Afternoons with Helen Farmer and ROZE BioHealth and BioDental Clinics

Dr. David Roze joins Helen Farmer on Dubai Eye to talk about biodentistry and the vital link between the mouth and the body. Listeners wrote in with their questions for Dr. David.  Watch the two-part video recording of his segment on “Afternoons with Helen Farmer” below, or listen to the audio version (Dr. David is introduced at minute 54:06 if you want to skip ahead).

And for those of you who prefer to read, here are the highlights from the conversation. Enjoy!

Helen Farmer: What does biohealth and biodentistry mean?

Dr. David Roze: [In conventional dentistry] we have patients trying to find a solution for their symptoms and they even complain from symptoms that we’re not really familiar with when we study dentistry; for example, brain fog, migraines, back pain, etc.

Biodentistry tries to find the root cause of these issues that can come from the mouth. It’s an ancient approach in asian medicine. For over 3,00 years, traditional chinese medicine has linked each dental organ to a specific organ in the body. But for the western world, western education, it’s quite a new concept.

H: What trends are we seeing with patients today?

D: We see a lot of patients with mental health issues that are related to teeth. Let me just tell you the story of one of my patients, Sultan. He’s now 21 years old and a very bubbly, very healthy boy.

One day, four years ago, he woke up and suddenly couldn’t talk or walk. His family immediately got him tested, went from hospital to hospital getting brain scans, tests, you name it!

Eventually, after a few months, they remembered he had had a root canal treatment on one of his incisors. When they came to me, I found it was still infected, which caused the bacteria to spread, and that was the source of the problem. That’s why he couldn’t talk, he couldn’t think, and it was difficult for him to walk.

Immediately after removing his infected root canal, he felt better. [Then followed the road to full recovery].

H: What’s the best treatment to prevent, rather than treat, poor dental health?

D: Preventive dentistry is the best. Of course, there are some rules to follow, like brushing twice a day, with the right tools, etc. But the best thing you can do is to stop snacking. The more you snack, the more acidity you’ll have in your mouth, which causes tooth decay. So stop [or limit] snacking!

H: What’s the worst thing we can do for our oral health?

D: We need to think of this not just in terms of your mouth, but rather your whole body. For example, if you have issues with your gut and your microbiome is unbalanced, that will affect the oral microbiome, and vice versa.

Think holistically and then try to find the root cause of each problem. Very often you’ll go to the dentist because you have a toothache. But the idea of bioidentistry is to think differently and act preventively.

For example, if you have a thyroid issue, we know that the thyroid is linked to the first molar. So before treating the thyroid with thyroxine or any kind of medication, visit your dentist to see whether your first upper or the second upper molar is infected.

H: How does menopause affect our dental health?

D: Remember, everything is connected. When you’re going through menopause, unfortunately the calcium that you have is mainly stuck in the blood vessels.

There are four nutrients and vitamins that can help you move the calcium from the blood to the bone, in order to reverse the effects of menopause on dental health: vitamin C, vitamin D3, vitamin K2, and magnesium. Balance out these four elements, and you’ll create strong healthy bones and teeth.

H: Can kids with adenoids undergo braces treatment?

D: My wife, Dr. Agnes Roze specialist pediatric dentist, or an orthodontist would be better suited to answer this question!

But I would say you need to consult with an orthodontist for this. As for the adenoid, it may be good to consult with an airway specialist, because it may effect their breathing. They could even work together with a speech therapist.

H: What’s the best toothpaste brand? Should I really be worried about fluoride?

D: What’s most important is to look at the composition—what’s inside your toothpaste? Make sure it doesn’tt contain any toxic ingredients. Most of the toothpastes currently on the market have at least one toxic element—SLS for example.

Remove surfactants or adjuvants that are potentially toxic, fluoride too. There are lots of studies now showing that there’s a high risk of toxicity with fluoride. And when you get rid of fluoride, make sure to counterbalance with an element that will remineralise your teeth. That’s where hydroxyapatite comes in.

Hydroxyapatite has the same effect on teeth as fluoride, but without the toxicity. There needs to be at least 10% hydroxyapatite in your toothpaste in order for it to be effective. Most brands advertise that they use hydroxyapatite in their toothpaste, but don’t disclose the percentage. Unfortunately, if it’s below 10%, it doesn’t work.

Tooth enamel is made out of 97% of hydroxyapatite. So by using a toothpaste with hydroxyapatite, you’re simply replenishing, remineralizeing your teeth.

Fun fact: NASA first discovered hydroxyapatite as an effective remineralization agent. They researched it for their astronauts returning from space missions in zero-gravity environments, to remineralize their teeth and bones!

H: What are some tips and best practices for maintaining dental implants?

D: I place ceramic implants because I feel the response from the bone and gums is completely different [vs. titanium implants]. With titanium implants, the metal particles are released into the body and create inflammation in the tissue. We don’t see this with ceramic implants.

But regardless of which type of implant you have, you need to make sure that your bone and soft tissue are in good condition.

• Hygiene is very important. Visit your dental hygienist on a regular basis [every 6 months].
• Make sure that your bone is in good condition. And to have strong bones, you need to have the right amount of vitamin C and vitamin D3.

H: Jaw clenching and teeth grinding: what are some solutions?

D: I always listen to my patients to understand why they’re grinding. Of course, I can simply give them a night guard, but that’s just a bandaid. Bandaids are helpful short-term solutions, to give you time to find the true source of the problem. It can be a mechanical issue, it can be a stress issue…so we need to speak with our patients to understand the root cause. And of course, once we’ve tackled the root cause, then you can reverse the process.

Dr. David will be back in the recording studio with Helen Farmer on Thursday, August 29th at 2pm with more BioHealth topics and opportunities for listeners to send in their questions. Tune in!