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If medical treatment, nutritional support, chiropractic techniques and manipulations do not improve your patient’s health and wellness, don’t forget to “look in the mouth.”
A quick and thorough examination of the oral cavity can easily done by any health care professional.
Dr. Reinhold Voll, MD, a German medical doctor, acupuncturist and founder of the EAV (Electro Acupuncture by Voll) back in the 1940’s was once quoted as saying, “80% of all illness is related entirely or partially to problems in the mouth.” Accurate statement or not, I believe from my own personal research and clinical experiences that it appears Dr. Voll knew what he was talking about.
The following suggestions are questions you might ask your patients and notes that should be documented during a simple dental exam:
Questions:
- Is there anything that is hurting in your mouth at the present time?
If your patient says yes, see if they can pinpoint the exact tooth that’s involved. Even without X-rays, you might suspect an infection that could be causing ill effects to other parts of the body. - Do you ever notice your gums bleed when brushing or flossing your teeth?
If yes, some form of periodontal disease is present. Remember that healthy gums do not bleed. Bleeding gums will create a bacteremia that can introduce harmful bacteria into the bloodstream. Systemic complications may result from this seemingly innocent condition. - Do you ever have a metallic taste in your mouth?
If yes, the galvanic currents (the metal materials) in their mouth may be considerably higher than normal. Common symptoms are burning or tingling sensation of the tongue, sleep deprivation, irritability, increased salivation. This usually can be eliminated by removing the metal interferences caused by their dental restorations. - Do you have any root canals in your mouth?
If yes, how many and ask them how long they’ve had them. See if they can show you which teeth have the root canals. Check your Tooth/Organ Chart for any other organ systems that might be connected with specific meridian pathways. The older the root canals, the greater are the chances for failures to occur; i.e., low-grade infections can persist for years without ever being detected. Reference: Root Canal Cover-up, by George Meinig, DDS.
Clinical Observations:
- How much dental work has been done in your patent’s mouth?
- How many mercury fillings are in the mouth?
- How many teeth are missing?
- Halitosis? Indication of digestive problems.
- pH reading. Normal should be approx. 7.0. Below 6.0 are usually signs of acidosis.
- How much calculus do you see on the teeth?
- Gingival tissue: should be light pink with no signs of irritation, redness or puffiness.
- Tongue: should be moist, light pink and slightly rounded at the tip.
In less than 2 minutes, you’ve got a pretty good idea of what’s going on in your patient’s mouth. If there are some dental issues that you believe need to be addressed, try to find a dentist (biological if possible) who will be sensitive to the needs of your patients and that will help support and compliment the work that you’re providing for them as well.
The more dental work performed on your patients and the more teeth that are missing may suggest a history of chronic exposure to sugars and a lack of proper dental hygiene (a localized factor) OR these problems could be a result of systemic complications due to a weaken immune system, toxic exposure to heavy metals and/or dysbiosis.
Whatever the case may be, it just seems imperative that a “simple,” dental examination should always be part of a complete health evaluation. All your patients will certainly appreciate your thoroughness.
In closing, I would like to say that my dental career has certainly been an interesting journey for me up to this point in my life. The paradigm shift has already taken place for me in dentistry, and it’s effected me both personally and professionally. I do believe that using a biological approach to care for our dental patients can and will make a difference in their overall health and wellness. We must continue to pursue this project by keeping our goals and objectives well defined and above all to remember one simple rule; “Protect Our Patients and Do No Harm.”
