Health Notes, November 2nd 2008, by Sarah Stacey

TLC for teeth
When my colleague Victoria, 40, interrupted our telephone conversation because it was 40 minutes after her lunch and her dentist had told her to clean her teeth at that appointed interval, I demanded to know more.  And golly did I get it!  I was so riveted that she wrote me this report on her midlife tooth revelation.

‘I booked myself in for whitening with Harley Street Holistic dentist, David Cook, because I liked the idea of a holistic dentist who used biocompatible materials and would look at my teeth in terms of general health, diet and stress levels.   Although I’d been assiduous with my regular dental visits, flossing and brushing at least twice a day I still had to have a filling or crown every year.   David gave me a thorough exam before the whitening, to make sure my teeth and jaw were in good shape: after several digital X-rays (which reduce radiation exposure by up to 90 per cent) he said I wouldn’t be going home with whiter teeth but with a root canal and I’d also need five fillings.

What could I have been doing so wrong?  I thought my diet was good – with lots of fresh fruit and sparkling water.  But fruit (and fruit juice) and sparkling water are basically acid baths for the teeth eroding the minerals on the surface, David explained. Like the rest of my family, who also have weak teeth, I snack a lot too - a square of chocolate and half a biscuit here, a pick off the children’s plate there.   David explained that, while there’s a genetic tendency to weak teeth,  every single carbohydrate snack is food for decay-causing bacteria. The answer? ‘Eat chocolate all in one go, preferably as part of a meal, and avoid carb snacks; graze on “tooth neutral” foods like cheese, nuts, raw veg and plain yogurt’ advised David. (As a bonus, I lost my remaining half stone of baby weight on this regime.)

To remineralise my teeth, he prescribed custom-made mouth trays (like those used in tooth whitening, see below), which I wore every night for a month, filled with re-mineralising tooth mousse  (Recaldent by GC available from dentists). This toothpaste-like substance contains calcium and phosphate molecules which soak in to reform the hard surface in the early stages of decay.

Once the restorative work was over, which took several months – with arnica for pain relief as well as ibuprofen, then hypericum for healing – I did finally get my lovely bright white teeth.  This involved two daily half hour sessions of non-acidic whitening gel (carbamide peroxide, administered in mouth trays), which doesn’t damage any healthy tissue. It took ten days, and I can give them a top-up if they need it.

David Cook’s advice:

• Tooth cleaning after every meal should be non-negotiable for everyone.
• Avoid sparkling/fizzy drinks: acid in the bubbles etches away the surface of your teeth – David’s children are banned from drinking these;  fruit juice, preferably through a straw, is allowed as part of a meal (as is chocolate).
• Eat a morsel of cheese or a spoonful of plain yogurt after eating fruit or drinking wine: they’re alkaline and help neutralise the acid.  Or wash out your mouth with a sluice of water.
• Leave 40 minutes before you brush your teeth after consuming fruit, wine or anything else acidic: saliva will form and neutralise the acid, otherwise you’re effectively brushing your teeth with surface acid.
• Look for chewing gum with Xylitol, which stops bacteria sticking to teeth (Spry, 69p for a pack of 20 pieces, from Victoria Health, just click here).

For information see www.londonholisticdental.com, or call 020-7323 1363.

Dirt-trapping doormats and hoovers
As a big fan of my Turtle door mat, from £21.95, which really does trap all the dirt that comes in on my boots from looking after muddy horses, I’m excited to learn about the new Turtle Vac, (£195) which boasts a HEPA filter and 4 level dust filtration system that should screen out the particles which irritate allergy sufferers.  www.turtlemat.co.uk, or call 0845-600 3478.

Bee treat for catarrh
Eating local honey has ‘worked a treat’ at clearing the head of a reader who has suffered from catarrh and sinusitis for many years.  But only local honey works, she says.  (The same advice applies to hay fever sufferers.)

Website of the week: www.anthonynolan.org.uk
Founded in 1974 to match bone marrow donors with patients, the Anthony Nolan Trust always needs funds and volunteers.  It’s now opened a Cord Blood Bank at Kings College Hospital London (020-3299 3601) so stem cells from newborn’s umbilical cords (usually thrown away) can be used to renew bone marrow and regenerate failing immune systems in cases of life-threatening illnesses, as well as for research.