Anyone raising cavity-free vegetarians?

[JSerene]

I'd like to know if anyone here has kids without cavities. I've been reading the Weston A Price stuff and from that point of view cavities are caused by a lack of the right nutrients, and most of those nutrients can be found in raw milk, eggs, cheese, butter oil, cod liver oil, meat and organ meat (not a complete list).

My daugher has 4 cavities and I'm ready to make changes, including eating meat, but I need to explore the issue further.

Any comments would be of great help. Thanks.

[earthmama369]

My kiddos are probably too little to really weigh in on the subject. But I've been pesco-vegetarian since I was 5 and never ate anything like a WAP diet, and I have no cavities. (I'm 30.)

I'm finding more of a link, personally, to genetics and fluoride. There is some evidence that some people react badly to fluoride, gaining cavities instead of preventing them. My mother and uncle both had sound teeth until start a fluoride program in the 50s and suddenly they got a ton of cavities. Neither got new cavities once they'd been off fluoride for a few years. My mom kept my sister and I off fluoride (and we had well water growing up), and neither of us have cavities.

DD is showing signs of a predisposition to cavities. None yet, but I wouldn't be surprised if she does develop some. She also takes after dh, very much so, and his whole family (not even remotely vegetarian, although also not WAP) has cavity-prone teeth. I think genetics plays a strong role there.

[veganf]

My oldest is almost 5, so not that old, but the dentist says his teeth look perfect. I've had a couple of cavities in my life, most of them before going veg 20 years ago though.
All of the stuff I've read, and the opinion of our dentist, is that teeth condition is largely genetic, coupled with good care like flossing and leaving sticky foods on the teeth for too long (ie. fruit roll-ups, raisins, etc.).

[russianthistle]

My son is 16 mo., vegetarian and has no cavities...I have no cavities and have been vegetarian for half of my life (I'm 30, too). I also never drank milk and rarely ate eggs for much of my young life (I was allergic as a young child).

I have a friend who was raised vegetarian who, too, had no cavities until much later in life.

I really believe that cavities come from an acidic value to the saliva, sometimes in combination with genetics, other times in combination with diet...

I recently switched from the Weleda Calendula to a tooth powder made of Myrrh, Baking Soda, and Kelp and have noticed it fizz a couple of times while brushing...like there is an acid/base chemical reaction taking place in my mouth. I feel like my mouth is much cleaner, my teeth white, and the overall hygiene of my teeth is better since the switch. I've never looked into my suspscions about tooth powder being better for the teeth than the glycerin based pastes, but I truly feel a difference.

I also read on an earlier thread that the glycerin contained in most natural toothpastes coats the teeth, hence inhibiting the natural benefits of saliva in remineralizing teeth. Here is the link:
http://www.mothering.com/discussions...12#post7721212

There are, additionally, some threads that you might find interesting within this section if you search under early childhood caries or something similar:
http://www.mothering.com/discussions...play.php?f=308

There are also a couple of articles in the archives...do a google search under something like "early childhood caries Mothering" to find that...I don't have the link anymore.

I have a friend whose dd, oddly enough, was born on the same day as your daughter, who has cavities as well. I did some reseach for her.

Good luck, mama

[Roar]

I think it has a lot more to do with genetics.

I was a nonvegetarian kid who chewed sugary laden bubble gum as many hours a day as I possibly could, did a pretty poor job brushing my teeth and I had no cavities until I was an adult.

My child has always been a vegetarian, he is 11 and has no cavities.

[kittywitty]

Originally Posted by veganf

My oldest is almost 5, so not that old, but the dentist says his teeth look perfect. I've had a couple of cavities in my life, most of them before going veg 20 years ago though.
All of the stuff I've read, and the opinion of our dentist, is that teeth condition is largely genetic, coupled with good care like flossing and leaving sticky foods on the teeth for too long (ie. fruit roll-ups, raisins, etc.).

:

I was raised 90% veg, and never had a cavity until I was pg with my first dd and started eating meat.

My kids until recently never really ate meat (went up to 2years at a time without) and have absolutely perfect teeth.

[somanythings]

We have terrible genetics for teeth, and my veggie 8yo and 3yo have NO cavities/other oral problems.

[melissa17s]

My dc are vegetarian and have healthy teeth. I did not get cavities until after ds was born. I think they are directly related to my former addiction to reese's peanut butter cups. I ate them crazily after ds birth, and then I got a lot of cavities. Sticky sugary foods cause cavities. Things that sit on the surface of the tooth feeding the bacteria. Soda does it, too.

I think genetics have less to do with cavities and more to do with straight or crooked teeth. Maybe crooked teeth are more prone to harboring sticky food though...

brush and floss a couple times a day or after meals, and only drink water before bed/sleeping to avoid cavities. Oooh and breastmilk has anticavity properties

[G&B'sMama]

My DD is just about 7 and has never had a cavity. She has been a lifelong vegetarian.

My DS is three and has never had a cavity. He has been a lifelong vegetarian- except for the fish sticks he ate at grandmas one day. He also is missing half the enamel on his teeth- an inherited condition that comes from DH's side of the family.

I have read the Weston Price stuff too. I have to say that when I read it, and when I read Sally Fallon’s Nourishing Traditions, it was pretty scary stuff. I have to say, though, although at first read I immediately thought I needed to get my family eating raw milk and animal fat or something terrible was going to happen, I changed my tune after re-reading and re-thinking the concepts. I also switched from a fairly strict vegetarian diet (with only a couple servings of dairy a week, and no eggs or flesh) to a pure NT diet on the recommendation of a naturopath. I worked it the best I could, and I lived in an area where I had good access to the pure foods they talk about. The meat eating just about did me in- problems that I had virtually eliminated with my vegetarian diet- such as spastic colon and gallbladder attacks- resurfaced with a vengeance. I know other people who have felt very good after starting this type of diet, but it wasn’t my case. However, despite my little experience I did have a much different take-home message from that body of work. The message that I still try to put into practice is to eat foods that are as fresh and pure as possible. When we eat dairy, which at the moment we are not, but when we do we go for small bits of raw and/or cultured items- and preferably from an animal we know. I try to “process” foods myself using natural methods, including fermentation. I also found that soaked grains are easier to digest. I actually have found that we use the recipes in the NT book quite a lot for preparing basic staples.

[wildtigercubs]

On the other side of the fence I have 3 kids and all are omni (I wasn't veg when they were born so they've been raised omni) and they have terrible teeth! My eldest who is 8 has had 2 cavities already and various other dental problems and my youngest of the twins has strange staining all over her teeth (it's rough, like extra calcium deposits). I also have terrible teeth and was an omni from birth to 28. My Dad is omni and has the same terrible teeth as does my little brother so I'm with the it's more to do with genetics train of thought than anything.

[richella]

I'm 40, never had a cavity in my life (knock on wood). Was vegan for 12 yrs, then ovo-pesce-veg for the past 2-3 yrs. Dd's teeth look great so far (she is 2/5).

Sorry about your daughter! I would be surprised if her cavities are caused by a lack of animal foods in her diet.

[TwinMom]

None of my kids have had cavities. I had one, when I was 11, but that's it. I think tooth health has a LOT to do with genetics and prenatal nutrition.

[Ygle]

My oldest has cavities... she's the only one I wasn't a strict vegetarian during pregnancy for, fwiw (got the free cheese and eggs through WIC). My other two (10yo & 3yo) have no cavities. My first also had flouride... we were on well water and our ped rec'd it. Her first cavity was in her 6yo molar, before it fully erupted.

[rainyday]

Vegetarian child here, no cavities.

[NatureMama3]

so far, so good.

[2 in August]

I was raised omni went veg a couple years ago, now I'm back to omni and still no cavities. Dh has been omni his whole life and has tons of cavities. Dd is mostly veg and has no cavities. Aside from sticky sugary stuff, I'm not sure food is a big culprit.

[cathe]

My dd's are 8 and 6 and no cavities so far - also no sealants. I think a lot has to do with that we don't eat a lot of sugar or processed food. We brush in morning and brush and floss every night.

[kaydee]

My veg son (age 4) has no cavities.

I was raised omni, had lots of cavities as a child.

I have had only 1 cavity since I went veg (at age 13).

[AuntRayRay]

I'm very interested in this....I also think genetics are a big part.. I ate badly when I was younger and didn't have cavities til older and just a few small ones. My oldest didn't have any til this year ( i think it has to do with the lemons he likes to suck on and the vinegar he loves to drink..yuck LOL) and then my middle son started having cavities and tooth decay a few years ago. Now his teeth are real bad, we;re waiting for an OR appointment(he's autistic and I remember a DAN! Dr . says that the tests results he had done showing that he was peeing out all the nutrients he should be keeping, so I always figured he wasn't very healthy on the inside--couldn't afford to proceed with that unfortunately)And my youngest I just took to the dr to find out he has 4!! cavities and he's only three!! And I'm the type that leaves the lollipops in the bank cylinder through the drivethrough LOL And then the thing is that my 4 year old nephew whose been living with us for over two years..has no cavities! He lives here too..I brush his teeth the same, feed him the same..give him the same vitamins (no flouride), etc.. My youngest father would have totally blamed me for his sons cavities (no flouride vit's, not "right" diet,he still takes milk in a "BaBa" etc..) if it wasn't for me telling him that the dentist said that its just genetic that some of us are more suseptable than others...i made it up, but I believe it to be true, even if the dentist really didn't say that to me Its good to hear there are other mama's here with the same thing going on. I did at first feel embarrassed and feel like somehow I must of done something or not done something to cause these cavities in my 3 year old. I feel so bad for him that he will have to go through the pain of having them filled, but the dentist said that some are in his back teeth that he wouldn't loose til he's 10yr and by that time they could start to destroy his big teeth

Sorry for the long rant

RayRay~

[chezlyryan]

i think genetics have something to do with it too. Me and my sister were both raised Omni. We ate the same food, drank the same drinks, and saw the same dentist. I have 10 cavities and she has none. The dentist said that my molars are indented deeper so it was harder for me to keep them clean, or something like that. At least I didn't need braces like my sister did.