Have you noticed that small cavities have started to form on your teeth, but do you think with horror when you sit on the chair in the dental office? Maybe you should try to heal your teeth before undergoing invasive interventions. If you give your body the key nutrients, your teeth can be repaired!
It is said that a smile is our business card. But what do we do when we have to smile shyly because we know that our teeth are not a beautiful landscape? The first impulse is to go to the dentist, because that’s how we were taught. At any small cavities we let the dentist clean the area of the tooth subject to degradation and have it filled (fills the cavity with an artificial material).
But fillings wear out over time and need to be replaced, and sometimes a filler can damage the tooth more than the cavities itself! And then what? Teeth can be repaired through the natural process of…
…remineralization! If your body receives key nutrients, your teeth can be healthy, strong and beautiful! Healthy teeth are important not only for aesthetics, but also for good digestion and overall health.
Tooth remineralization is a process that the human body does naturally, but sometimes, just like any organ in the body may need extra support, the teeth need help. Beyond the diet, there are a number of dietary supplements that can help you reduce your visits to the dentist and even cure your cavities.
6 supplements that contribute to tooth remineralization
Calcium
It’s probably something you already knew, but calcium is a very important mineral for bone health that also supports the process of tooth remineralization. Bone tissue is permanently regenerated, as are teeth, if they are provided with the necessary “food”, so the body needs permanent calcium, even in adulthood, not only during the growth process. If the body detects that the calcium intake is below the daily requirement, it begins to consume from the existing reserves in the body, more precisely from the bones and teeth.
But calcium is a relatively demanding nutrient. The presence of vitamins D3 and K2 is necessary for your body to be able to absorb and direct calcium to the components that need it. Before deciding to supplement your diet with calcium, it would be good to do a series of medical tests to detect if you really have a deficiency. As for the daily calcium requirement, it varies depending on the age, sex and health of each person. Women up to 50 years old need 1000 mg of calcium / day, after which the dose increases to 1,200 mg / day, and men need 1000 mg of calcium / day up to 70 years, then 1,200 mg / day.
A natural source of calcium is eggshell. According to some studies, calcium in eggshell may be more beneficial than the same amount of calcium in supplements, as it is processed more slowly by the body, thus reducing the risk of consuming too much.
Vitamin D3
Vitamin D is one of the most important vitamins, being involved in all body functions and acting like a hormone. Every cell in the body has a receptor for vitamin D and over 30,000 genes are influenced by it. Why vitamin D3 and not D2? Because vitamin D3 is much easier for the body to absorb.
When it comes to dental health, vitamin D is responsible for calcium absorption and balancing the level of minerals in the body. These two processes are essential for the formation and regeneration of bones and teeth.
It also helps maintain the structure of the teeth for the rest of their lives, if they are offered the necessary conditions, of course. According to the latest studies, more than half of the world’s population is deficient in vitamin D, and the main reasons are lack of sun exposure, excessive use of sunscreen and excessive consumption of foods rich in phytic acid that disrupt the metabolism of vitamin D ( almonds, beans, hazelnuts, lentils, cereals, soybeans, sesame seeds). The required daily dose of vitamin D3 is 1000 IU.
Vitamin K2
If vitamin D3 contributes to the absorption of calcium in the body, vitamin K2 acts as a traffic conductor and helps calcium reach the parts of the body that need it most, such as teeth and bones. Vitamin K2 is needed to help calcium and other minerals bind in the bone matrix to strengthen bones and teeth. It has a lot of benefits for the body and is even recommended for the prevention and treatment of osteoporosis. The recommended daily dose of vitamin K2 is 90 micrograms.
Magnesium
Magnesium is essential for the structural formation of teeth and at the same time determines how effectively calcium is absorbed into the body (thus protecting the arteries from plaque that can occur due to excess calcium). On the other hand, too much calcium, vitamin D and phosphorus in the body can reduce the level of magnesium in the body, thus preventing the process of remineralization of teeth. That is why it is important to take these supplements in balanced amounts, so that they can work and cooperate, not to neutralize each other.
Magnesium deficiency can be determined by tests, but there are certain symptoms that you can see on your own, such as poor dental health, cavities, osteoporosis, back and joint pain and others. About two-thirds of the world’s population is deficient in magnesium, and the main causes are city living, processed food, excessive sugar consumption and stressful jobs.
Magnesium makes a good team with vitamin D3. One study found that people who consumed the most magnesium (420 mg for men and 320 mg for women) had the highest bone density and, therefore, a lower risk of osteoporosis, and teeth could benefit as well.
Collagen
Collagen is the most abundant protein in the body and an indispensable element for the health of the osteo-articular system, skin, teeth and gums, but also in the healing process of internal and external wounds. Throughout life, your teeth wear out, and the remineralization process consists in repairing and maintaining them in optimal conditions.
The teeth consist of enamel, dentin, cement and bone, which in turn have organic and inorganic components. Collagen is the essential component of the organic part of the teeth. Type I collagen contributes to the formation of 90% of the components of dentin, cement and bone, while type XVII is essential for the formation of enamel, and in its absence even malformations of the teeth can occur.
One of the best dietary sources of collagen is bone broth , but nowadays most people prefer to eat meat without bones, cartilage or skin, let alone animal organs, thus setting aside the sources of collagen. which the body needs. Collagen not only supports the health of bones and teeth, but also supports the growth of hair, nails, takes care of your skin and even the digestive system, helping to reduce the impact of a variety of intestinal diseases, such as increased permeability, ulcerative colitis, Crohn’s disease or irritable bowel syndrome.
Probiotics
Many of us know something about the intestinal microbiome, but we should also pay attention to the oral microbiome whose main component is saliva. Studies have shown that people who have a higher acidic pH and a high content of inorganic components in saliva are more likely to develop gum disease.
Probiotics have the ability to increase the level of organic components in the oral cavity, can get rid of bad breath, reduce the symptoms of gingivitis, reduce inflammation and can even prevent the occurrence of oral cancer. Probiotics are also the ones that fight to eliminate harmful bacteria that can cause cavities and prevent the remineralization process.
The role of nutrition in tooth remineralization
Because prevention is the best treatment, it is more than advisable to pay attention to our diet, before causing damage to teeth that can only be repaired by the intervention of the dentist. What should we do?
- Let’s reduce the consumption of foods that can demineralize teeth such as sugar, carbonated drinks, cereals and those rich in phytic acid (unfermented soy products, nuts and grains).
- Increase the intake of foods that support remineralization, such as healthy fats and green leaves.
- Let’s take supplements that can support the regeneration and remineralization process, such as those listed above.
- Let’s drink water. Hydration is important for the whole body!
- Let’s not forget oral hygiene. Teeth should be cleaned and brushed at least twice a day!
- Let’s be patient. Just as cavities did not form overnight, neither will healing take place out of the blue. Make sure you do and eat right, and your teeth will be repaired gradually.
Cauliflower and cucumbers naturally remove tooth stains, mushrooms inhibit the reproduction of bacteria, and ginger is a good natural anti-inflammatory that prevents gum inflammation.
Modern medicine can repair stem cell teeth and a drug for Alzheimer’s
The journal “Scientific Reports” published in 2017 the results of a study conducted on mice that shows how a tooth with problems can regenerate. The natural regeneration process is stimulated by filling the cavities with a biodegradable collagen sponge soaked in a drug called Tideglusib (used to treat Alzheimer’s), after which the tooth in question is sealed. The drug has been shown to enhance stem cell activity and thus stimulate dentin formation. As a result, a few weeks after treatment, the medicine sponge had resorbed and been replaced with new dentin.
Until then, it would be good to pay close attention to diet and lifestyle because it affects our entire body, so our teeth. Teeth regenerate, as the whole body has the ability to recover, but only in optimal conditions. Because modern life no longer allows us to eat properly all the time, supplements come to our aid. But if you have toothaches, gums, deep and painful cavities, it would be better to go for a dental check-up!