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Dentistry is less scientific and more gratuitous than people think (2019)

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Re: Dentistry is less scientific and more gratuitous than people think (2019)

#81

Post by jordanpg »

tbran wrote: post #77

A compelling book on tooth care is Kiss Your Dentist Goodbye by Ellie Phillips. It advocates for: - Using flouride toothpaste. - Using a combo of bad-bacteria-killing mouthwash and flouride mouthwash (especially before bed). - Eating or finishing meals with tooth-protective foods. - Chewing xylitol [0] gum or mints. Xylitol is a sugar-replacement (with a lower insulin response) found in plants . I think Epic Dental h…

I would also add electric toothbrush to this list.

This has been transformative for me. I wish I could hand one to my 6 year old self.

They are cheap and you can use them in the shower.

Re: Dentistry is less scientific and more gratuitous than people think (2019)

#82

Post by smn1234 »

tbran wrote: post #77

A compelling book on tooth care is Kiss Your Dentist Goodbye by Ellie Phillips. It advocates for: - Using flouride toothpaste. - Using a combo of bad-bacteria-killing mouthwash and flouride mouthwash (especially before bed). - Eating or finishing meals with tooth-protective foods. - Chewing xylitol [0] gum or mints. Xylitol is a sugar-replacement (with a lower insulin response) found in plants . I think Epic Dental h…

ever since I started using a water floser (e.g. Waterpik).... my experience with dental hygienists has been much more pleasant

Re: Dentistry is less scientific and more gratuitous than people think (2019)

#83

Post by InCityDreams »

jordanpg wrote: post #81
tbran wrote: post #77

A compelling book on tooth care is Kiss Your Dentist Goodbye by Ellie Phillips. It advocates for: - Using flouride toothpaste. - Using a combo of bad-bacteria-killing mouthwash and flouride mouthwash (especially before bed). - Eating or finishing meals with tooth-protective foods. - Chewing xylitol [0] gum or mints. Xylitol is a sugar-replacement (with a lower insulin response) found in plants . I think Epic Dental h…

I would also add electric toothbrush to this list. This has been transformative for me. I wish I could hand one to my 6 year old self. They are cheap and you can use them in the shower.

A revelation for myself was the purchase of a water-based toothbrush. Then use a regular brush. Then water-based again. Then an electric.

Re: Dentistry is less scientific and more gratuitous than people think (2019)

#84

Post by unicornfinder »

eps wrote: post #63
misja111 wrote: post #21

Well it's only anecdotical of course, but I had a similar experience a couple of years ago that made me very confused about dentistry in general. At the time a had a small tooth ache so I was planning to visit a dentist to check it. I was living in Switzerland, where dentist costs are very high, but I was about to go on holiday to Tenerife, where prices are much lower. So I checked on the Internet and chose the denti…

For what it's worth - a friend of mine is a dentist and he mentioned once that white fillings (the ones that are set with an UV light) start to shrink after 5 years. On the other hand, silver filling will do the same after 10-15 years and at a slower rate. Whether this shrinkage will lead to problems is a separate question.

Entirely anecdotal but in my experience amalgam fillings do seem to hold up much, much better than white ones.

Re: Dentistry is less scientific and more gratuitous than people think (2019)

#85

Post by JoshTko »

tbran wrote: post #77

A compelling book on tooth care is Kiss Your Dentist Goodbye by Ellie Phillips. It advocates for: - Using flouride toothpaste. - Using a combo of bad-bacteria-killing mouthwash and flouride mouthwash (especially before bed). - Eating or finishing meals with tooth-protective foods. - Chewing xylitol [0] gum or mints. Xylitol is a sugar-replacement (with a lower insulin response) found in plants . I think Epic Dental h…

Daily mouthwash is a horrible idea. Mouthwash contains Corsodyl which has been shown to increase blood pressure. Regularly blasting any part of your body with a harsh antiseptic is probably a bad idea. It took us decades to realize that antibiotics messes up our gut floura, I'm sure we'll see similar consequence for mouth bacteria with mouthwash.

Re: Dentistry is less scientific and more gratuitous than people think (2019)

#86

Post by misja111 »

starkd wrote: post #76
misja111 wrote: post #21

Well it's only anecdotical of course, but I had a similar experience a couple of years ago that made me very confused about dentistry in general. At the time a had a small tooth ache so I was planning to visit a dentist to check it. I was living in Switzerland, where dentist costs are very high, but I was about to go on holiday to Tenerife, where prices are much lower. So I checked on the Internet and chose the denti…

But this is not necessarily a matter of the dentist being greedy (though it no doubt can be). Anyone who has had a toothache on a Friday evening, knows how long it can be until Monday morning when you can get into see the dentist. A dentist could just be eager to avoid such an agonizing experience for the patient.

He was offering to replace all my fillings, about 9 in total. So not just the one(s) that might cause my (slight) pain. In fact he wasn't even mentioning my complaint anymore even though I told him initially that this was the reason I wanted him to check.

Re: Dentistry is less scientific and more gratuitous than people think (2019)

#87

Post by tzs »

jordanpg wrote: post #69
somehnacct3757 wrote: post #33

I had a dentist in SF that did this, first visit to him I had 12 (?!) cavities that needed filling. Got suspicious -- their office was very very nice and in a prime location -- more importantly, none of my teeth hurt. A second opinion confirmed that the fillings were not necessary at that time. I did start flossing regularly as a result, so that I don't have to rely on dentistry as much.

These days I just ignore the dentist when they say I need fillings, unless I am experiencing pain. And nearly all the dental pain I have experienced has been post-op. I usually start flossing much more diligently a couple of weeks before my dentist visits, so that my teeth have the appearance of being better-maintained. I believe this results in more honesty from the dentist. In other words, my instinct is that they…

> These days I just ignore the dentist when they say I need fillings, unless I am experiencing pain.

Careful. It is possible for a cavity to be completely painless up to the point it is so big that the tooth actually completely collapses, and then you get to enjoy something much more annoying than getting a filling (especially a small one) such as a root canal.

If you have small cavities and don't want to get them filled and aren't sure they are the kind that if they grow won't be pain free until it is too late, look into silver diamine fluoride [1].

In the US its official use is to help people with dental hypersensitivity, but it also can stop or greatly slow cavity formation and growth. Dentists in the US can use it off-label for that.

[1] https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Silver_diammine_fluoride

Re: Dentistry is less scientific and more gratuitous than people think (2019)

#88

Post by kylecordes »

My current dentist of the many years is perfect. She is obsessed with the quality of work and materials, and aims to optimize for being on top of problems vs being conservative in treatment.

Inevitably she will retire... Then I need to find another dentist who cares most about dentistry.

The industry is apparently now dense with dentists obsessed with the business of dentistry, or even “dentist lifestyle influencers” who glamorize the business of dentistry to sell products/courses/whatever to other dentists.

Re: Dentistry is less scientific and more gratuitous than people think (2019)

#89

Post by doubled112 »

mypastself wrote: post #44
massysett wrote: post #4

It’s really not fair to take an example of one unethical dentist and sell the story as “the truth about dentistry”.

Chalk me up as another anecdatum of being subjected to questionable dentist practices. If you’ll permit me to grossly oversimplify, I feel like dentists are to medicine what software developers are to engineering. Both professions tend to play faster and looser with rules and standards, and tend to be closer to trade careers than most of their superset.

That trade thing is how I have realized I feel about dentistry.

I've always felt it was a little bit science and a little bit art. I don't think there's an exact set of steps to every tooth and it's problem. There's just too many variables, so they have to figure it out as they go.

Two dentists in the same clinic might not do it the same way. Problem wise, two identical repairs might wear differently, causing one to last a lifetime, but another to fall out in a couple of years. A mouth gets a lot of use.

I am, however, lucky enough that my dentist will see two paths, and offer the less expensive option with a "wait and see" disclaimer. I've had no problems with those repairs, where I'm positive some others would have immediately escalated from the filling to a root canal, filling, crown, etc path.

Re: Dentistry is less scientific and more gratuitous than people think (2019)

#90

Post by tbran »

JoshTko wrote: post #85
tbran wrote: post #77

A compelling book on tooth care is Kiss Your Dentist Goodbye by Ellie Phillips. It advocates for: - Using flouride toothpaste. - Using a combo of bad-bacteria-killing mouthwash and flouride mouthwash (especially before bed). - Eating or finishing meals with tooth-protective foods. - Chewing xylitol [0] gum or mints. Xylitol is a sugar-replacement (with a lower insulin response) found in plants . I think Epic Dental h…

Daily mouthwash is a horrible idea. Mouthwash contains Corsodyl which has been shown to increase blood pressure. Regularly blasting any part of your body with a harsh antiseptic is probably a bad idea. It took us decades to realize that antibiotics messes up our gut floura, I'm sure we'll see similar consequence for mouth bacteria with mouthwash.

This is wrong. You didn't read the linked resources.

I just checked, and neither of the mouthwashes I use have Corsodyl as active or inactive ingredients.

Also, uh, don't drink your mouthwash, spit it out.

Since everything we do has tradeoffs, I'm okay with using an antiseptic that is spit then rinsed (per the routine) if I'm going to eat ice cream and bread.

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