When my son’s teeth first came in, they were strong and white. Shortly, though, they developed a brown-ish mottling on the top front two. The mottling progressed to a darker and darker stain. It was eventually black. During a six month period of this progression, I took him to our dentist once, twice, three times, four times.
During every visit, our dentist said the problem was “just plaque” and that it merely needed a good professional cleaning. Now, my son had severe oral aversion so, for the most part, he would clamp his mouth shut when hygienists set out to work. The hygienists refused to complete their assignment, saying they did not want to make him afraid of dentists. Thus, no work was done.
My son’s teeth were losing mass.
In a fit of despair, I brought him to another dentist, one adept at working with anxious patients: children and adults with development challenges, anxiety, etc.
In tears, I asked the receptionist for help. The dentist soon came out, invited my son into the exam room and looked. She confirmed that the decay was significant, and felt he would probably need to have his affected teeth extracted. She referred us to a dental surgeon.
The surgeon felt there might still be just barely a chance to save my son’s teeth. He asked me to daily apply a minute amount of fluoride* gel to my son’s teeth. Within a week, it was clear this treatment was working. I spaced the treatments out further and further apart until, after just weeks I was, save a few brief treatments now and then over the months, able to stop them completely.
Eventually, we found SCD then GAPS. Over the months, I continued bringing him to the good dentist. His most recent appointment was last week.
There, the hygienist noted that my son’s teeth build up plaque quickly. She noted that this is simply genetic, saying some people need professional cleanings every two months; others only every 6-8 months. I wondered aloud about the plaque, saying my son eats no sugar, etc. The hygienist explained that plaque build up is not in itself a worry, but that it is only when bacteria and sugar combine to cause an acidic environment that dental damage occurs.
When the dentist came in, she exclaimed happily over my son’s strong, healthy, white teeth. She said, “The fluoride is really doing its work!” I told her he hadn’t had the fluoride in a long, long time now! She was intrigued.
GAPS’nutrition has resolved a lot of my son’s issues. His teeth are just our most recent excitement!
* GAPS would not generally recommend fluoride. As I did not yet know about SCD/GAPS, my three choices were: have my son go through the risks of general anasthetic and surgery; use the fluoride; allow his teeth to decay. I chose the path I felt was safest of those three choices and I stand by it. My take is that sometimes allopathic treatment (say, for a broken leg or suicidal depression) is necessary. If nutritional prevention or healing starts early enough, that’s ideal, but if a person is in an dangerous situation, do what needs to be done!
For the post ‘Healing Teeth – Part 2′, click here.
