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Does anyone use only a xylitol and water solution as their mouthwash? Has it worked to keep cavities at bay?
I want to get away from the mouthwashes that contain harsh and unnecessary ingredients and it's hard for me to stomach the taste of the more natural mouthwashes in the store. In an effort to reduce my never-ending tooth decay, I've started eating half a spoonful of the xylitol granules after lunch and snacks. Now I'm wondering if also using it in place of my mouthwash would be a good idea.
My dentist told me to buy a mouthwash with fluoride in it, so that's what I've been using, but then I thought about how before I got a fluoride treatment done and still ended up with cavities at the next dental cleaning appt. So maybe fluoride isn't a cure-all for dental decay? Besides, I thought we got enough fluoride in our food and water.
Does anyone use only a xylitol and water solution as their mouthwash? Has it worked to keep cavities at bay?
I want to get away from the mouthwashes that contain harsh and unnecessary ingredients and it's hard for me to stomach the taste of the more natural mouthwashes in the store. In an effort to reduce my never-ending tooth decay, I've started eating half a spoonful of the xylitol granules after lunch and snacks. Now I'm wondering if also using it in place of my mouthwash would be a good idea.
My dentist told me to buy a mouthwash with fluoride in it, so that's what I've been using, but then I thought about how before I got a fluoride treatment done and still ended up with cavities at the next dental cleaning appt. So maybe fluoride isn't a cure-all for dental decay? Besides, I thought we got enough fluoride in our food and water.
No, you don't get "enough" fluoride in your food and water. Some cities don't even add fluoride to their drinking water supplies. Fluoride is something that's *added* to public drinking water supplies.
Xylitol is a sugar substitute, that's designated a food additive, but that has limited use in the prevention of cavities. There's no evidence that it's any better than a few other sugar substitutes (such as sorbitol), and there's no evidence that it's as good at fluoride.
If you are prone to cavities, then whatever you're doing presently, isn't enough. Are you flossing at least once before bedtime, every night? Do you drink a lot of carbonated beverages, especially colas? Then you need to -drastically- cut down on them. Or stop drinking them entirely. Do you eat a lot of foods with sugar and carbs in them? Then you need to reduce however much of foods with sugar and carbs you're consuming on a daily basis. Do you brush your teeth once or twice a day? If once, then make it twice.
If you want a nice natural mouthwash, try this:
2 tablespoons grain alcohol or unflavored vodka
1 cup distilled water
4 drops thyme essential oil
6 drops peppermint essential oil
In an air-tight container. Shake well.
From that mixture, sluice 3 tablespoons of liquid between your teeth for 60 seconds, after each meal. Spit it out, then brush your teeth.
Fluoride isn't a cure-all for decay, it was never advertised as such so I'm not sure where you got that impression. It is a preventative treatment, in conjunction with proper brushing, flossing, healthy eating, and regular dental checkups.
It's rare that I go to my 6 month cleaning without the dentist finding decay. I just grinned and beared it for all these years, but now that I'm getting root canals and crowns I'm on the hunt for something to stop the decay (or at least slow it down). I brush 2-3 times a day, floss nightly, use mouthwash 2 times a day, and get fluoride treatments from the dentist.
I stopped drinking diet soda years ago in an effort to stop the decay. A typical day of food is yogurt, pretzels, fruit, vegetables, pizza, and a few pieces of chocolate. I could try trading some higher carb foods for lower ones. Not going to like it, but if that's what it takes, oh well. I'd much rather miss out on eating some carbs than keep spending a small fortune at the dentist and dreading each 6 month check up. I had thought about switching to a lower carb diet before, but my dentist said carbs don't matter. She told me just to avoid sticky foods.
Almost every dentist I've been to pushes fluoride treatments and fluoride mouthwashes and fluoridated water. I think they just don't know what else to suggest to me. My kids are going down the same path as me (even worse!) and I take a LOT better care of their teeth than my mom did when I was their ages. I hate feeling helpless, especially when it comes to the health of my kids. After reading an article about xylitol, I was beginning to feel hopeful again. One thing I will say that is after a week of using xylitol and water for mouthwash, my teeth have such a smooth feel to them.
Thanks for the mouthwash recipe and the suggestions.
It's rare that I go to my 6 month cleaning without the dentist finding decay. I just grinned and beared it for all these years, but now that I'm getting root canals and crowns I'm on the hunt for something to stop the decay (or at least slow it down). I brush 2-3 times a day, floss nightly, use mouthwash 2 times a day, and get fluoride treatments from the dentist.
I stopped drinking diet soda years ago in an effort to stop the decay. A typical day of food is yogurt, pretzels, fruit, vegetables, pizza, and a few pieces of chocolate. I could try trading some higher carb foods for lower ones. Not going to like it, but if that's what it takes, oh well. I'd much rather miss out on eating some carbs than keep spending a small fortune at the dentist and dreading each 6 month check up. I had thought about switching to a lower carb diet before, but my dentist said carbs don't matter. She told me just to avoid sticky foods.
Almost every dentist I've been to pushes fluoride treatments and fluoride mouthwashes and fluoridated water. I think they just don't know what else to suggest to me. My kids are going down the same path as me (even worse!) and I take a LOT better care of their teeth than my mom did when I was their ages. I hate feeling helpless, especially when it comes to the health of my kids. After reading an article about xylitol, I was beginning to feel hopeful again. One thing I will say that is after a week of using xylitol and water for mouthwash, my teeth have such a smooth feel to them.
Thanks for the mouthwash recipe and the suggestions.
A typical day of food is yogurt, pretzels, fruit, vegetables, pizza, and a few pieces of chocolate.
Translation:
Probiotic yeast and sugar, starch, sugar and fiber, fiber, starch with carb topping, and sugar.
You're getting almost no protein at all, and you're carb-and-sugar loading.
Ditch the pretzels. Ditch the pizza. Eat beans and nuts, legumes - or chicken if you eat an omnivorous diet.
You're eating a tooth-decay-diet. You might also have dental problems running in your family (which can happen).
Xylitol won't restore your teeth. It can reduce the formation of decay but once the decay is there, it will stay there. Think of it as rust. I've used this analogy in another thread.
Your teeth are the steel outer parts of a car. Carbs and regular sugar are the salt being laid down on the pavement in the wintertime, burning their way through the enamel coating of the steel. Decay is rust. Xylitol is a rust-resistant enamel coating. Do body shops paint over rust, or do they cut the rusted areas out, get some mesh and bondo or whatever they're doing with cars these days, sand it all smooth, and THEN cover it with paint?
And what happens if they just paint over it? I'll tell you what happens. The paint bubbles, and when the bubbles pop a year down the line, you discover that the rust is so bad, you have to replace the entire quarter-panel because it just flat out can't be patched up anymore.
That's what is happening to your teeth. The carbs and sugar are sticking to your teeth and getting way up into the gumline, and unless you carry around a waterpick, sonic toothbrush, and brush within a few minutes after EVERY meal - including each snack - you're going to just have to live with bad (or no) teeth.
Some people are prone to dental problems. It sounds like you're one of them. Accept it, learn how to handle it, or choose not to handle it and go for the dentures.
A typical day of food is yogurt, pretzels, fruit, vegetables, pizza, and a few pieces of chocolate.
Translation:
Probiotic yeast and sugar, starch, sugar and fiber, fiber, starch with carb topping, and sugar.
The way you paint it, my diet royally sucks. Harsh, but thanks for the wake up call. (And that comparison of teeth to a car is a pretty sweet analogy.)
I would like to update this thread as there are numerous studies now that have proven the effectiveness of Xylitol on reducing the levels of bacterial plaque. The Streptococcus Mutans bacteria thrives on sugar (and loves your gum pockets as they are a perfect environment for them) and in the process excretes plaque and acid. The acid is what causes the tooth and bone decay.
The one thing that this bacteria loves more than sugar is Xylitol. It is actually more attracted to Xylitol than sugar and will gorge on it until it is full. The wonderful part of this is this bad bacteria can't digest Xylitol and ultimately dies.
Recently the federal government ordered public water supplies to cut the amount of fluoride by 50% due to the disturbing side effects that have resulted in our over consumption of fluoride.
Xylitol is a natural substance that comes from birch trees and has been used for decades in other countries (which studies have shown they have lower incidence of dental decay also). There are numerous Xylitol toothpastes, mints, gums and mouthwashes on the market now. If you use a water flosser there is now a toothpaste delivery system that delivers Xylitol toothpaste to your gums pockets.
After you use Xylitol dental products for a few days you will notice the lack of plaque build up.
I would like to update this thread as there are numerous studies now that have proven the effectiveness of Xylitol on reducing the levels of bacterial plaque. The Streptococcus Mutans bacteria thrives on sugar (and loves your gum pockets as they are a perfect environment for them) and in the process excretes plaque and acid. The acid is what causes the tooth and bone decay.
The one thing that this bacteria loves more than sugar is Xylitol. It is actually more attracted to Xylitol than sugar and will gorge on it until it is full. The wonderful part of this is this bad bacteria can't digest Xylitol and ultimately dies.
Recently the federal government ordered public water supplies to cut the amount of fluoride by 50% due to the disturbing side effects that have resulted in our over consumption of fluoride.
Xylitol is a natural substance that comes from birch trees and has been used for decades in other countries (which studies have shown they have lower incidence of dental decay also). There are numerous Xylitol toothpastes, mints, gums and mouthwashes on the market now. If you use a water flosser there is now a toothpaste delivery system that delivers Xylitol toothpaste to your gums pockets.
After you use Xylitol dental products for a few days you will notice the lack of plaque build up.
Your italicized statement about the government's decision is incorrect and (possibly intentionally) misleading.
Communities that add fluoride to their water supplies (not all do) have added the recommended .7-1.2mg/L since 1945. That was considered the acceptable range, in 1945.
Ten years later, fluoridated toothpaste became available for mass marketing, but the CDC didn't drop the level recommendation for the water - because it was as of yet undetermined if people would benefit from the availability of the toothpaste. After a few dozen years it's become clear that fluoridated toothpaste is being used by the majority of adults and children in the USA. The public health report also went on about outdoor temperature vs. indoor temperature, and that this was part of the factoring-in process, and they have since changed the criteria of that as well. You can read the entire report here:
Severe fluoridosis is *rare* in the USA - it's not something people get just by drinking public water and using fluoridated toothpaste.
Regardless, the CDC determined that the previously-recommended minimum of .7mg/L would be the appropriate amount to add to the water. Hardly any communities added only .7, the lowest was typically .8, and most were at 1.0 or less.
Now, any communities that have it, will need to keep it at .7. Communities that don't have it, are still urged to add it, but only at .7. Again, not all communities fluoridate their public water supply. It's not a law that they have to. The CDC - Center for Disease Control - has set these guidelines to urge communities to add fluoride to the water, but they are not required to do this.
The end result of this change will not amount to a 50% reduction in fluoride. It will result in anywhere between 12% and 47% max, with 14-18% being a typical reduction rate. It depends on the community. Some went heavy, most did not.
Generally it isn't a good idea to speculate on a person's motive. There was zero intention on my part to be misleading and I do appreciate your detailed analysis.
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Harsh, but thanks for the wake up call. (And that comparison of teeth to a car is a pretty sweet analogy.)
