How to Remineralize Teeth, Reverse Tooth Decay Naturally

Most recently updated: Feb 2018

Update March 22, 2015 – I’ve been taking Strontium Bone Builder (Doctor’s Best brand which I buy from iHerb)  since I did the research I reported below 3 months ago, and my teeth feel noticeably stronger. Stontium is an all natural, food based Calcium which also contains other bone building nutrients. What builds bone will also build teeth.

I happened to have the Strontium on hand since I was giving to  my mom after she was on super-high doses of Prednisone and it was looking potentially like she might experience some of the scary side effects that go along with that (including bone loss). But fortunately that is long behind us now, her bone strength seems as strong as ever, and it was not practical to try to add yet another pill to her regime if not absolutely essential.  Then after doing some pretty indepth research into naturally healing tooth decay and re-growing teeth (all research recorded below), I realized the Strontium might in fact be beneficial to re-mineralize my teeth, making them stronger and less prone to decay. I am  very pleased to be able to report that in this short amount of time my teeth do feel stronger.

Note: I bought Doctor’s Best Brand Strontium Bone Builder at iHerb where I’ve been buying all my supplements for years because they have some of the best prices I’ve found anywhere, and excellent selection on thousands of health and nutritional supplements.

With promising results like this already, I am very eager to more closely follow the full regime for remineralizing teeth and reversing tooth decay, as I’ve detailed in all of the research you’ll find documented below.

With that purpose in mind, I bought cod liver oil – liquid (this is the exact brand I use – its not bad tasting at all) and liquid minerals (tasty, from Now Foods) (I also sometimes use these liquid Fulvic Minerals which are also good, and easy to take – just add to juice and drink it down) to take together, and I should be doing that at a minimum. But its been a stressful time and I have probably not been putting enough of a priority on taking care of myself (we all know what that’s like, right?). Downing a daily shot of decent tasting cod liver oil and liquid minerals is not difficult to do, so its really kinda foolhardy not to, considering the substantial potential benefits.

The idea of naturally healing tooth decay, regrowing teeth, etc may seem far fetched to some, but I completely recognized the potential in this because I have personally used Oil of Oregano (also available at iHerb) on badly decayed teeth.  My dental issue was so bad, in fact, my bite was thrown off for a full year. But I was able to return it back to normal after devoted use of oil of oregano, tea tree oil and sea salt (never swallow after using these to deal with dental issues, always spit out as these substances absorb the bacteria in the decay or infection).  And I was able to stabilize and halt the decay with it, as well as heal the associated pain, discomfort and tenderness – which is to me, nothing short of miraculous. After a year of periodic treatments with Oil of Oregano (I have also used tea tree oil on decayed teeth with good results – but again, don’t ever swallow it! Swish it over the problem areas for as long as possible, then spit it out) very effectively for this purpose, and after continued use, the tooth problem resolved and my bite returned to normal (what a relief that was after an entire year of suffering!).  All of this with no involvement of a dentist. Again miraculous! And the situation has stayed stable ever since (well over ten years), with periodic use of Oil of Oregano oil applied to the tooth as needed .

Recently I also learned about clove oil (also available at iHerb) for dental pain, infections, etc. while reading the website of a holistic dentist. I have used that also with very good results. My husband recently tried it when he was experiencing some tooth pain, and he was overwhelmingly impressed with how effectively both the clove oil and oregano oil rid him of the pain, and has kept it away (after 2 treatments only) – its been several years now.

You might also want to try this natural, homemade tooth remineralizing toothpaste you can make yourself (takes only 2 minutes to make enough to brush 30 times) to help in your remineralizing regime.

Anyway, on to the research and fascinating information about naturally healing tooth decay and remineralizing teeth. Also included in the extensive research below is info on avoiding root canals naturally  through nutrition, and healing receding gums with coconut oil.

Reverse Tooth Decay

This is an assemblage of excerpts from the research I’ve done which I found particularly informative and to the point (everything below has been excerpted from other websites, whom I have credited):

I recommend  iHerb for any of the natural supplements you may choose to use as part of your regime – they’ve got the best prices and selection you will find, feel free to shop around and compare for yourself.  I also find the customer reviews you’ll find on every product they offer really helpful – you can learn so much more about what each supplement actually does when you read the reviews from real people using the supplements).

For a severe cavity use 1 to 2 teaspoons of Fermented cod liver oil per day…..And at least until your problem is under control you should completely eliminate sugar and grains to allow for faster healing (otherwise you are simply feeding the decay, which is entirely counterproductive). We’re not talking about just swishing the ol in your mouth (or “oil pulling” – we’re talking about consuming the cod liver oil; oil swishing/pulling is also recommended, but that should be done using coconut oil/ more on that further on).

Collagen is also very important for teeth strength (the stronger your teeth are, the more resistant they are to decay and cavities). The powdered form is more easily absorbed by the body – you simply mix it with juice. However, you can also take collagen tablets if you prefer (Neocell and Doctor’s Best are good brands).  Vitamin C, lysine and proline also help your liver make collagen.  Its always important to take vitamin C with your collagen because it works synergistically with collagen to increase the effectiveness of the collagen supplement.

Brush your teeth gently 1 -2 times a day max with only coconut oil and a natural SOFT brush. Brush in soft circular motions. You should never brush vigorously (your dentist has probably told you that) – it wears the enamel of your teeth, which is entirely counter productive. Don’t ever scrape teeth with anything (including your fingernails). Coconut oil absorbs bacteria in the mouth and draws it out. There are actually forward-thinking dentists now who are  prescribing coconut oil to their patients as part of a normal oral care regime.

Try Black Walnut Hull tincture. I’ve read of several people who have used this herbal tincture to re-grow their tooth enamel (testimonials posted on earthclinic dot com)

For gum health make sure you’re getting enough food sourced Vitamin C in your diet. Try Camu Camu powder. Nature’s Way also sells an affordable Vitamin C powder or caps made from high vitamin C content berries. I personally use Emergen-C, a very potent and easily assimilated form of vitamin C (powdered form, you stir into water – tastes yummy too), and I give it to all my family.

But very important, keep on taking your Cod Liver Oil and stay on a Low Sugar / Fruit / Grains Diet.

And as I’ve said, tee tree oil and oil of oregano applied directly onto the cavity or gum where the problem is can be very effective – treat until the problem is improve. Keep the oil on the problem area as long as possible, then spit out – never swallow the oil it draws up bacteria – you do not want it to enter your intestines or recirculate through your blood stream.

————————

VERY Interesting Story About Healing Tooth Decay Naturally – From Someone Who Successfully Did It

Source

Two years ago I went to the dentist for a cleaning. I had one small cavity in between two of my upper teeth, and one large cavity way in the back next to my wisdom tooth. The dentist recommended that I stay and immediately have those two cavities filled. I told him I was going to go home and do some research first. I don’t think anyone has ever said that to him before, because he really looked speechless there for a second. I think Doctors are pretty used to getting their way (besides, he already thinks I’m weird because of a previous argument we got into about fluoride).

Here is my research:

Contrary to popular belief, the teeth are not inanimate objects, but fully alive parts of the body. What makes up a tooth?

• Dentin: the bone-like layer in the middle of the tooth
• Enamel: the hard white surface that covers the tooth
• Pulp: with its  many blood vessels, nerves and live cells
• Mandibular nerve: which stimulates the body in carrying blood to the nerves in the teeth
• Trigeminal nerve: stimulates the blood vessels that feed blood from the large cranial  nerve to the Mandibular nerve
• Periodontal ligament: connects the tooth to the jaw through millions of fibers all going different directions
• Dentinal Tubules: EVERY TOOTH CONTAINS 3 MILES OF MICROSCOPIC TUBES, FILLED WITH A SUBSTANCE SIMILAR TO THE CEREBRAL SPINAL FLUID.

Dentin and enamel are fed from tooth building cells which transport or disperse  nutrients through the dental lymph. They essentially act as tiny pumps. A healthy tooth will clean itself out, fluid will flow from within the pulp and move outward to protect our teeth from decay.

This Aborigine Tribe had beautiful teeth and wide arches. The pictures on the right page (top left, bottom left and bottom right) show the effects modern “white foods” had on this tribe.

The teeth’s ability to heal itself is based upon how healthy your salivary glands are. Poor diet causes food debris, saliva, chemicals and whatever may be in the body at the time to be pulled into the tooth through the dentinal tubules. Over time, the pulp becomes inflamed and tooth decay spreads to the enamel.

• Certain minerals play a key part in tooth health. Namely Magnesium, Copper, Iron, Phosphorus, Calcium and Manganese. Without abundant minerals in the diet the flow of fluid through the tubules is reversed, and cellular metabolism and energy-production of the teeth-building cells are damaged.
• Our hormone secreting glands also play a large part in the health of our teeth. When our endocrine glands are out of balance we develop tooth decay or gum disease.
•  Blood sugar levels when chronically out of balance, can often cause tooth decay or gum disease.
• Vitamin A & D are crucial to the health of your teeth. Without enough Vitamin A & D our cells cannot produce enough osteocalcin-the protein that deposits calcium and phosphorous into our bones and teeth.
•  Without enough fat-soluble vitamins in the diet severe tooth decay can result.

So what can you do?

Help your endocrine and pituitary glands stay in balance by eating a diet very low in sugar. This includes natural sugars (in fruit, fruit juices and carbs).

Eat a diet low in phytic acid, which is an anti-nutrient found in grains, seeds, nuts and beans, and actually blocks the absorption of minerals by the body.

Eat more healthy saturated fats! (Coconut oil especially,  butter etc).  Cholesterol is a vital building block involved in  hundreds of functions in the body. In fact, your body produces three to four times the amount of cholesterol that you eat. Cholesterol from healthy fats is not dangerous and has no effect on your risk of heart disease.

Consume Vitamin A & D together. The most potent form is cod liver oil. You would have to eat 5 quarts of milk, 1 pound of butter or 9 eggs to consume the amount of Vitamin A found in one teaspoon of cod liver oil!

Update: iHerb.com sells Garden of Life Arctic Cod Liver oil on their site. It is very high quality.

Increase the amount of fresh, raw foods that you consume and reduce the amount of cooked, processed, prepackaged foods.

The Prescirption:

Take Fermented Cod Liver Oil 3 TIMES A DAY. Garden of Life makes a great quality Cod Liver Oil as well.

Drink 2-3 cups of raw, grass-fed whole-fat milk per day minimum.

Make homemade bone broth often, and use it for cooking daily. You can, of course, also drink it by the cup or use it as a base for soup – just be sure to consume daily

Eat wild-caught seafood 1-2 times per week.

Eat high quality beef, pork, chicken from a local farm if possible who only feeds the animals what God would feed them.

Eat the organ meats from those animals at least 1 time per week (ie: Liver)

Eliminate sugar completely (or allow 1 Tbsp per day maximum). Which sounds hard, but once you haven’t had sugar for a while, 1 Tbsp is actually a lot of sweetener. (and fruit tastes like candy)

Increase the amount of green leafy vegetables you consume, and always consume them with a healthy fat, which helps you absorb the minerals efficiently. Juicing is an excellent way toget your greens, if you aren’t a big fan.

Soak grains in water before cooking to reduce the amount of phytic acids you are consuming. You need to also  greatly reduce the amount of grains you are eating – grains contribute to decay!

Because your teeth are alive, they CAN heal themselves!

I didn’t believe this until I went back to the dentist 6 months later and the small cavity on the top was so much smaller in the X-ray that the Doctor could barely find it. In  my mind I screamed “I knew it would work, I knew it!”. But out loud I just said “hhmmm. It looks like the changes I made worked.” He asked me a lot of questions, and I answered them all. We talked for over an hour about the changes I made, and the research behind why they worked. This man with a doctorate in dentistry literally said to me “I have been a dentist for 21 years and I had no idea a tooth could remineralize itself. I didn’t know it was even possible”.

Now it has been 2 years, and both of my cavities are 100% gone. I also had teeth that were very sensitive to cold, and that has gone away entirely. I can now chew ice cubes (I know everyone with sensitive teeth out there is cringing right now) and rinse my mouth with ice water and I feel no pain.

IN SUMMARY

Tooth decay is caused by an imbalance in body chemistry. Blood sugar spikes  cause our hormones to tell the teeth to stop adding minerals, and our metabolism of calcium and phosphorous is disrupted. Eat plenty of vegetables, stop eating so much sugar and carbohydrates, eat more grass-fed protein and fat and you can resolve this imbalance.

I would recommend the same research to you, that I recommended to the Doctor:

Cure Tooth Decay by Ramiel Nagel

http://www.curetoothdecay.com/

Nutrition and Physical Degeneration by Weston A. Price (the pioneer of natural dental healing) READ ONLINE HERE

Nourishing Traditions by Sally Fallon

http://www.westonaprice.org/

Know Your Fats by Mary Enig

Find real food here: www.eatwild.com and www.localharvest.org and www.greenpasture.org

Use only cod liver oil that uses cold fermentation to extract the oil, instead of the more common distillation and heat. It is type of cod liver oil requires for naturally healing teeth. I

Related Articles:

Whole Grains: Not as Healthy as We Think?

Your Journey to Health

Magnesium Deficiency and What to do about it

Characteristics of Traditional Diets

Organ Meat Recipes

How We Afford to Eat High Quality Food

Nourishing Traditions by Sally Fallon

—-

Here’s Another Fascinating Blog Post I Read from Someone Who Has Had Success Healing Cavities Naturally

Several months ago, my husband came up to me and said, “I think I have a cavity.” I looked in his mouth and was mortified. His back wisdom tooth was—I kid you not—green and brown and black and pitted, and definitely did not look healthy. Neither of us had ever had a cavity before, but I was pretty sure this was a case study.

I said, “Honey! You need to start oil pulling right away!”

Well, you know, he kinda looked at me the way I imagine you looked at me when I said I quit toothpaste.

But a week later, he felt a chunk flake off of said tooth, and the next morning he pulled out the coconut oil before breakfast. (They say you should rinse first thing in the am).

He began oil pulling faithfully every morning, as well as taking cod liver oil (upping nutrition was something I read was key to regenerating tooth decay). Within 3 days, he said the pain was gone. And a month later, after oil pulling 5-6 times a week, I looked in his mouth, and his tooth was—are you ready for this? White. White with a bit of yellow, but the black and green and brown were all gone, and the surface of the tooth was smoothing out instead of being pitted.

People, I am not lyin’ here.

Tooth regeneration is possible, and surprisingly simple…

God designed our bodies so incredibly. If we are nourishing our bodies well, He designed them to be able to heal from injury and disease—even our teeth.

I share our stories because the idea of ‘healing your teeth’ is quite foreign to people. But listen to this…

“That tooth decay is caused by nutrient deficiencies and not bacteria has been proven in both animal and laboratory experiments published in books and dental journals…

…If brushing, flossing, massive fluoridation campaigns, and dental surgery were effective in preventing tooth decay, it would not get worse over time. It would stay the same, or get better.”  (Ramiel Nagel of CureToothDecay.com)

But that’s not what’s happening, is it? It has become normal to have our teeth rot out of our head, starting not in our 60’s, or 40’s, but as children and even babies.

“What is missing from the ADA’s bacteria theory of cavities is that strong teeth resist acid and bacteria. And when you, the consumer, understand that a strong tooth resists acid indefinitely, then the next logical question is, what makes a tooth strong?” (Ramiel Nagel)

The answer, which Ramiel details in his ebook (linked below) is good nutrition. And you know what it means when I use that term around here…lots of whole foods, good fat, raw milk, tasty meats and properly prepared grains and veggies. Ramiel especially stresses whole, raw milk in the diet and plenty of deeply nourishing fats like butter oil and cod liver oil.

So, gotta a toothache? Wish you had stronger teeth? Don’t despair. You can actually do something other than have them all pulled and getting dentures. (Oh, yay!) Increase your nutrition and try oil pulling!

How to Oil Pull With Coconut Oil

1. Scoop about 2 tsp. of coconut oil out of your jar and pop it in your mouth.
2. Chew or hold the oil in your mouth till it melts and becomes liquid (takes about 30 seconds).
3. Start swishing, pulling the oil back and forth and sideways through all your teeth.
4. Swish for 20 min., spitting the oil out (into the trash) when you’re finished.

Why Oil Pulling works:

Your teeth are actually porous, comprised of yards and yards of minute passages (like a sponge) that bring nutrients to the outer enamel when good nutrition is present in your diet…or suck toxins into the teeth when nutrition is lacking. Oil itself has the ability to cut right through plaque to the tooth surface, and coconut oil in particular has rich, anti-bacterial properties. It’s believed that  one of the reasons oil pulling strengthens teeth is that it can help reverse the flow of toxins, pulling bacteria out of the teeth, and becoming a vehicle to dispose of toxins. Also, we’ve found the swishing action can be as effective as flossing, without any damage to gums (yes–I’ve gotten popcorn kernels out with oil pulling!)

Where to get good Coconut Oil:

Any organic, cold-pressed, virgin coconut oil will work for this. If it smells like coconut, that’s a sign that it hasn’t been over-processed and still has all the wonderful things God put in the coconut to begin with! You’re looking for coconut oil that is cold pressed, extra virgin, and organic.

Here’s some resources for further reading on Healing Cavities…

• Can a Cavity be Healed with Nutrition? on Keeper of the Home
• How I Healed My Child’s Cavity…this post from The Healthy Home Economist is what convinced me we could heal Jeremy’s tooth.
• The Healthy Mouth Summit…I attended this online seminar last January. Extremely educational and exciting!
• Tips and Tricks to Remineralize and Repair Your Teeth by Ramiel Nagel of CureToothDecay.com a clearly explained argument for a nutritional approach to oral health–a very helpful little book!

Remember, oil pulling is just part of a natural tooth care plan. Our teeth will be strong when our bodies are well nourished with plenty of whole, nourishing foods. For help getting started on your real food journey, check out Your Real Food Journey. If you struggle to source whole foods like raw milk, check out “What to do if you can’t find or afford raw milk” or my resource page. And for my best secrets to feeding your family well even when life gets busy, I offer my book, Real {Fast} Food!

Note: I’m not a health care professional, and am not giving health advice. I’m simply a woman with a passion for learning, sharing something that worked for me and my family. Thanks for stopping by!

Got More Questions on oil pulling? Here’s a resource: Oil Pulling: Frequently Asked Questions

 Interesting Reader’s Comment Related to this Article

I just wanted to add my bit here. I’ve ben oil puling (oil swishing) for almost three years now after hearing about it from a friend. One issue I had was not being able to find a resolution to a large amount of sore scar tissue in my mouth, which was rather uncomfortable to say the least. It had been a source of discomfort for over 30 years! Since I started “oil pulling,” I’ve noticed and felt an incredible difference in my teeth, gums and general oral health. My mouth has completely regenerated, all to the the dismay of my dentist; who I have not seen for over two years now, and no longer need the help/hinderance of his services. His (my dentist) response to my incredible results was to pour scorn and tell me that I’m risking my oral health with this nonsense. Well the results speak for themselves. No more dentist or hygenist bills, no more plague, no more scar tissue, healthy gums and amazingly white and strong teeth. Try it and experience the amazing results for yourself. For reference, I use cold pressed organic sunflower oil and swish it around (oil pull) until the oil turns milky white and turns watery. This takes approx 25 mins. On a final note, oil pulling does not only have incredible effects on the mouth, but also boasts amazing results for many chronic illnesses and conditions. Do your research!

——

FROM WELLNESSMAMMA.COM:

I wondered if a healing tooth powder would work and I couldn’t be happier with the results. It is easier to make than the toothpaste and you can use actual powdered herbs and spices instead of the essential oils which saves money.

Why Tooth Powder?

The main ingredient in this tooth powder is Bentonite Clay, which I’ve recently become a huge fan of. Not only does it bind to and draw out heavy metals and toxins (a huge plus for the mouth!), but it is alkaline and full of minerals.

It can be taken internally to help with toxin removal so it is safe for use in the mouth and it contains calcium, magnesium and silica which are nourishing for the teeth! According to Mountain Rose Herbs:

“Bentonite is very unusual in the fact that once it becomes hydrated, the electrical and molecular components of the clay rapidly change and produce an “electrical charge”. Its highest power lies in the ability to absorb toxins, impurities, heavy metals and other internal contaminants. Bentonite clay’s structure assists it in attracting and soaking up poisons on its exterior wall and then slowly drawing them into the interior center of the clay where it is held in a sort of repository.

To state it another way…

“Bentonite is a swelling clay. When it becomes mixed with water it rapidly swells open like a highly porous sponge. From here the toxins are drawn into the sponge through electrical attraction and once there, they are bound.

It is also extremely gentle and has a milder taste for kids. I also use Bentonite Clay for facial masks, healing poultices and when drying hair naturally to keep color on.

The other ingredients are supportive of the mouth as well:

• Baking soda is alkaline and contains minerals. It also helps remove stains.
• Calcium powder provides extra calcium and magnesium to provide minerals and whiten.
• Cloves powder is naturally antibacterial and gives a great taste.
• Cinnamon is also antibacterial, tastes great and helps discourage bacterial growth in the mouth.
• Mint tastes great and is soothing to the gums.
• Xylitol– completely optional and adds sweetness.

 

Wet the toothbrush (I use a Bass brush from OraWellness since it is super gentle on the gums and cleans better) and dip into the powder. I also add a few drops of OraWellness Brushing Blend. Brush using the Bass Brushing Technique until teeth are clean. Rinse with cool water. Can be used daily (or multiple times daily) and is fine for adults and kids.

My Oral Health Regimen:

My teeth have never been whiter or healthier (according to my dentist) thanks to my oral health regimen. It includes a healthy diet that supports oral health and a specific brushing regimen. This is what I do daily (that reversed cavities for both my husband and me):

• Brush with activated charcoal powder to kill bacteria, remove toxins and whiten- Don’t do this everyday now but every couple of days.
• Brush with Tooth Powder or Remineralizing Toothpaste with a few Drops of Brushing Blend.
• Rinse mouth.
• Finish my rubbing a few drops of Brushing Blend on my gums and tongue to discourage bacterial growth, especially at night (and because it tastes great!).
• Repeat one or more times a day!

Diet has a tremendous impact on oral health (even more so than brushing in some cases) and that there had even been cases of cavities reversing.

As I thought about this, it made sense…

Why would bones and other tissue be able to heal and regenerate, but not teeth?

How did other populations throughout the world have great oral health, no cavities and no need for braces when they didn’t even have access to modern dentistry?

As I noted in a previous post:

Also enter Dr. Weston A Price, a dentist who traveled and studied isolated populations around the world and their native diets. Dr. Price was surprised to discover that many of these native peoples eating a diet devoid of modern foods had perfect teeth structure and little tooth decay. Their teeth were well spaced with plenty of room, and were white and healthy. Lest we think this is just genetics, Dr. Price studied people all over the world with widely different genes and found the same common factor. (An interesting note: when these people are removed from their native environment and switch to a western diet, they get tooth decay, bone loss and other health problems at the same rate as people in western industrialized countries)

These doctors all reached the same conclusion after years of research, mainly that tooth structure and health is largely determined by diet, especially three main factors:

1. The presence of enough minerals in the diet.
2. The presence of enough fat soluble vitamins (A, D, E and K) in the diet.
3. How bio-available these nutrients are and how well the body is absorbing them. They found that this is largely influenced by the presence of Phytic Acid in the diet.

These doctors hypothesized that these three factors influenced the body’s ability to reverse cavities and oral health problems, and that if you could optimize these factors, you could prevent further damage and even reverse present damage.

People who consume large amounts of phytic acid (most Americans) in the form of grains, seeds, nuts, and legumes have higher rates of tooth decay, mineral deficiencies and osteoporosis.

Over the long term, when the diet lacks minerals or contains high levels of phytates or both, the metabolism goes down, and the body goes into mineral-starvation mode. The body then sets itself up to use as little of these minerals as possible. Adults may get by for decades on a high-phytate diet, but growing children run into severe problems. In a phytate-rich diet, their bodies will suffer from the lack of calcium and phosphorus with poor bone growth, short stature, rickets, narrow jaws and tooth decay; and for the lack of zinc and iron with anemia and mental retardation.

Just as lack of Vitamin D and poor calcium absorption can cause malformation of the bones of the legs (as in the case of Rickets), it can cause the jawbone to form poorly, resulting in spacing problems for the teeth and braces for the child.

Sadly, the most commonly eaten diet in America these days is high in grains, sugars, and vegetable oils, and low in animal fats and fat soluble vitamins- the exact opposite of what the Drs. Mellanby found to be helpful for optimal bone health and the prevention of tooth decay.

The good news is that teeth (and bones) are able to heal themselves in a process called remineralization. Basically, specialized cells in the center of the tooth are able to regenerate dentin, the layer of tooth just under the enamel, and the enamel can then properly remineralize from the outside. This same process happens in bones when phytic acid is removed from the diet and minerals/fat soluble vitamins are added.

To prove this theory, the Drs. Mellanby did a study on children with existing cavities. The children were put into three groups:

• Group One: Regular diet plus oatmeal (which is high in phytic acid)
• Group Two: Regular diet plus vitamin D
• Group Three: Diet low in phytic acid plus vitamin D.

This is what they found:

The group consuming phytic acid with no supplemental vitamin D continued to get cavities with little to no healing. The group that just supplemented Vitamin D showed some healing, but also got some new cavities. The group consuming no phytic acid and supplementing Vitamin D showed very few new cavities and actually had many existing cavities heal! (Good reason to cut back on the grains , eat good fats, and optimize Vitamin D!)

When I brought this information up in health circles, it would usually spark a lot of debate and some strong comments from dentists or dental health professionals. Most would admit, after a time, that the enamel of teeth could regenerate but that once a cavity was through the dentin (the layer under the enamel), it was impossible for it to heal without dental intervention.

In my own life and in further reading, I’ve found that this isn’t the case either. As this article elaborates:

Fortunately, a decaying or broken tooth has the ability to heal itself. Pulp contains cells called odontoblasts, which form new dentin if the diet is good. Here’s what Dr. Edward Mellanby had to say about his wife’s research on the subject. This is taken from Nutrition and Disease:

Since the days of John Hunter it has been known that when the enamel and dentine are injured by attrition or caries, teeth do not remain passive but respond to the injury by producing a reaction of the odontoblasts in the dental pulp in an area generally corresponding to the damaged tissue and resulting in a laying down of what is known as secondary dentine. In 1922 M. Mellanby proceeded to investigate this phenomenon under varying nutritional conditions and found that she could control the secondary dentine laid down in the teeth of animals as a reaction to attrition both in quality and quantity, independently of the original structure of the tooth. Thus, when a diet of high calci­fying qualities, ie., one rich in vitamin D, calcium and phosphorus was given to the dogs during the period of attrition, the new secondary dentine laid down was abundant and well formed whether the original structure of the teeth was good or bad. On the other hand, a diet rich in cereals and poor in vitamin D resulted in the production of secondary dentine either small in amount or poorly calcified, and this happened even if the primary dentine was well formed.

To be fair, most dentists probably don’t see many patients who are eating a specific diet to improve their oral health, and most of the studies and research they read is probably done on people eating a somewhat average diet (high in phytic acid and low in Vitamin D), so it is very logical that they wouldn’t think that teeth could heal. It certainly isn’t common, but with very specific supplements and a very careful nutritional program, it is certainly possible!

My Story:

In early 2010, my regular dental check-up revealed that I had some soft spots and a lot of plaque on my teeth. I also had one “official” cavity, though it wasn’t bad, and while they suggested getting it filled soon, it wasn’t a huge rush. They did warn me that I had the beginning stages of gingivitis in several places and had a lot of plaque.(It took them about 30-40 minutes to scrape and clean my teeth, which I thought was normal) They took x-rays, so I have picture evidence of my teeth at this time.

I had every intention of getting the cavity filled and continuing with regular dentist appointments, but then life happened and I didn’t get around to scheduling an appointment for months. By the time I finally had time to schedule an appointment, I had seen some interesting info in books about the ability of teeth to heal, so I decided to hold off.

I did more research, read the book Cure Tooth Decay (aff) and read accounts of other people reversing dental damage, so I decided to give it a try. I took advice from all the research I had done and figured out a specific diet and supplement regimen that I was going to use to try to heal my teeth.

I followed the regimen for a few months, and noticed that my teeth were whiter and much less sensitive to cold. This was big news to me as I used to have such sensitive teeth that drinking too cold of a drink could literally almost bring me to tears. I also found out about this time that I was expecting a baby (p.s. this diet promotes fertility too!) and decided to continue on the regimen for the pregnancy, as all of the things I was doing were also supportive of healthy pregnancy.

It was fall of 2011 before I finally got around to making it back to the dentist (I know, I know… every six months…) and I didn’t mention a thing about the cavities and soft spots that needed to be fixed… and neither did the dentist!

It also only took them about 5 minutes to clean and scrape my teeth. I thought she was still checking them and she was done! The hygienist told me that my teeth and gums looked great, and asked if I had started using fluoride or fluoride toothpaste (my chart made it very clear that I was anti-fluoride). I told her no but that I had been trying to make sure I was taking better care of my teeth lately (very true!).

When the dentist checked my teeth, he didn’t mention any problem areas either and remarked that my gums looked great! On a random note, I heard him telling another patient that cutting back on the sugar and starches was a good idea since “without starches, cavities can not form, since they feed on sugar and starches.” Newfound respect for my dentist!

I’ve also now tried and seen this regimen work for clients and relatives (currently trying it on my husband).

So what did I do?

Diet to Help Heal Cavities and Improve Oral Health

1. I drastically cut foods that contained phytic acid. I already wasn’t eating grains or beans, but I also cut or limited nuts.
2. Limited foods containing even natural sugars or starches– I limited fruit and even starchy vegetables like sweet potatoes and focused on mineral rich vegetables, bone broths, meats, and healthy fats.
3. Ate a LOT of healthy fats. I added about 1/4 cup extra of coconut oil to my diet each day, and used only pastured, cultured butter.
4. I made an effort to consume a lot of homemade bone broth for its added minerals.

To recap: No grains, beans or nuts and limited fruits and starches. Lots of vegetables, protein, healthy fats and bone broth.

Supplements to Help Heal Cavities and Improve Oral Health

To help the body remineralize cavities, it is sometimes necessary to increase mineral levels with supplements. While diet alone might be enough, many foods are depleted of nutrients from being grown in nutrient depleted soil, so supplements help fill the gaps. These are the supplements I typically recommend for improved oral health and dental healing:

• Fermented Cod Liver Oil    This is one of the main supplements recommended by Dr. Price from his research.
• Vitamin D- This was the other main supplement that Dr. Price and the Drs. Mellanby found was extremely supportive of dental healing. In the study they did, cavities healed even when diet wasn’t changed if Vitamin D was optimized and the best healing occurred when diet was optimized and Vitamin D was added.
• Coconut Oil– I take an additional 1/2 cup a day of coconut oil in a smoothie or melted in tea each day.Just look for organic, virgin and unrefined coconut oil.
• Others– I also take Magnesium, Gelatin and Vitamin C daily, though these aren’t as vital to tooth healing.

Other Factors:

• I brush with homemade remineralizing toothpaste daily and while I was actively trying to heal teeth, I swished with both calcium and magnesium powders dissolved in water daily to help provide minerals and to keep the mouth alkaline.
• I also added Ora Wellness Brushing Blend to my regimen and use their (gentler) toothbrush daily.
• I swished daily with Hydrogen Peroxide to keep mouth bacteria at bay (which had the added effect of whitening teeth).
• I brushed with activated charcoal every couple of days to help pull toxins from the mouth (more on that soon!)

~~~

The dentist that invented the root canal wrote a book about the devastating effects and warned people not to have them done in their mouth.  I had seven crowns before getting 4 of them pulled due to abcesses.  One had a root canal done twice. Then I got 2 more crowns after two years of my partial being in my mouth . I advise you see a denturist if you are going to pay that much for a partial. It is not a dentists area of expertise.  There is a denturist with an advice column online that is very helpful and answers questions.
I open activated charcoal tablets and mix with water and shake , then rinse in my mouth and spit and then brush or just leave it and go to bed.  I eat coconut oil daily and sometimes at night put some in my mouth and go to bed .  I drink kefir daily and take mineral supplements with vit D-3 and K-2. I use msm for pain  with vit C  and brush with the msm crystals to help with receeding gumline as I read in some sites on msm. It has been helping me.
I take af betafood for my liver to digest fats and also drink with a straw, lemon or line in lukewarm water first thing in the morning . Lack of digestion has caused a lot of health issues and dental problems.
I do not use flouride and don’t use baking soda on my teeth accept to rinse at times.  I found a famous herbalist powder for brushing teeth I am using after reading many positive reviews online of his products for improved health . He has long passed. I find the powder comforting and don’t rinse it off ,but brush it on and leave it.
I also post prayer request on major  ministry sites when I feel it is overwhelming and that has helped me a lot on  bad days.
I went to the dentist every 6 months and brushed , flossed, ate right and my teeth degraded year after year.  I did all the work they said I needed until I felt they could no longer help me and I went looking for a better answer than traditional dental treatments.
My water has never had flouride but has chlorine and I let it sit for an hour before I drink it.  Salt is one of the minerals that make our teeth strong

~~~

These doctors all reached the same conclusion after years of research, mainly that tooth structure and health is largely determined by diet, especially three main factors:

1. The presence of enough minerals in the diet.
2. The presence of enough fat soluble vitamins (A, D, E and K) in the diet.
3. How bio-available these nutrients are and how well the body is absorbing them. They found that this is largely influenced by the presence of Phytic Acid in the diet.

What is Phytic Acid?

Phytic acid is a molecule of phosphorus tightly bound with other molecules to form a type of phosphorus that is not easily absorbed by humans. From the Weston A. Price Foundation:

Phytic acid is the principal storage form of phosphorus in many plant tissues, especially the bran portion of grains and other seeds. It contains the mineral phosphorus tightly bound in a snowflake-like molecule. In humans and animals with one stomach, the phosphorus is not readily bioavailable. In addition to blocking phosphorus availability, the “arms” of the phytic acid molecule readily bind with other minerals, such as calcium, magnesium, iron and zinc, making them unavailable as well. In this form, the compound is referred to as phytate.

Phytic acid is found in grains, nuts, seeds and legumes and in much smaller amounts in some fruits and vegetables. The body naturally converts phytic acid into phytates, which are un-absorbable and take calcium from the body. Those who consume high amounts of phytic acid will lose calcium and absorb other minerals at lower rates.

Modern growing practices, including the use of high phosphorus fertilizer, mean a higher phytic acid content in many foods. Seeds, nuts, bran, oatmeal, and soybeans are especially high in phytic acid, and these foods are present in abundance in modern diet.

Check out this article about phytic acid for a comprehensive list of phytic acid content in foods.

Phytic Acid’s Effect on Bone and Tooth Health

People who consume large amounts of phytic acid (most Americans) in the form of grains, seeds, nuts, and legumes have higher rates of tooth decay, mineral deficiencies and osteoporosis.

Over the long term, when the diet lacks minerals or contains high levels of phytates or both, the metabolism goes down, and the body goes into mineral-starvation mode. The body then sets itself up to use as little of these minerals as possible. Adults may get by for decades on a high-phytate diet, but growing children run into severe problems. In a phytate-rich diet, their bodies will suffer from the lack of calcium and phosphorus with poor bone growth, short stature, rickets, narrow jaws and tooth decay; and for the lack of zinc and iron with anemia and mental retardation.

Just as lack of Vitamin D and poor calcium absorption can cause malformation of the bones of the legs (as in the case of Rickets), it can cause the jawbone to form poorly, resulting in spacing problems for the teeth and braces for the child.

Sadly, the most commonly eaten diet in America these days is high in grains, sugars, and vegetable oils, and low in animal fats and fat soluble vitamins- the exact opposite of what the Drs. Mellanby found to be helpful for optimal bone health and the prevention of tooth decay.

The good news is that teeth (and bones) are able to heal themselves in a process called remineralization. Basically, specialized cells in the center of the tooth are able to regenerate dentin, the layer of tooth just under the enamel, and the enamel can then properly remineralize from the outside. This same process happens in bones when phytic acid is removed from the diet and minerals/fat soluble vitamins are added.

To prove this theory, the Drs. Mellanby did a study on children with existing cavities. The children were put into three groups:

• Group One: Regular diet plus oatmeal (which is high in phytic acid)
• Group Two: Regular diet plus vitamin D
• Group Three: Diet low in phytic acid plus vitamin D.

This is what they found:

 

The group consuming phytic acid with no supplemental vitamin D continued to get cavities with little to no healing. The group that just supplemented Vitamin D showed some healing, but also got some new cavities. The group consuming no phytic acid and supplementing Vitamin D showed very few new cavities and actually had many existing cavities heal! (Good reason to cut back on the grains, eat good fats, and optimize Vitamin D!)

This article at Whole Health Source explains more.

How to Prevent and Reverse Tooth Decay and Avoid Braces

To recap, the things that Drs. Mellanby and Dr. Price found to prevent and reverse tooth and bone problems are:

1. The presence of enough minerals in the diet.
2. The presence of enough fat soluble vitamins (A, D, E and K) in the diet.
3. How bio-available these nutrients are and how well the body is absorbing them. They found that this is largely influenced by the presence of Phytic Acid in the diet.

What does this mean practically in the diet? It is not possible or necessary to eliminate Phytic acid from the diet. What should be considered is taking care to minimize the foods that contain the highest amounts. Some preparations like soaking and fermenting can reduce the phytic acid content and should be practiced if the foods are going to be consumed, but in many cases, it is better to avoid these foods completely.

Nuts, for instance, have a high phytic acid content which can be greatly reduced by soaking the nuts in salt or lemon water overnight and then rinsing and dehydrating in the oven (the same can be done with beans). While this step is time consuming, it is feasible with things like nuts or beans, but much more intensive with wheat (which contains more phytic acid!) Grains especially are better soaked, sprouted and fermented,  if consumed at all, but this process does not completely eliminate the other harmful properties of grains.

You might notice that meats, eggs, vegetables, and healthy fats are not on this list of high phytic acid foods. As I’ve mentioned before, these foods contain higher levels of vitamins and minerals are are more nutrient dense anyway. If foods high in phytic acid are going to be eaten, check out this article from the Weston A. Price Foundation on how to sprout, ferment, and soak them to make them less harmful.

Especially for the sake of your children, who are developing their tooth and bone structure, consider reducing your consumption of phytic acid containing foods. A diet based on the guidelines suggested by the doctors above will also help achieve optimal weight, improve concentration, and increase energy levels.

There is also a great book called Cure Tooth Decay: Heal and Prevent Cavities with Nutrition that explains in great detail the connection between phytic acid and tooth/bone health and practical steps to reverse it.

~~~

Some extremely informative links:

Avoid a root canal with diet alone:  http://www.thehealthyhomeeconomist.com/teeth-needing-root-canals-can-heal-with-diet-alone/

http://www.curetoothdecay.com/cavities/remineralize-teeth.htm

www.draxe.com/naturally-reverse-cavities-heal-tooth-decay/

https://arealfoodlover.wordpress.com/2012/04/15/how-i-remineralized-my-tooth-cavity-without-dentistry/

http://www.thehealthyhomeeconomist.com/photographic-proof-cavities-heal/

~~~

Note: All of the natural products and supplements on this page can be ordered from iHerb.com. I personally buy all my supplements at iHerb and I have for years because they have they best prices you’ll find anywhere, and incredible selection. I also find the customer reviews you’ll find on every product on their site really helpful to read in order to learn more about what each supplement does for people.

---

This information has been provided for informational purposes only and is not intended to diagnose, treat  or cure any condition. Natural healing methods should always be used in conjunction with conventional care, not in place of.