It would help alot if you could give me an account on the wai site. I promise I will not interfere with your nitrate article (too much
) , RRM, I think you are giving it too much discredit by only focusing on the negative aspects though, but I can't disagree with the fact that is and stays a medicine and is not essential and if you're healthy it is obsolete. But back on topic, here is the article I would like to develop in the near future (with or without you):
White/yellowish coating of the tongue and teeth is an indication of ‘sticky’ bacteria creating a so called biofilm. A biofilm is a matrix of cooperating bacteria.
It has been estimated that the number of bacteria that reside in the mouth is about 25,000 species of bacteria (http://www.biomedcentral.com/1471-2180/9/259). And it has been propositioned that over 1000 bacteria reside in this biofilm that is a described before (http://www.springerlink.com/content/520 ... 0v/?MUD=MP).
By cooperating in this matrix, these bacteria will maximize their chance to survive. There are a lot of different attacks that they must withstand to survive. Because this biofilm is build up with bacteria, the first guess is of course an antibacterial substance. The first layers might be defeated by it, but then the second layer will survive and the first layers can regrow once again.
So simply rinsing with antibacterial substances will often fail to defeat this biofilm, so we must find another strategy that has a better chance of succeeding.
Let’s look at the basics of how periodontal disease and dental caries are formed:
Bacteria will try to stick to a surface to ensure their chance of survival because they live off the nutrients that reside in our saliva. This is done via several complex mechanisms. It has to do with all different kind of species of bacteria that will adapt the environment in little steps to make it easier for the following species to survive and in turn this species will make another adaptation. The end state is this sticky layer (biofilm) attached to teeth, tongue and other parts of our mouth.
Pathogens associated with dental caries prefer a slightly acidic environment and pathogens associated with other periodontal diseases a slightly alkalic environment http://jada.info/content/139/suppl_2/25S.full.
Your dental enamel consists mainly out of a crystalline latticework composed of various minerals, the principal component of which is a complex calcium phosphate mineral called hydroxyapatite. We already learn in high school that acids dissolve the enamel in the mouth. And sugar is a substance that the pathogens love and will convert to acids that will in turn dissolve this enamel.
To counteract these acid attacks your body has developed a strategy. The body can convert carbon dioxide from our breath and water from our saliva to carbonic acid. It is very unstable and will convert back to carbon dioxide and water easily. So, like all acids, it will dissolve a tiny layer of enamel and this will mix with the minerals that are already present in the saliva. But because it is so unstable it will convert back and the mixed minerals from saliva and enamel will form a new crystalline structure.
You can imagine that if all kinds of sticky bacteria are attached to the surface of the teeth that this remineralisation will be a lot tougher.
Fluoride is very good at remineralising, but there are a lot of other negative things about fluoride that doesn’t make it an option.
It is a very complex situation. So we need a really good strategy to get rid off these pathogens.
What is needed: A good diet with a lot of minerals that can restore the teeth. Calcium is the most important one. But for it to work properly you need a lot of fat soluble vitamins, especially vitamin K2 and vitamin D. Other minerals are important aswell, because everything in the body has complex interactons and mechanisms. So phosphorus, magnesium, potassium are all important minerals in restoring the teeth http://www.nature.com/nature/journal/v1 ... 456b0.html magnesium article.
Strategy:
After every meal, rinse your mouth with a little baking soda. Baking soda dissolved with water (saliva) is an alkalizing solution that neutralizes acids and kills of a lot of harmful bacteria. Especially the sticky variety (streptococcus mutans). In doing so your teeth can finally begin their remineralisation.
Xylitol mouth washes. Xylitol is a sugar alcohol that cannot be metabolized by bacteria. They will nonetheless still absorb it. They have ways to absorb fructose and xylitol is absorbed via the same pathways. In this process xylitol phosphate is created which can’t be metabolized and this starves the bacteria if the only thing in the environment left is xylitol.
However, there are bacteria with a different kind of absorb mechanism for fructose which are not affected by the xylitol.
The good part is that (although this needs to be researched more thoroughly) these bacteria also have properties that doesn’t let them stick to surfaces in our mouth as good as the species that have trouble digesting xylitol.
The bad part is that this layer can protect the ‘sticky’ variety. So that’s why you have to always combine several methods. First you must kill of these species that can withstand xylitol attacks, then you must starve out the species that cannot metabolize it.
Another benefit of xylitol is that it increases the absorption of calcium.
Study about the remineralisation properties of xylitol http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/1291185
Study about the better calcium absorption in rats http://europepmc.org/abstract/MED/40106 ... Z9Gj6UdV.6
Manuka honey:
Manuka honey is a very effective antibacterial substance http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/21394213. Every raw honey has antibacterial properties, often related to the enzymes that the bees mix with honey to create a slight mix of hydrogen peroxide activity. This can kill of bacteria. But manuka honey is different. It has other components. In this study http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/22114423 we can see that it provides the same antibacterial actions as a highly toxic mouthwash. The good part is that the manuka is totally natural and healthy.
http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/15125017
Royal Jelly:
Royal jelly has a component called.
