holistic dentistry Archives - West Seneca Dentist

I need some advice. We have always gone to the same pediatric dentist for all of our children. After our fifth child was born, he retired and sold his practice. I’m having a bit of trouble liking this new guy, but in the meantime, my youngest boy is in need of care. He had a playground accident and lost a front tooth. Our old dentist always told us the importance of keeping their teeth and when it is impossible to do so before their adult teeth are ready to come in to use some type of space maintainer so their other teeth do not shift into the open space and mess up their bite. In reality, we’ve only had to do this once when one of our children kept sneaking in sweets to bed at night. He ended up having a back tooth that couldn’t be saved. Our dentist put a space maintainer there. Because it is a front tooth, I wanted to place something there that would look like a tooth and suggested a dental flipper to our new dentist. He scoffed at me. I mean literally scoffed at me and said that was the most ridiculous thing he’d ever heard. I didn’t know how to respond, so we just left. Now my son has a missing front tooth several years before his adult tooth is likely to come in. I looked online to try to order one online, but it appears all of those are designed for adults. What do I do? I do not want his teeth to shift.

Melody

Dear Melody,

I am very glad you wrote. I can tell right away that you are a caring mother who is diligent about her children’s oral health. That is wonderful! Right off the bat I can tell this new dentist is not a good fit for you. Because of that, I am going to suggest you get a new pediatric dentist. Look for one who is willing to answer all your questions and take them seriously. Your children are ultimately your responsibility and it is important you understand all the recommendations for their care.

I understand your concern about your son’s teeth shifting. The good news is that this is really only an issue when it comes to back teeth, which is likely why your previous dentist brought it up with your child stealing sweeties. Those back molars have to stay in place until your children are around twelves years of age, which is why the space has to be protected. Front teeth are different, so your son’s bite is not at risk. I would just have the tooth fairly give him something to remember and let him be the envy of all the neighborhood toddlers for being the first one in their group to lose a tooth. It’s elementary school street cred.

Even if you wanted to replace the tooth for aesthetic reasons, a dental flipper will not be the right option. These are removable devices, which makes them
a choking hazard for children your child’s age. In all honestly, you a fine just letting the tooth be for now.

Thks blog is brought to you West Seneca Dentist Dr. Emburly.
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Hello,

Last week I went to my regular, traditional dentist and she told me that my sore tooth is caused by an infection and I need a root canal. A friend of mine suggested that I contact her dentist — who is a holistic dentist — for another opinion. He suggested that I have my tooth pulled then replaced with a dental implant. So now I don’t know which way to go with this. Is losing a tooth better than having a root canal? I’d love some advice in making this decision.

Thanks,

Lynn, Springfield, IL

Hi Lynn,

I completely understand why you’re looking for some helpful advice with this; I would have a tough time trying to make a choice between these two differing professional opinions as well. What you’ll actually find is that this is not an uncommon problem when seeking help from dentists who differ greatly in their opinions. As you can imagine, holistic dentists and traditional dentist base their viewpoints on vastly different philosophies.

Holistic dentists are concerned with your whole body. Therefore their treatment advice will stem from this belief. If you have an infection in your tooth, Holistic dentists take into account the possibility of it spreading to other parts of your system, causing you more health problems. If he recommended that you remove the tooth, it may be because he doesn’t necessarily trust that a root canal will be enough. Many holistic dentists believe that you can never really rid the infection from the pulp of your tooth because infection can hide within the surface of your tooth. To be certain the infection is gone, it’s likely the dentist suggested you go ahead and pull the tooth.

Traditional dentists, however, adhere closely to the methods they’ve been taught in dental school and what they’re currently learning in dental workshops and continuing education courses. Traditional dentists believe that they can get rid of the infection by removing the pulp, cleaning out the tooth chamber, and then tightly sealing it up. Add in a nice dose of antibiotics, and it’s a great chance of preventing further infection. And if it all doesn’t work the first time, they’ll repeat the process.

So what you have here are two, distinct methodologies in tackling the same problem. Both methods have proved to work. So if neither choice is wrong, which do you choose, right? Well, I’d say there’s a nice compromise to be found. There are some dentists who are choosing to try a fairly new method of treating infection. They sterilize the whole tooth not only the canal. By allowing the sterilizing agent to remain on the tooth for as long as a month so, the agent has time to really seep into the grooves of the tooth. If you think you might want to try the newer method, your next step is to do some research and find a dentist who is successfully performing the treatment.

Hope this helps.

This blog is sponsored by Buffalo dentist Warren M. Krutchick, DDS.

Dental Flipper for Toddler

Holistic Dentist and Traditional Dentist Disagree — Who Should I Choose?