Anyone NOT brush their teeth or their childrens? - Page 5

[Contented73]

Originally Posted by Elizabeth2008

I guess I just don't understand why you wouldn't brush. I mean, c'mon, it takes 2 minutes. Even on a traditional diet, food still gets between your teeth and then just sits there. This can cause problems for your gums if nothing else. And rotting food stinks, period. Doesn't matter whether it's sugar or raw milk. I have read Weston Price's work, but I guess I'm willing to still invest a few minutes a day to give my teeth some extra protection. There's certainly no downside to brushing (I use all natural toothpaste), and I want to live a long time and these are the only teetch I want to have!

Well, I think what I understand other people to be saying is that they are consciously *choosing* not to brush their teeth, and consciously choosing to avoid other types of modern dental care. It has nothing do with with not wanting to take the time, or being lazy, or thinking that their breath doesn't smell bad so they don't need it.

It also seems that they are saying that when you eat the right types of foods, it doesn't sit and rot between your teeth; that instead your teeth and mouth can develop such a healthy microbial balance that the teeth are left shiny, strong, and without rotting food stuck in between them.

I am a tooth brusher, but I have been curious about this topic. One reason that hasn't been mentioned for avoiding tooth brushing might be all the chemicals in toothpastes. People say "oh, I use natural toothpaste" but even the so-called natural toothpastes seem to have really problematic ingredients. I guess the "toothsoap" might be an exception.

I personally have noticed that the more strictly I follow the WAP diet and lifestyle, the less my mouth feels dirty. For what it's worth. My severe cavities have also seemed to improve over the past 5 years (I was told one tooth was SO bad, it needed immediate crowining). Yet things have not gotten worse at all, and actually seem a bit better. Is it diet? Maybe. I still brush and floss because it feels good, it's routine, and I guess I'm afraid not to! But I definitely respect people who are making deliberate choices about their health - including their dental health - that might seem really unusual when compared to mainstream wisdom.

[ecoteat]

I've never considered not cleaning my teeth at all, but I've often wondered about how different people around the world and in the past have cleaned their teeth without plastic toothbrushes and chemically-made toothpaste. Obviously there must be some more natural alternative. I don't mean natural as in recycled plastic toothbrushes and some homemade organic toothpaste concoction. How do our closest primate relatives keep their teeth serviceable throughout their lives?

Also, while reading this thread, I kept thinking about how when I stopped using shampoo for a while my hair was so much healthier. It was shinier, thicker, wavier, and didn't get greasy anymore. I got a sense of what my hair is SUPPOSED to be like, when I'm not putting weird crap on it. Why wouldn't the same idea apply to other parts of our bodies? I'd love to stop using deodorant too, but I don't want to put my middle school students through my body's stinky adjustment period! My body would find its happy armpit balance if I let it, wouldn't it? I'm sure my mouth would find its balance if I only exposed it to foods that were fully beneficial to my body.

[karika]

I have stopped brushing my teeth about 9 mo ago. I have used floss daily (usually after I eat anything) because I have gaps in my teeth that cause terrific pain when food gets stuck there. I have also used my soniccare toothbrush plain and with soap a few times. I read about toothsoap and decided toothpaste was damaging my mouth (even though it was all natural/ organic ing...etc). I am not WAP. I am eating wholesome foods, but no gluten, dairy or soy. And no chemical foods either of course (food dyes, HFCS etc). I was researching what soap to use for me since I can't get the toothsoap and found out about oil pulling. I haven't yet read this whole thread, but whew, glad I am not the only one that feels 'dental care' is really just like 'health care' and creates the damage so it can sell you the cure... and of course, diet really matters. I am making sure I get the vitamin d, and researching this oil pulling, sounds good. I told my dd1 to stop using anything on her brush for now (about a month ago), but we do have her use a brush in her mouth at least once a day still. Her father doesn't read the research that I do and so he is not sure about it all. FWIW his teeth and breath are horrible and he brushes daily with good ol crest. His gums are receding too. A pp mentioned something about what our ancestors and other primates used. It was a tree. You can chew on a bit of branch to clean your mouth adequately. I cannot remember what kind it is though.... looking. Oh and my breath is fine....

[earthmama369]

Originally Posted by ecoteat

How do our closest primate relatives keep their teeth serviceable throughout their lives?

Shorter lifespans.

Primates have been observed chewing on bristly sticks -- i.e., brushing their teeth. But really, early peoples and primates both had/have much shorter lifespans than we do now. It can be valuable to look back at our roots and see what we did right out of necessity, and incorporate that into our choices today, but it's equally important not to don the rose-colored glasses and miss some pretty important points. Skulls of ancient humans sometimes show advanced age for the time (40 years) and healthy teeth. But sometimes they show teeth that were removed and signs that the person may have died from infection starting in the mouth. Dental disease is nothing new. Genetics has always played a huge role in tooth structure and dental care of some kind has always been a human/primate habit.

[wallacesmum]

-nak - i've been chewing (har har) on this problem myself lately. my gums are receding and the tops of my teeth are worn of enamel from too much brushing. we use weleda salt but now i am worried about abrasion. ds (4) brushes in the evening but doesn't do a very "good" job, i am focusing on flossing with light brushing, mostly of tongue and roof of mouth. can't get him to floss at all. ds2 (6mo) is having a terrible time of teething and i am trying to fix it with my nutrition but i thought we were already doing well so i don't know.

my major concern is that improper brushing (maybe all brushing, rather than alternatives for hygiene) can definitely be harmful, and it's so common that i wonder if there isn't a better way to help ds have healthy teeth and gums. i'd like to save my kids from the tooth troubles i have had; i don't think brushing is the be-all but we don't eat a completely traditional diet so it's got to be something in our household.

[JessicaS]

We brush as do our children and I brush my toddler's teeth.

My ancestors also brushed their teeth. I agree that genetics plays a large part.

[patrickq]

Not going to read all the way through this thread, but sure there are a few posts wondering how anyone could choose not to brush their teeth.

Just thought I'd post about a good friend of mine, in his 40s now, who rarely brushes his teeth. He received the recommendation from a dentist when a teenager, I believe. He has never had a filling and no his mouth doesn't smell and his teeth are white. He's by no means a vegan or anything, but does prefer eating home prepared wholefoods to processed.

Genetics? Divine intervention? Luck of the draw?

Who knows, but it only goes to show, there is no definitive answer to things like this.

Patrick

[CherryBomb]

I think it's a mistake to believe that because you switch to a traditional foods diet, you don't need to brush.  The people that Dr. Price looked at were conceived on those diets, they grew up on those diets...it had been the diet of their family line for generations.  Yes, that makes a huge difference!  There's no comparison, imo, and I wouldn't dream of skipping tooth brushing just because I'm moving towards a TF diet.