drilling cavity in 3rd trimester

[metabreed]

i have a suspected cavity that i'm ignoring as i'm in my last trimester of pregnancy, and shutter at the thought of drilling my tooth. does anyone have experience with dental work during pregnancy? my dentist is great and gentle, but it's never pain free to have a cavity filled. should i wait or should i go now?

[JaneS]

Just make sure it's not amalgam. I think novocaine is fine but check on that online at pregnancy sites ...even though they don't warn about the mercury amalgam .

[guestmama9916]

My sister's dentist wouldn't fill her cavities during pregnancy. I don't know if this is a standard practice or something just her dentist does.

Be sure to up your intake of fat soluable vitamins A and D right now. More than likely your baby has zapped vitamins and minerals from your teeth which wouldn't happen if your body was getting enough in the first place. Think about adding some high vitamin cod liver oil to your daily regimen. I take Blue Ice and X-factor butter oil. I also drink raw milk for the vitamins and minerals. Check out the Weston A. Price Foundation website for more ideas.

Kim

[reducereuserecycle]

I went to the dentist during the end of my first trimester. I refused xrays, although they assured me it was totally safe, I just didn't feel comfortable letting them xray me. Then they pointed out I had three cavities. One is kinda bad and the other two are just dark spots that may need attention. Anyhow, they said it was no big deal to get them filled during pregnancy. I refused and said I'd come back after the baby is born, but now I wonder about the breastfeeding issue. Anyhow, the dentist said that my cavities had nothing to do with the baby sucking all the nutrition from me, although, I'd heard that was what cause cavities during pregnancy. I asked him what was the worst that could happen if I waited to get mine filled and he said that the worst would be needing a root canal. He said there was no way to predict how fast the cavity could "grow" especailly since I refused the xray and he didn't know how bad they were. That was back in July. I have no pain in any of my teeth.
So, I would just wait. You don't have much longer being preggo and I'm sure it wouldn't be that comfortable to have to lay there on your back and get your tooth drilled.

[JaneS]

I would think filling with composite or other non-amalgam filling is fine during pg.... it's the mercury that is the biggest concern. My root canal was one of the biggest health mistakes I ever made, I would get your cavities taken care of.

Most dentists know nothing about nutrition, he is wrong. Although I would describe it differently. I would say your diet doesn't contain enough nutrients for both baby and you.

[metabreed]

I went back to the dentist, and he did some non-invasive tests on my tooth. i didn't want x-rays, and he didn't want me to have them either.
luckily, he said my tooth was holding up, so I'm waiting till after the baby is born. he suggested i stay away from iced drinks and drinks that were very hot, both of which can aggravate a tooth and nerve endings.
thanks for all the info!