Oral Health for Total Health podcast

 Perhaps you’ve heard that our ancient Cro-Magnon ancestors in Europe of perhaps 35,000 years ago and more tend to have near-perfect dentition, despite not having toothbrushes, floss, or dentists…

Why do you suppose this is?  And it’s not because they lived such short lives that they didn’t have time to develop cavities and the like.  Some did die young; indeed, such active lives in the outdoors, hunting with primitive tools and fighting large animals took their toll.  But, as always when comparing mortality in ancient times, we often forget that mortality figures are skewed by infant mortality in those times before hospitals and birthing assistance.  Many infants (and young mothers) dying in childbirth just make overall death rates far more likely, and much younger.

Indeed, many Cro-magnon men and women, once they reached adulthood, went on to live quite long lives.  After all- they all exercised intensively, perforce, and ate a wonderful, Paleolithic diet of mostly meat, with some fruits and vegetables, when available.  No sedentary couch potatoes were possible in those times!

Most skulls of these early humans display wonderful tooth health, lifelong, unless a tooth was literally knocked out by a bad fall, or in a brutal fight.  Today, strangely, virtually all of us, with very few exceptions, have many major tooth and gums interventions over our lives, at great pain and expense.  Why?

Back to the Future:

Certain things we are encouraged to do today should be gotten rid of!  Others should be supplemented by other practices, ones that are more rooted in the biology of our Paleolithic ancestors.  

For instance, I believe that dentist ‘interventions’ should be kept at the minimum.  Sterilizing your oral cavity by, say going inside your mouth and completely carpet bombing the microbiome of your mouth and teeth, will destroy the bad bacteria, but also killing all of the good bacteria.  Here is what recent research, and myself recommend:

Do NOT floss!  Almost all dentists will deny it, but flossing pushes the bacteria from between the teeth deep into the gums.  Not good!

Use a water pick appliance instead. Water gently flushes the teeth and gums, and does so comparatively gently.

 

Don’t brush 3X per day, and don’t use a fluoridated toothpaste.  

Once at night before bed is plenty.  An electric toothbrush is the best, followed by the Water Pick.  Use a natural toothpaste like Earth Paste.  If you can, avoid fluoridated water- fluoride is actually a toxic chemical, that causes weaker, more brittle teeth that also become mottled and brownish-yellow.

Do buy Xylitol sweetened gums and candies!

Xylitol, which is a natural sweetener made from plants, is indigestible to the bad bacteria in your mouth.  BUT, they don’t know it, and eat that xylitol to their fill- and then starve!  Then, the good bacteria can multiply therein…

The last, and most transformative to your dental health, is to start oil pulling daily!  If you’re not familiar with this ancient Ayurvedic practice, here is how to do it:

Keep a little dish or bowl of coconut oil in your bathroom.  Sprinkle it liberally with Xylitol.  (It’s inexpensive, and can be used in baked goods as well in lieu of sugar).  

Each day, as you prepare to shower, cut a small piece of the hardened oil (in winter), and spoon out a bit into your mouth in summer.  Start in to “swishing’ it about in your mouth as you shower, pushing it all around, through your teeth, whatever, as you go.

At the end of your bathroom routine (mine is each morning after my workout), spit the oil out into the toilet, knowing that bad bacteria galore has been starved and swept via the oil out of your oral cavity!  You are now clean as the wind-driven snow, without using harsh chemicals ala the dentist, and yet your mouth is thriving with beneficial organisms working avidly on your oral health.  For their health, is your health!  You are a team, for life.

That is it.  Of course, the more carnivorous your overall diet, the better it is for your health, both of mouth, and body!  Sugar is bad for you, and best avoided, and while honey, maple syrup, and fruit are all better than sugar: they should be minimized.  

Animal products are your friends in food.  Dairy, meat, and animal fats like tallow and butter and cheese are all wonderful!  

Seed oils: margarine, corn and every other vegetable nightmare oil are horrible!  Also, many vegetables like spinach and beet greens and kale are loaded with oxalates, which are very damaging.  

But, that is the subject for another podcast…

Win a 32 Oz. Jar of Tropical Traditions Virgin Coconut Oil!

Win 1 quart of Gold Label Virgin Coconut Oil!

(Contest form is on the right- enter often!)

Tropical Traditions is America’s source for coconut oil. Their Gold Label Virgin Coconut Oil is hand crafted in small batches by family producers, and it is the highest quality coconut oil they offer. You can read more about how virgin coconut oil is different from other coconut oils on their website: What is Virgin Coconut Oil?

I have used Tropical Traditions coconut oil for quite some time now, and find it to be my favorite!  Not only do they have a quality made product that is crucial for those of us in the Paleo or Ancestral lifestyle, they ship quickly and package their glass jars very well- I have never had a breakage problem with them.

I use this oil in cooking, (it's great for frying eggs in!), and often add a Tablespoon or so to my daily Paleo Smoothie, along with the coconut milk and many other ingredients I include in my daily concoction...

How else do I use it?  

This may seem a little strange, but each day, before my morning shower, I spoon out a teaspoon or so from the bottle I keep in the bathroom, and put it in my mouth!  I swish it around as I shower, performing what is known as oil pulling, since I'm kind of "pulling" it around in my mouth!  Anyway, I think that aside from a Paleo template sort of diet that includes real, God-made foods and avoids processed, man-made modern foods like wheat and sugar, this is one great thing to add to your daily "routine".

Then, after showering, I spoon out some more coconut oil, and rub it over my body- it is the very best moisturizer there is!  (It's also the best hair conditioner)!  Then, I rub it on my face, and, using my trusty 1960 Gillette razor, I get the smoothest shave I have ever gotten before switching to coconut oil!  Really!  Try this too!

An important thing to realize is that your skin is like another mouth- whatever you put on your skin is absorbed into your body- so only put high-grade things like coconut oil on your body- avoid the petroleum based lotions and potions nowadays sold as moisturizers and conditioners. Yuck!


Since the FDA does not want us to discuss the health benefits of coconut oil on
a page where it is being sold or given away, here is the best website to read
about the health benefits of coconut oil: coconutoil.com

You can also watch the video they produced about Gold Label Virgin Coconut Oil:

Tropical Traditions also carries other varieties of affordable high quality coconut oil. Visit their website to check on current sales, to learn about the many uses of coconut oil, and to read about all the advantages of buying coconut oil online.

So there you have it, friends!  Good luck in winning your free quart, AND my eBook Perfectly Paleo Exercise!

J

Oh yes: 

Disclaimer: 
Tropical Traditions provided me with a free sample of this product to review, 
and I was under no obligation to review it if I so chose.  Nor was I under any 
obligation to write a positive review or sponsor a product giveaway in return 
for the free product.