There is a saying: "Don't look a gift horse in the mouth".  Its source is the fact that an animal’s dental health will always reveal the status of its overall vitality.  This is true for people as well.   The condition of a person’s mouth is a leading indicator of their general health and well being, including digestive, structural and systemic factors.

There is an important structural correlation between your bite and your body’s alignment as a whole. Misaligned teeth can cause bruxism or grinding, which can affect the neck and shoulders, diminish the quality of sleep and sometimes cause headaches.  From the standpoint of nutrition, our ability  to chew correctly has a direct effect on both the pleasure and the nourishment we derive from food.  Conversely, our nutritional intake produces the acid/alkaline balance in our mouth, which impacts the saliva’s buffering action against tooth decay. 

A healthy mouth is the gift we give to ourselves.  Since the mouth is the gateway to the body, money spent for your dental health is a  practical investment in long term healthy living.             

With health care costs soaring, it is important to realize that prevention is always the best strategy and preventive dentistry is always the best approach to your dental health.  There is also a very real connection between heart disease and the health of the gums, so it’s important to stay on track with your hygiene appointments twice a year. 

Your dental health is also a valuable investment in the beauty of your smile and in how you look and feel about yourself. Technical advances available in bonded dentistry make it possible for all your dental work to be durable and bio-compatible, and to look and feel natural. Besides contributing to your dental and overall health, it makes sense to consider any dentistry you have done as being cosmetic in nature as well.

The dentist you like and trust will always be an asset to your health support team. Find a dentist who inspires your confidence.  Trust and rapport can come about most naturally when the dentist takes time to explain all the different aspects of care.  Just as important is the dentist’s willingness to listen to what you have to say, so that all your concerns can be resolved and your desires included in the final result.

When you have found a dentist you are happy with, stay current with your ongoing care. Always get the best quality dentistry you can afford.   Make the commitment to your dental health and do any work you might require.  As with any investment, include your budget for dentistry within your financial planning.  Once again the emphasis is on prevention, because preventive maintenance is invariably preferable to fixing problems that have worsened over time. Regularly scheduled check-ups and cleanings are always advisable. In the long run this is a much easier path than deferred treatment. 

www.myholisticdentist.com
Dr. Carey O’Rielly is a holistic, cosmetic dentist practicing in Encinitas at 760-632-1304. Find out more about holistic, ‘green’ dentistry at his web site.  His email is holisticdentist@gmail.com.