I think this is a fantastic approach for someone who can stay on top of it. This article and list of intervention is evidence-based and I couldn't find the evidence that showed that frequent dental cleaning will outperform the other items I listed. But I will stay on top of the research, if that changes, I'll update it.
Thank you for joining the conversation and sharing your perspective.
Another big help: genetics. I'm 73, never had a cavity, have only seen a dentist a handful of times in my enture life. All my teeth, some crooked abd poorly spaced, all intact and formly rooted. I do not floss or even necessarily brush every day. Every dentist I have seen has issued dure warnings and tried to schedule me for regular appointments.
Thank you for sharing! If I could prescribe genetics I would. But your point of individual risk is really important. Flossing or brushing several times a day for someone who is has won the dental gene lottery is of little value.
62 here. Not until I got braces at 55 did I realize how much better my oral hygiene could have been my entire life. I decided on braces to stop crowding and shifting and because I could finally afford them after all my kids moved out. But I bought a water pik when I got said braces and used it on gentle mode after every meal. After braces came off I had a back molar that needed a crown yet that should have been done before braces. I’ve had zero decay or work needed since.
My routine since and after 18 months of braces: flouride rinse in morning after coffee (I don’t eat breakfast); brush and floss and flouride after lunch; brush and floss and waterpik and flouride rinse followed by nigh-time retainer in evening.
My dentist and oral hygienist have commented the past few years (at my twice yearly cleaning) that my pattern of tooth decay has stopped 100%. I have strong healthy teeth and gums.
My diet is pretty good and I don’t do sugar drinks. Mainly water for hydration. 1 cup coffee in morning.
Thank you. Can’t recommend the water pik + flossing enough. My oral hygienist of 20+ years recommended flouride rinse although I balked at it. Went with it at her urging. The anxiety and dread and $$ at regular dental checkups is gone after years and years of various small decay patterns. Such a relief.
One thing that O have noticed with 2 dentists and hygienist is that they don’t recommend or praise water piks. They just praise regular flossing and fluoride. It was my orthodontic hygienist who recommended the water pik and to keep braces free of food particles.
Very interesting take and fascinating. A couple of areas I will comment on is diet and rinses. Oh, one other thing. I take it that the comment on Fluoride is geared to the 30-40 but I think pediatric should pay attention to the need for it if no fluoride is in the water (natural or other wise). Kids do love their sweets and or not the best in oral hygiene.
As diet is concern, bingo!, I have been focusing more on the human microbiomes (as well as in nature) in my substack. Dr Jones alluded to the oral microbiome in his post on mouthwashes. That was the comment I made there on salt water rinses. I had to look up oil pulling (a rather odd term for oral oil rinsing). The Cleveland Clinic says "Oil pulling can help prevent plaque and preserve your gums, but it can’t cure ailments" Apparently making the go around in the "Wellness" bu$ine$$. Is it snake oil they are talking about? An interesting take: https://health.clevelandclinic.org/is-oil-pulling-your-best-choice-for-dental-health
Great comments. And I should have made the my preamble more clear, the research I did was for adults and children with more preferred oral habits. For example, a child eating a lot of sweets wouldn't fall under any of the literature search I did because they would be considered high-risk. But a child with an otherwise good diet (minimal sweets, etc.) may still derive some benefit from fluoride but it's not a statistically significant amount. As for clevelandclinic.org, I usually don't use secondary or tertiary sources for my research because I'm unsure where they got their information. So all my data comes directly from studies that I consider (certainly there would be a bias there) high-quality and substantiated by other studies. Cheers! Thank you for your reply and deep thoughts. Love it.
I did look at the links that Cleveland Clinic put in the article. The 2020 study has a tiny N and need more data/research. Bottom line, does not replace brushing and flossing.
I was thinking the opposite actually: that one can follow a healthy dental regime consistently, including diet, and still end up with serious problems.
It is possible, but not something I've seen. In our private doctor group on Whatsapp I asked this question and it's not something my dentist friends have seen. The only cases are where there is another disease process like Sjogren's or other autoimmune or dry mouth conditions. I had one patients who developed accelerated dental disease even though she appeared to have great oral hygiene which was likely to accelerated dry mouth.
An important point as Glenn mentioned above. Genetics isn't a modifiable risk factor. And many have banked on their genetics only to realize that not all genetics work the same way. You might have stayed cavity free until 70 and suddenly start experiencing terrible gum disease. Or you might have had the worst genetic luck but a few small changes suddenly made all the difference. If I could prescribe a genetic pill, I would always reach for that first.
Sorry, treat every 3 month dental cleanings as a must. Motivational, preventative, and way cheaper annually than a single hair appointment.
I think this is a fantastic approach for someone who can stay on top of it. This article and list of intervention is evidence-based and I couldn't find the evidence that showed that frequent dental cleaning will outperform the other items I listed. But I will stay on top of the research, if that changes, I'll update it.
Thank you for joining the conversation and sharing your perspective.
Thanks! Also means missed appointments (illness, etc) mean still 2-3 cleanings a year.
Another big help: genetics. I'm 73, never had a cavity, have only seen a dentist a handful of times in my enture life. All my teeth, some crooked abd poorly spaced, all intact and formly rooted. I do not floss or even necessarily brush every day. Every dentist I have seen has issued dure warnings and tried to schedule me for regular appointments.
Thank you for sharing! If I could prescribe genetics I would. But your point of individual risk is really important. Flossing or brushing several times a day for someone who is has won the dental gene lottery is of little value.
62 here. Not until I got braces at 55 did I realize how much better my oral hygiene could have been my entire life. I decided on braces to stop crowding and shifting and because I could finally afford them after all my kids moved out. But I bought a water pik when I got said braces and used it on gentle mode after every meal. After braces came off I had a back molar that needed a crown yet that should have been done before braces. I’ve had zero decay or work needed since.
My routine since and after 18 months of braces: flouride rinse in morning after coffee (I don’t eat breakfast); brush and floss and flouride after lunch; brush and floss and waterpik and flouride rinse followed by nigh-time retainer in evening.
My dentist and oral hygienist have commented the past few years (at my twice yearly cleaning) that my pattern of tooth decay has stopped 100%. I have strong healthy teeth and gums.
My diet is pretty good and I don’t do sugar drinks. Mainly water for hydration. 1 cup coffee in morning.
It's fantastic that you found a method that works. To me that's the ultimate patient empowerment - knowing that what you do makes a real difference.
Thank you. Can’t recommend the water pik + flossing enough. My oral hygienist of 20+ years recommended flouride rinse although I balked at it. Went with it at her urging. The anxiety and dread and $$ at regular dental checkups is gone after years and years of various small decay patterns. Such a relief.
One thing that O have noticed with 2 dentists and hygienist is that they don’t recommend or praise water piks. They just praise regular flossing and fluoride. It was my orthodontic hygienist who recommended the water pik and to keep braces free of food particles.
Very interesting take and fascinating. A couple of areas I will comment on is diet and rinses. Oh, one other thing. I take it that the comment on Fluoride is geared to the 30-40 but I think pediatric should pay attention to the need for it if no fluoride is in the water (natural or other wise). Kids do love their sweets and or not the best in oral hygiene.
As diet is concern, bingo!, I have been focusing more on the human microbiomes (as well as in nature) in my substack. Dr Jones alluded to the oral microbiome in his post on mouthwashes. That was the comment I made there on salt water rinses. I had to look up oil pulling (a rather odd term for oral oil rinsing). The Cleveland Clinic says "Oil pulling can help prevent plaque and preserve your gums, but it can’t cure ailments" Apparently making the go around in the "Wellness" bu$ine$$. Is it snake oil they are talking about? An interesting take: https://health.clevelandclinic.org/is-oil-pulling-your-best-choice-for-dental-health
Great comments. And I should have made the my preamble more clear, the research I did was for adults and children with more preferred oral habits. For example, a child eating a lot of sweets wouldn't fall under any of the literature search I did because they would be considered high-risk. But a child with an otherwise good diet (minimal sweets, etc.) may still derive some benefit from fluoride but it's not a statistically significant amount. As for clevelandclinic.org, I usually don't use secondary or tertiary sources for my research because I'm unsure where they got their information. So all my data comes directly from studies that I consider (certainly there would be a bias there) high-quality and substantiated by other studies. Cheers! Thank you for your reply and deep thoughts. Love it.
I did look at the links that Cleveland Clinic put in the article. The 2020 study has a tiny N and need more data/research. Bottom line, does not replace brushing and flossing.
Haven’t you keft out genetics?
I was thinking the opposite actually: that one can follow a healthy dental regime consistently, including diet, and still end up with serious problems.
It is possible, but not something I've seen. In our private doctor group on Whatsapp I asked this question and it's not something my dentist friends have seen. The only cases are where there is another disease process like Sjogren's or other autoimmune or dry mouth conditions. I had one patients who developed accelerated dental disease even though she appeared to have great oral hygiene which was likely to accelerated dry mouth.
An important point as Glenn mentioned above. Genetics isn't a modifiable risk factor. And many have banked on their genetics only to realize that not all genetics work the same way. You might have stayed cavity free until 70 and suddenly start experiencing terrible gum disease. Or you might have had the worst genetic luck but a few small changes suddenly made all the difference. If I could prescribe a genetic pill, I would always reach for that first.