Tooth decay can be caused by a lack of vitamins, minerals, or other nutrients that the body requires to maintain healthy teeth. Calcium and phosphate are the most important minerals that teeth require. Unfortunately, for the teeth, other places of the body also need these minerals. So if you’re running short, the minerals will migrate out of your teeth, and bones, and go to more important places, like your heart and other organs.
You should avoid foods that cause tooth decay and keep minerals out of your body for optimal dental health. These foods include:
- Sugar (all forms) which leaches calcium out of the bones.
- White flour (such as bread, crackers, cereals, pastas). White flour has the vitamins and minerals removed to promote shelf life. Fresh flour will go rancid in two weeks, even when refrigerated.
- Pasteurized dairy products (all forms). Heat from pasteurization kills both good and bad bacteria, causes a loss of half the vitamin C, and up to 80% of all other vitamins, including 100% of vitamin B-12. It also changes the structure, causing it to strain the digestive system, and because the digestive-aiding enzymes are destroyed, it can cause allergies or an intolerance.
- Iodized salt, which has had all valuable minerals removed.
- Grains, nuts, and seeds which have not been soaked or sprouted. Processing these grains by high heat destroys digestive enzymes, but leaves phytic acid, which combines with minerals (calcium, magnesium, iron, etc.), blocking their absorption.
“Secondary dentine” which is dentin generated on an as-needed basis, which enamel has been worn away and cavities have begun. This secondary dentine can heal the spot by patching it up or rebuilding the tooth. This will only happen if there is enough vitamin D in the body. Otherwise, it might not occur at all. A study found that saliva’s calcium content doubled or tripled when there was enough cod liver oil in the diet (cod liver oil contains a lot of vitamin D).
Cause of Teeth Decay
Dr. Weston A. Price, who in the 1930′s and ’40′s used a mixture of cod liver oil and butter oil to cure cavities. The short story is, Dr. Price decided to find out the cause of dental decay, and so he traveled the world, visiting the people with the best teeth – primitives. After observing their diet, he discovered primitives consumed at least four times as many water soluble vitamins (calcium and other minerals) and ten times the fat soluble vitamins (vitamins A and D) from animals foods (fish eggs, butter from grass-fed cows) than those with modern (American) diets.
He also found an additional fat soluble vitamin which he called Activator X (scientists now call this the Price Factor). Activator X is similar to vitamins A and D, helping the body to absorb minerals that would otherwise be lost. The good news is, Activator X is not lost through pasteurization, although it disappears in cows fed high amounts of protein or soy.
Not all primitives had perfect teeth – there were also primitives with terrible teeth. Crooked, crowded, decayed. He found these primitives had adopted a modern western diet, consisting of sugary breakfast cereals and white flour products. For these, Dr. Price daily fed them a lunch containing a day’s supply of calcium and twice the amount of phosphorus. He began with 1/2 teaspoon high vitamin cod liver oil and 1/2 teaspoon high vitamin butter oil in 4 ounces of tomato (or orange) juice. Then, 1 pint of beef broth stew made with fine cuts of tender meat and lots of vegetables, particularly carrots (or fish chowder or liver, depending on the day); cooked fruit (no artificial sweetener); rolls made from freshly-ground whole wheat, spread with high vitamin butter; 2 glasses raw milk.
They still had their sugary breakfast and otherwise lousy eating habits the rest of the day, and yet he had a 90% success rate of healing their cavities (including one girl with 42 cavities on 24 teeth!). There are photos of the x-rays in Dr. Price’s book, as well as on the web.
If your teeth become sensitive, this is a sign that you are losing minerals and need to rebuild your enamel. If you have already got cavities, calcium, phosphate and magnesium will be required, as well as a variety enzymes, to grow your enamel back. Taking a multi-vitamin won’t solve this problem, as the RDA’s are the minimum amounts necessary for survival – not optimal health.
Here is a list of foods to consume for healthy teeth:
- Cod Liver Oil and butter oil, taken together
- Raw dairy from grass-fed cows. Butter, kefir, yogurt, cheese, milk, amasai.
- Animal proteins, such as eggs, fish, or liver.
- Lots of greens and raw (stir-fried or lightly steamed) vegetables.
- Soup made from bone broth and containing green vegetables, topped with seaweed.
- Soaked and/or sprouted nuts and grains.
- Sea salt (full of minerals)
- Herbs: lemongrass, lemon balm, red raspberry leaf