Summary
In this podcast, Dr. Nammy Patel talks about gingivitis and how to prevent it. Then, she explains how her green dentistry office treats gingivitis in a holistic way.
John Maher: Hi, I am John Maher. I’m here today with Dr. Nammy Patel, founder of Green Dentistry in San Francisco, California, helping patients recognize the vital connection between dental health and whole body health, and author of the bestselling books, Age with Style: Guide to a Youthful Smile & Healthy Living, and Total Wellness: Understanding the Link Between Your Teeth and Your Health.
Today our topic is treatments for gingivitis. Welcome, Dr. Nammy.
Dr. Nammy Patel: Thank you for having me, John.
What Is Gingivitis?
John: Sure. Dr. Nammy, what is gingivitis?
Dr. Nammy: Gingivitis means that there is bacteria into the gums. So -itis means inflammation, and gingiva is the gums, so inflammation of the gums. When there is bacteria that is built up and it causes bleeding gums. That is what we call gingivitis.
Do You Need to See a Dentist About Gingivitis?
John: Is that something that’s curable at home, or do I need a dentist to cure that?
Dr. Nammy: The majority of the time you need to come see a dentist. If you have bleeding gums, that means you’ve got some bacteria in there that you’re not being able to get to yourself, so you’re not able to remove it yourself from brushing and flossing. A thorough dental cleaning is going to get rid of those, so we highly recommend that you see a dentist.
Home Treatments for Gingivitis
John: You need to have a dentist do a thorough cleaning of your mouth, but then are there things that I can do at home to increase my chances of recovering from gingivitis or making sure that it doesn’t come back?
Dr. Nammy: Oh gosh, that just makes me so excited. I am sorry to interrupt you, but yeah, absolutely, absolutely, absolutely. I’m so excited to say this.
Honestly, the best things to do is floss your teeth, use an electric toothbrush, and the other thing that really makes a difference is mouth taping at night, making sure that you’re not snoring or mouth breathing, creating a dry environment for bacteria to grow up. That is really key. Also, scraping your tongue is really important.
Four things, I said three, but I really mean four. Flossing first, using an electric toothbrush to brush your teeth, scraping your tongue, and then mouth tape while you’re sleeping at night. Those things really make a big difference.
What Is Mouth Tape?
John: Can you explain mouth tape and what that is and how it works?
Dr. Nammy: Mouth taping is a tape, you can purchase it on Amazon or online, and it’s a tape that goes on your lips. The purpose of mouth taping is to keep you breathing from your nose. When you’re breathing from your nose, you’re activating nitric oxide that helps your body function better, it also fights bacteria, cancer, heart attack, anything that you’ve got, it really helps your body rest and rejuvenate.
Now, sometimes patients end up breathing through the mouth, and that’s not really good because it creates a dry environment, messes up the microbiome, makes the bacteria that cause bleeding gums overgrow, and it causes a havoc into the system, so we prefer that you mouth tape and breathe through your nose.
Holistic Treatments for Gingivitis
John: How does a holistic dentist like yourself treat gingivitis and is that different from the way that a standard dentist might treat it?
Dr. Nammy: Absolutely. It is so different. Most dentists will have you come in and just say, “Okay, you just need to floss more.” That really isn’t really the answer to gingivitis.
What we do in our practice is when you come in for a cleaning, we actually stain your teeth, so we give your oral hygiene instructions on what you need to do better and where you need to focus. Is it the front of the teeth? Is it the back of the teeth? Is it the sides of the teeth? Where is it that needs your attention? Where are you missing on your own so that we can give you a more guided, more directive focus on how to keep this bacteria out. That’s the first step.
Education is really important when it comes to maintaining gingivitis because you’ve got to know how to keep these bugs out of your mouth every single day, and you’ve got to know how to clean your mouth every single day. That’s number one.
Number two, we actually use different products. When we do the cleanings, we use different types of… Our water actually has oxygen in it, which kills a snake-like bacteria that causes disease and that causes bleeding gums. They’re the ones that actually like to live in deeper pockets or bleeding gum areas where there’s no oxygen. When we infuse oxygen into the gums, it starts killing these bugs off. It’s a very deep, thorough cleaning, which is really wonderful for our patients.
Contact Green Dentistry for Holistic Dental Treatments
John: All right, well that’s great information, Dr. Nammy. Thanks again for speaking with me today.
Dr. Nammy: My pleasure.
John: For more information about Green Dentistry, visit the website at sfgreendentist.com or call (415) 433-0119.
