Tooth crowding in 6 year old

[Katie Gardner]

My 6 year old went to the dentist today and the dentist, whom I tend to trust, expressed being "very concerned" about my son's teeth being to close together. Asa has lost 3 bottom teeth, but only 2 have come in and those are very crooked. The dentist suggested pulling teeth and orthodontics. I am scared to death. 

Nutriotionally speaking, I breastfed him for 2 years and foods were introduced very slowly. Since then, his nutrition has been above average, but not perfect by any means. Lots of PB and Js. 

The reason I post this topic here is because, ideal nutritionally-speaking, I orient with y'all. In practice, I fall very short.

I'm looking for folks with experience with this, tips for helping reorient my family and lifestyle with Traditional Foods, and any ideas about this subject.

Also looking for resources about this. Thanks!

[skreader]

I think the problem has more to do w/ genetics than nutrition. My parents' teeth were crooked and all their kids needed orthodonture, with me and my younger bro needing more extensive work than our other two sisters (who both took after one side of the family, my brother and I more on the other). My brother an I both needed 4 adult teeth removed and were in bracse for ~ 3 years (12 to 15).

Meanwhile, my step-sisters who basically ate the same stuff only needed a little work w/ retainers for about a year. Their dad (my step-dad) never had braces and had pretty straight teeth.

My husband has naturally straight teeth. My eldest who takes after him in many ways also has pretty straight teeth. No need for braces. My younger one inherited my jaw and will be in braces for about 1 more year.

Healthy foods don't hurt dental health, but I don't think they'll do much to help make crooked teeth straight.

[Millie Ivy]

Nutritionally speaking, we pass on our legacy to our kids.   Low nutrient diets tend to show their wear and tear in the 3rd or more generations.  We humans can go one without showing the nutrient deficiencies for a generation or maybe two, but then stuff starts coming out.  So yes, you could have had the most perfectly nutrient dense diet ever and he could have still had some dental issues from your grandmas diet. :(

That doesn't mean you can't cause improvement now though, maybe not with the actual crooked teeth but by increasing the nutrient stores in your little one so he can have vibrant health and pass on that health to his kids.  Crooked teeth are a symptom, not a cause of problems in the body. 

I would highly recommend adding in bone broths at the very least.  Make soups, soak your grains and beans and then cook them in broth, drink broth warm, whatever he likes.  My kids like egg drop soup a lot, and that's an easy way to get broth in, it's going on the breakfast menu again for school year.

I haven't actually used diet specifically fer dental problems so I hope someone else will chime in, but even if you use modern advances to fix his mouth, I would just urge you to look at building nutrient stores in you and him. :-)

HTH

[Katie Gardner]

Thanks for your support! My husband had REALLY crooked teeth (and 4 horrible years of orthodontics causing untold amounts of pain, frustration, dentist-anxiety, and TMJ), so I do think there's a strong genetic element there and I agree that one generation of healthy eating habits doesn't cure a few generations of very poor nutrition. 

I also don't expect nutrition to cure his crooked teeth, but he's still so young and has so much growing left. That's why I ask about tips to up his nutrition now.

I have heard of chiropractics and cranio-sacral treatments to help with narrow palates and jaw issues. Anyone have any experience with or knowledge about this with or without more traditional orthodontics/periorthodontics?

[berry987]

Have you read "Deep Nutrition" by Cate Shanahan? Excellent resource on the topic of nutrition and jaw structure.

[HouseofPeace]

i'm going to second the 'Deep Nutrition' as an accessible and simple way to address traditional foods and prioritize them for health.

My father was raised on a traditional foods diet (1st generation american) and though he had some baby teeth that never grew in, never saw a dentist, never had a cavity, and has very nice tooth and head formation.  My mother is the daughter of a Dr who was formula fed, and ate standard food, and her siblings and her had a diverse history of orthodontic issues.  My teeth weren't bad, but I had an overbite from sucking my thumb, and only one sibling in my family did not get braces, and extensive work and tooth-pulling were necessary for a couple.  We also have bad eyesight and auto-immune issues.  all of my grandparents had great teeth until later in life.

i started a raw foods diet before getting pregnant with my son (not vegan, mind, w/ raw egg yolks, minimally cooked red meat, and fish), and got into raw milk and the whole WAPF movement when my son was weaning.  he has remarkably good spacing in his baby teeth, and has only one adult tooth coming in, but we're watching to see what will happen in the mouths of our children.  I've improved my diet with each pregnancy, so hope that we can shift things.  Dr. Price did find that parents could fix in one generation the teeth of children, as they could also get totally messed up in one generation.  We do not consume candy, processed foods (chips and ketchup from whole foods being the one exception as a once a week treat), and especially focus on having loads of good fats and carefully treated grains along with grass-fed/pastured meat every single day.  At this point, even though most siblings in both my husband and my family needed glasses either before or around 2nd grade, we have had no signs of anyone struggling with that, and our kids teeth are all straight, white and totally clean with minimal care.  our pedi has commented on the health and size of all the mouths in our family.

so, will keep you posted and would love to see more about people's experience treating teeth naturally!