read MoreThe appearance of heart attacks in the early 1900s has also coincided with steep rises in type 2 diabetes, cancer, obesity, macular degeneration, and Alzheimer's; traditionally, processed carbohydrates and saturated fats get most of the blame. Before the early 1900s, most of these conditions were rare. As we will see, processed carbs were already a big part of our diets, but seed oils were introduced right when we started our trend towards all of these terrible conditions. I will cover the rise of vegetable oils in our diets, along with chicken fats, that parallel our rise in modern diseases like obesity, diabetes, and heart disease.
Read MoreIron is most often associated with anemia when it is low, but it is one of the most critical elements necessary for all life on the plane. Fully one-third of the world's population suffers from iron deficiency. The rate jumps to 2/3 in developing areas. Iron overload (too much iron in the body), which is also called hemochromatosis, is also quite common and is associated with a long list of pathologies and diseases, including early death. The problem with detecting undesirable iron levels lies in the fact that most doctors don't order the correct tests. The tests that they do order have lab value ranges that allow problematic levels to go undetected. The post will address the correct tests your doctor should order to correctly identify problems with your iron levels.
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