Holistic Dentistry

What is holistic dentistry?

Holistic dentistry is a dental approach in which a dentist treats a patient’s health by addressing the connection between their oral health and their whole-body health.

It embraces a philosophy of bio-connection that involves non-invasive and biocompatible alternatives to many conventional dental treatments. A holistic dentist incorporates information from all aspects of a patient’s health, including physical, emotional, and spiritual wellbeing.

Holistic dentists address your dental health from the perspective of your overall wellness. Your mouth is the entryway to the rest of your body. The state of your dental health may be affected by factors in your body, like diabetes, cardiovascular disease, or other systemic diseases.

Benefits of Holistic Dentistry

Biological Approach

Biological dentistry serves to treat your overall health through the context of your oral cavity. A biological and holistic approach maintains that nutrition is the primary factor that affects your dental health. So, before recommending procedures that involve surgery or toxic chemicals, holistic dentists take a non-invasive and gentle approach to treatment.

Non-toxic and Non-invasive

Traditional dentists in the past have often used mercury-amalgam fillings, which holistic dentists believe to be unsafe. Instead, holistic dentists use non-amalgam alternatives in dental fillings. And, to have amalgam fillings replaced with a non-amalgam filling, biological dentists use a procedure that limits mercury exposure.

Holistic dentistry uses non-toxic pain management treatments whenever possible and avoids any therapy containing fluoride. Holistic dentists focus on diagnosing the cause of oral pain and gum disease, using non-invasive and non-surgical alternatives to root canals, including ozone therapy.

Education and Transparency

Holistic doctors are interested in educating patients on how to best care for their mental and physical well-being. Resources and information are made available for patients to understand the differences between holistic and traditional treatments to give patients the power to make better choices concerning their dental health and wellness.

Holistic Dentistry Treatments

Holistic dentistry practices provide general and specialized oral care therapies. General dentistry services include fillings, crowns, bridges, extractions, dentures, veneers, professional cleanings, health evaluations, and more. In addition, surgical management may include ozone therapy, laser applications, bone grafting and blood platelet rich plasma applications to enrich bone healing. This would be done in conjunction with surgical procedures such as extractions, impacted wisdom teeth removal, dental implant placement and bone grafting reconstruction. 

Medical Evaluation

Holistic dentists consider overall wellness instead of only focusing on teeth, gums, and the jaw. During an evaluation, they often ask questions regarding diet, physical well-being, medication, and oral care habits. Biological dentists review medical history and might take X-ray scans, if necessary, as well as check blood pressure.