Why does our holistic dental practice take a different approach?
Conventional dental practices have certainly helped a great number of people enjoy good dental function for many years now. Why should anyone be interested in seeing a holistic dentist rather than a conventional dentist? What is different about a holistic dental practice, anyway?
Holistic dentistry, in a nutshell, respects the fact that the mouth is an integrated part of the entire body, and that it should always be viewed and treated in this regard. The primary aim of holistic dentistry is to resolve a given patient’s dental problems while impacting the rest of the body as little as possible.
Our commitment is to shift to a new medical and dental paradigm–one that will integrate the human being as a whole and not as mechanical parts. The purpose of our practice and our web site is to educate our patients, physicians and dentists to make better and wiser choices for themselves and their loved ones.
The negative medical impact of conventional dental treatment can come from any of a number of sources. The most common ones are:
#1 Mercury-Amalgam Fillings: Commonly known as silver fillings or amalgam fillings, should really be called mercury fillings, since mercury has been and remains a full 50 percent of the content of these fillings.
Historically, the known toxicity of mercury was assumed to be an “acceptable risk” in dental placement based on the assumption that the mixture of metals was solid and wouldn’t leach into the body. Modern scientific investigative technology has shown that mercury does vaporize from mercury-amalgam fillings and is therefore a source of toxicity.
In our holistic dental practice we do not use mercury and we also take precautions and follow a protocol to minimize patients’ exposure to mercury upon its removal. (click here for more info on mercury)
#2 Other Toxic Dental Materials: Unfortunately, conventional dentistry continues to evaluate new dental materials primarily, and sometimes exclusively, by their mechanical characteristics. Often, dental restoration products come to market without consideration of whether a given material will have a long-term adverse toxic effect on the patient. Therefore even non-mercury based dental restoration materials could have a known toxic component. For example, porcelain covered crowns often contain stainless steel and other metals -- even though shiny-metals have been well-established to have a cancer-causing effect when used elsewhere in the body.
In our holistic dental practice, we use bio-compatible materials that do not impact the immune system.
#3 Root Canals: Root canal-treated teeth are proving to be almost always infected, and the toxins that have been isolated from them are often incredibly potent. Some researchers claim there is a strong relation between the presence of root canals and the development of cancer and heart disease. It appears that the longer root canal-treated teeth stay in the body, the more the immune system becomes compromised.
In our holistic dental practice, we look for the underlying causes of dental pain and provide treatments that support the body’s natural healing process. If a tooth is dead or not a candidate for low-intervention treatments, we offer very careful and thorough extractions to remove all infected tissues so that the body can heal. Modern technology enables dentists to create effective tooth replacements using materials that are bio-compatible. For example: partials, bridges, and Non-metal implants. (click here for more information about root canals)
#4 Cavitations: Pockets of gangrene in the jawbone are often found at the sites of previous extractions by dentists who were not trained to identify and address them. Most dentists were trained to believe that cavitations do not exist, even though they have been shown to be extremely common, especially at the sites of wisdom teeth extractions. The toxins are essentially the same as those found in root canals, being the product of aerobic mouth bacteria being forced to live in an anaerobic environment.
In our holistic dental practice we are careful to identify and treat cavitations to help the body heal completely.
#5 Implants: Currently, titanium implants continue to be done without bio-compatibility testing, and they are often implanted at extraction sites where cavitations are already developing. This becomes a big health concern because there is already infection in the site and then a toxic item is being implanted on top of it. Autoimmune diseases seem to be often aggravated or even initiated by "shiny metal" implants.
NON-METAL IMPLANTS ARE NOW AVAILABLE: After 14 years of successful use in Europe, this technology is now available in the United States. Dr. Garcia has been providing non-metal implants since 2009.
#6 Periodontal Disease: Not enough emphasis is put on how severely the infection in the gums of the periodontal-disease patient impacts that patient’s long-term health. Heart disease has been found to be the result of such disease in many patients. Repeated surgery and antibiotic courses are NOT the first choices of holistic dentists in treating this condition.
We recognize that the mouth and its contents can have a huge impact on a patient’s health and the way in which it is approached can either support our health or do the opposite. We have to understand that we function as a whole and as doctors, we must pay attention to the whole and work with other disciplines in order to create continuity for our patients.
Traditional Osteopathy is one excellent medical discipline that works well synergistically with holistic dentistry, as it is an approach to the patient that is based on health rather than disease. This is not a therapy, but rather a medical treatment.
The Traditional Osteopath is taught the art of medicine in addition to a unique hands-on treatment that supports the whole patient on all levels that include the body, the mind and the spirit. This is not manipulation, massage therapy or craniosacral therapy. It is a simple but detailed regimen that works individually with each patient using very subtle approaches and requires a minimum of 10 to 12 years of post-doctoral training.
Here at Dr. Garcia’s Holistic Dental Practice, we integrate these principles with all of our patients and work diligently with a treatment plan that includes nutrition, lifestyle factors, stress-reduction techniques (as well as recommended readings) in support of the in-office treatments.