Quotations by Ellie Phillips

Cranberries are a food that can damage teeth, and their juice has been studied and shown to reduce plaque. Cranberry juice is extremely acidic, and it is often mixed with other fruit juices as a cocktail. If you were to swish cranberry cocktail or even plain cranberry juice, it could easily ruin your teeth by eroding enamel and causing demineralization. It’s possible you have heard similar studies about grape seed extract, green tea, cider vinegar, and other foods that can reduce dental plaque, but I suggest these are completely inappropriate products for oral care. In the same way, sugary candies and mints, vitamin C lozenges, and cough syrup can be dental hazards. [2018] - Ellie Phillips

Apples are widely believed to be food for oral health, and they do contain an antioxidant called quercetin, which has antimicrobial and anti-inflammatory properties. Apples also contain polyphenols, which offer specific protection against gum damage by periodontal bacteria. Eating apples can benefit teeth, but always remember that apple juice is damaging. The difference is that juice loses its fiber component, and it is the fiber that protects teeth from the malic acid that apples contain. [2018] - Ellie Phillips

My recommendation is not to run for a toothbrush after eating but to dilute and balance mouth acidity as soon as possible, using xylitol or another cariostatic product that can help neutralize acidity and stimulate a flow of saliva to remineralize your teeth (dark chocolate, whole milk, or whole-milk cheese). Here’s an added tip: If your tooth is knocked out in an accident, and you are unable to take it to a dentist for implantation, carry it in a container of saliva, saline solution, cream, or milk to keep it viable for implantation. The quicker this is done, the better! [2018] - Ellie Phillips

Fermented foods can be a fabulous addition to your diet if you are looking for improved digestive health. I encourage you to take steps and expand your horizons with fermented foods as you incorporate small amounts of the ones you like into your menu regularly. Here is a list of frequently used fermented foods in the United States: brine pickles (kosher dill), kimchi, sauerkraut, miso/tempeh/natto, yogurt/kefir/ryazhenka, raw-milk cheese, salami (and other fermented, dry charcuterie), kvass and kombucha. [2018] - Ellie Phillips

I recommend oral probiotics only as a last resort for someone who is unable to maintain mouth care or target his or her underlying problems. Look for oral probiotics sweetened with xylitol—included because xylitol feeds healthy, probiotic mouth bacteria. Oral probiotics may offer some help in dire circumstances or if you have an unstable mouth ecosystem because all the grooves in your teeth have been obliterated by dental crowns, fillings, or sealants. [2018] - Ellie Phillips

A good diet may simply be to eat real food in moderation with a goal of at least 80 percent of your food plate being a variety of plant foods and vegetables. [2018] - Ellie Phillips

The journey to oral health begins by consuming a tiny amount of xylitol (a one gram piece of gum or a couple of pure xylitol mints) after every meal, snack, or drink. Xylitol works in a number of ways to improve oral health as it can help control mouth acidity, but it also provides fiber to support healthy digestive bacteria, and it breaks down to form butyrate in the colon, which can improve the health of this part of the digestive tract. Xylitol is hygroscopic, which means that it pulls liquids to itself. This means that when you eat a xylitol mint or piece of pure xylitol gum it will stimulate a flow of natural saliva into your mouth.  [2018] - Ellie Phillips

The secret for protecting teeth from excessive demineralization is to control snacking and sipping, especially in the afternoon hours when saliva is most healing, and use food pairing to minimize demineralization when you choose to sip or nibble. Pure xylitol gum or mints can also help us limit demineralization damage when they are used at the end of every meal, snack, or drink. The flow of alkaline saliva stimulated by eating xylitol will help wash away acids and provide minerals to help heal demineralized enamel. [2018] - Ellie Phillips

Many times, I have helped patients return their teeth to total health, but success is easier to predict if we begin remineralization before the tooth’s enamel skeleton has been physically broken. Most small cavities take at least a year to form, and the reversal and repair can happen in a fraction of this time— often in less than three months. [2018] - Ellie Phillips

I do not endorse drinking fluoride. I encourage everyone to spit several times after using any dental products to ensure good clearance from the mouth; do not eat, drink, or wash your mouth for at least an hour, so that your teeth can derive the maximum benefit from fluoride rinsing. [2018] - Ellie Phillips

Almost everyone’s saliva pH becomes more acidic at night, or when we are tired or unwell. Mouth pH can be tested with special litmus paper or a pH meter dipped into saliva that is collected in a spoon or small dish. Your morning saliva can be used as a baseline reading, but remember, saliva pH fluctuates easily with stress, travel, extra hours of work, or mouth breathing. [2018] - Ellie Phillips

Baking soda is a handy cleaning product, because it is not abrasive and is excellent for dissolving grease and removing molds. In the mouth, however, this ability to dissolve fats and grease appears to damage the beneficial proteins that are the foundation of healthy biofilm that covers teeth and stops sensitivity, enamel erosion, and gum recession—particularly for mouths that are acidic or dry. Baking soda appears to strip this protective protein layer away in some mouths, which leaves teeth and gums more vulnerable to mechanical, thermal, and chemical assault. [2018] - Ellie Phillips

The suggestion to brush your teeth immediately after a meal may sound logical to some people, but not if you understand that your mouth is almost always acidic after a meal. It can take about an hour for this acidity to dissipate. This is why some dentists tell their patients to wait an hour before brushing. If you brush acid- softened enamel, it will easily be abraded or worn. In my opinion, the best solution is to use xylitol at the end of meals. If xylitol is not available, an option would be to have a tooth-protective food like whole milk or cheese or to rinse the mouth with water to wash away the acidity. [2018] - Ellie Phillips

Buy some new toothbrushes, and ensure they are not too soft. You’ll want to concentrate on reaching all the areas of your gums: even higher above, on the inside areas, and below your teeth in the areas of the teeth’s roots. Brushing techniques that target teeth and do not reach your gums will leave plaque at the gum margins in an infected mouth. In some cases, a battery-operated brush can be useful, since the vibrations help to stimulate circulation when dexterity or access to the mouth is difficult. In other situations, when the vibrations are not tolerable, cleaning the gums with a manual brush or even a sponge or cloth may be your best option. [2018] - Ellie Phillips

With the exception of electric toothbrushes, many brush heads are too big and difficult to maneuver around your mouth. For some of my clients, I suggest a brush designed for teens or young adults. Basically, you want a brush that fits your mouth. And brushes with small heads are generally easier, especially if you have crowded teeth. [2018] - Ellie Phillips

Flossing cannot help you improve your mouth ecology, and there is risk that flossing and cleanings could push bacteria into the blood from your infected mouth. If you have a problem with food being stuck between your teeth, this will gradually resolve as your mouth becomes healthier; in the meantime, small interdental brushes may be useful for extra plaque control in problem areas. [2018] - Ellie Phillips

A rinse like chlorine dioxide is very useful, because it will create oxygen in the small spaces where periodontal bacteria live. Many rinses today are acidic, with a pH low enough to damage root cement and even tooth enamel. The only acidic rinse that is safe for teeth is one containing dilute sodium fluoride, since the benefits of the fluoride are enhanced in a slightly acidic solution. Acidic rinses are particularly damaging in a dry mouth. I believe everyone should check products they use regularly, possibly using an inexpensive pH-testing meter. [2018] - Ellie Phillips

Swish the bristles of the brush daily, preferably in a drop of an undiluted essential oil antibacterial rinse, like Listerine, for a couple of seconds. Rinse the brush under running water and then store it—bristles up, in a cup or holder—so it can air-dry completely for twenty-four hours between uses. Remember that bacteria lodged inside biofilm will die when they dry. This means that in order to brush twice a day you will need, at a minimum, two brushes. [2018] - Ellie Phillips

Xylitol does not dissolve in cold water, but it dissolves easily at room temperature, and once dissolved, it will stay dissolved, even when chilled. Adding xylitol to water may be helpful when higher doses of xylitol are used, as they are in Europe for women with osteoporosis. Doctors who believe in xylitol for bone benefits often suggest an amount of up to 20 grams of xylitol daily. Teeth benefit most from tiny, multiple exposures to xylitol each day—ideally 1–2 grams at each exposure to total between 6.5 and 10 total grams per day. I suggest you strive for a 1-gram serving of xylitol (ideally as two 0.5-gram mints or a 1-gram piece of gum) five times each day after meals, snacks, and drinks. [2018] - Ellie Phillips

When you consume xylitol as mints or gum, they pull some saliva into your mouth from small salivary glands in the roof of your mouth. In most mouths, this saliva is mineral-rich and alkaline, which is conducive to tooth health and repair. Drinking xylitol water can be useful, but it cannot contribute to remineralization and the reversal of cavities in the same way as is achieved by regularly eating some mints or gum. Xylitol mints or gum will also help people with dry mouth by creating a flow of saliva, and studies have shown that using xylitol mints daily can reduce the amount of root decay in high-risk patients by 40%. [2018] - Ellie Phillips