preventative dental care for children

[marguerite]

I have a mainstream dentist for my daughter, and was told she needs a procedure that puts a coating on all of her molars. It is to prevent cavaties down the road, and she has craggie molars. I tried to get info about how to research this stuff, make sure its safe, and was told to look it up at SCSU dentistry dept. I did and they go into no detail about procedures.

Have any of you experience with this? It sounds pretty benign but I want to make sure.

Thanks! marguerite

[dancingstar]

Hi Marguerite,

You are wise to question this procedure. I made the decision to have it done to my two sons after my "nontoxic" dentist said he'd choose this procedure for his own children. (Although he did admit that there are no long term studies as it is a relatively new procedure.) But I'm not so sure I made the right decision.

In a recent issue (Jan '07) of "Taste For Life" magazine, in an article entitled, "Know Your Plastics", I see that dental sealants are categorized as #7 plastics. It is advised that these plastics should be avoided whenever possible. These plastics are usually polycarbonates, "whose primary building block is bisphenol A (BPA), a hormone disrupter that releases into food and liquid and acts much like estrogen. Research in 'Environmental Health Perspectives' finds that BPA (leached from the lining of tin cans, dental sealants, and PC bottles) can increase body weight of lab animals' off-spring, as well as impact hormone levels." The article goes on to say that even low-level exposure to BPA results in insulin resistance, which can lead to inflammation and heart disease. Other health risks include high blood pressure, high cholesterol, Type 2 diabetes, changes in male and female reproductive systems, behavioral changes, impaired immune function, learning disabilities, and increased risk of cancer.

I'm sure you could find additional information doing a web search.

Best wishes,

Judy


I have a mainstream dentist for my daughter, and was told she needs a procedure that puts a coating on all of her molars. It is to prevent cavaties down the road, and she has craggie molars. I tried to get info about how to research this stuff, make sure its safe, and was told to look it up at SCSU dentistry dept. I did and they go into no detail about procedures.

Have any of you experience with this? It sounds pretty benign but I want to make sure.

Thanks! marguerite

[HolisticKids]

Thanks for bringing this up at this time. My daughter is scheduled to get dental sealants next Monday from my "non-toxic" dentist. Guess I wasn't thinking too straight on this one since I never asked about the materials. I never thought it would be BPA.

Here is information from Our Stolen Future about Bisphenol A (BPA):
https://www.ourstolenfuture.org/NewScience/oncompounds/bisphenola/bpauses.htm

Bisphenol A-based polycarbonate is used as a plastic coating for children's teeth to prevent cavities (dental sealants)

A quote from this report: "Unfortunately, the ester bond that links BPA monomers to one another to form a polymer is not stable and hence the polymer decays with time, releasing BPA into materials with which it comes into contact, for example food or water."

Not something I want to be in my child's mouth! I'll do some more research on dental sealants and I'll ask my dentist if there is an alternative to plastic sealants. I'll let you know what I find out.

I also know that Michael Lipelt, DDS, LAc, is very educated about toxic materials used in dentistry and I'll try to get in touch with him to ask about dental sealants.

Thanks again for posting this,

Jane Sheppard
Healthy Child
https://www.healthychild.com (https://www.healthychild.com/)


I have a mainstream dentist for my daughter, and was told she needs a procedure that puts a coating on all of her molars. It is to prevent cavaties down the road, and she has craggie molars. I tried to get info about how to research this stuff, make sure its safe, and was told to look it up at SCSU dentistry dept. I did and they go into no detail about procedures.

Have any of you experience with this? It sounds pretty benign but I want to make sure.

Thanks! marguerite

[Sara S]

After years of dealing with dentists (who, after all, need to make money in new ways, since people are getting less cavities than they did twenty years ago) who recommended all sorts of "preventative procedures" like ultrasound, I finally got a good dentist who doesn't do anything that isn't really necessary.

Just my personal preference, but I have seen people get sucked into stuff that is mainly to make $ for the practitioner. This includes vets; you never want to take a chance with your kid or your animal, and these people know that.

Have you ever consulted the I Ching? It's an infallible way to learn whether something is really necessary or not.

lladro

[drumstori]

I have a mainstream dentist for my daughter, and was told she needs a procedure that puts a coating on all of her molars. It is to prevent cavaties down the road, and she has craggie molars. I tried to get info about how to research this stuff, make sure its safe, and was told to look it up at SCSU dentistry dept. I did and they go into no detail about procedures.

Have any of you experience with this? It sounds pretty benign but I want to make sure.

Thanks! marguerite

marguerite,
this procedure is called "sealants" and is used to fill in craggy molars(mostly) in kids teelth so food doesnt get stuck and decay...(and they dont brush after every meal and snack)
its easy and benign and a good idea..
signed,
x-dental assistant of 12 years.

[marguerite]

Thanks for bringing this up at this time. My daughter is scheduled to get dental sealants next Monday from my "non-toxic" dentist. Guess I wasn't thinking too straight on this one since I never asked about the materials. I never thought it would be BPA.

Here is information from Our Stolen Future about Bisphenol A (BPA):
https://www.ourstolenfuture.org/NewScience/oncompounds/bisphenola/bpauses.htm

Bisphenol A-based polycarbonate is used as a plastic coating for children's teeth to prevent cavities (dental sealants)

A quote from this report: "Unfortunately, the ester bond that links BPA monomers to one another to form a polymer is not stable and hence the polymer decays with time, releasing BPA into materials with which it comes into contact, for example food or water."

Not something I want to be in my child's mouth! I'll do some more research on dental sealants and I'll ask my dentist if there is an alternative to plastic sealants. I'll let you know what I find out.

I also know that Michael Lipelt, DDS, LAc, is very educated about toxic materials used in dentistry and I'll try to get in touch with him to ask about dental sealants.

Thanks again for posting this,

Jane Sheppard
Healthy Child
https://www.healthychild.com

Hi,

I haven't been online the past few days and am happy and grateful to find this information, that I was not able to find myself. It sounds like these sealants are very iffy in terms of what they release into the body system. I do know I had some crowns put in when I was little because some of my molars were so craggy he was convinced I would be prone to many cavaties down the road. And it is true I have had very few cavaties in 43 years. Its all plus and minuses sometimes, however all this information has convinced me to do nothing until I can dig deeper into BPA's. The BPA sounds absolutely horrible, we already have so many weird things in our environment. Thanks all for your imput. I am open and interested in any other feedback, and will post should I get new information.

Thanks!!!

Marguerite

[HolisticKids]

I found out more info on dental sealants that I'd like to share. I called Dr. Senn's office (our dentist) and talked to Deborah, the dental hygienist. Deborah is very knowledgable about toxics and dental health. She told me that Dr. Senn does not use the plastic material containing BPA as dental sealant material. Instead he uses composite filling material. This is the typical stuff that is used for filling cavities - he uses that to also seal the tooth. This composite (or white-colored tooth) filling is also plastic and there are many different substances that can be used. It's a good idea to first get your child tested for bio-compatibility before having a composite filling or dental sealant material put in his or her mouth. Some children are sensitive to specific materials and certain materials can cause future health problems if not tested first.

I took my daughter to Michael Lipelt, DDS, ND, LAc in Sebastopol. He checked her for compatibility with Dr. Senn's materials and also checked the composite fillings she already has in her mouth. Fortunately, all the composite fillings she already has are compatible for her. There were only two types of the composite fillings that Dr. Senn uses that would not be good for her. Dr. Lipelt has sent this information to Dr. Senn so he knows what composite material to use for her. I made another appointment with Dr. Senn to do the dental sealants and fill a couple of small cavities.

I feel a lot better knowing that the materials going into my daughter's mouth are compatible with her body and will not need to be removed someday after finding out it's causing her health problems.

Amalgam (silver) fillings should never be put in a child's mouth because they are 50% mercury. Composite fillings are much better, but the plastic materials should first be tested for compatibility. Every child reacts differently to plastics.

I have much confidence in both Dr. Lipelt and Dr. Senn. Both are in Sebastopol. I've known Dr. Lipelt for years through my work with Healthy Child. He doesn't do traditional dentistry - he is an excellent naturopath and acupuncturist and is wonderful with kids. He also does the bio-compatibility testing of dental materials and will send the results to your dentist.

Michael Lipelt, DDS, ND, LAc 523 S. Main Street, 829-2737

Dr. Senn is a wonderful holistic dentist and Deborah, his assistant and dental hygienist is excellent. I wouldn't have my teeth (or my daughter's teeth cleaned by anyone else)

Silvano Senn, DDS (formerley Dr. Buske's office) 823-9500

Jane Sheppard
Healthy Child
https://www.healthychild.com (https://www.healthychild.com/)


Thanks for bringing this up at this time. My daughter is scheduled to get dental sealants next Monday from my "non-toxic" dentist. Guess I wasn't thinking too straight on this one since I never asked about the materials. I never thought it would be BPA.

Here is information from Our Stolen Future about Bisphenol A (BPA):
https://www.ourstolenfuture.org/NewScience/oncompounds/bisphenola/bpauses.htm

Bisphenol A-based polycarbonate is used as a plastic coating for children's teeth to prevent cavities (dental sealants)

A quote from this report: "Unfortunately, the ester bond that links BPA monomers to one another to form a polymer is not stable and hence the polymer decays with time, releasing BPA into materials with which it comes into contact, for example food or water."

Not something I want to be in my child's mouth! I'll do some more research on dental sealants and I'll ask my dentist if there is an alternative to plastic sealants. I'll let you know what I find out.

I also know that Michael Lipelt, DDS, LAc, is very educated about toxic materials used in dentistry and I'll try to get in touch with him to ask about dental sealants.

Thanks again for posting this,

Jane Sheppard
Healthy Child
https://www.healthychild.com (https://www.healthychild.com/)