Most people alive today would probably agree that organic, pesticide-free, whole wheat, grain-based diets, low in animal-based foods, richer in plant proteins from lentils and beans, and consisting mainly of vegetables are ideal diets. The ancient Egyptians ate this way. To repeat, it was organic, pesticide-free, and whole-grain. Ask the folks who made the food pyramid (My Plate) and the Eat Lancet Diet, and they will love it. Does it sound amazing to you? Well, not to me. My Plate has adult men eating around ten slices of bread per day, or the equivalent of 47 teaspoons of table sugar! I wrote about how the Eat Lancet Diet causes malnutrition on January 1, which is a similar diet to My Plate. If you are interested in their recommendations—the Lancet's diet causes protein deficiency, among other things. Let’s see how the ancient Egyptians who ate the same way fared.
Read MoreI talk a lot about proper facial development to ensure adequate breathing. This post covers the subject and links to most of my other posts about achieving proper craniofacial respiratory complex growth. I have mentioned things like allergies and sinus problems as factors affecting breathing but have never stressed how important it is to address them. This post will cover the main ENT-related problems associated with poor breathing, especially at night when sleeping.
Read MoreFrancis Pottinger jr. MD is one of those names we all should know. Sadly, few do. He experimented with Cats for ten years, from 1932 to 1942. His research and findings are now known as the Pottenger Cat Study. I will get into the amazing findings of his work and their dire implications for us later in this post, but his work was one of the first to look at epigenetics, although that term was unknown to him. Additionally, he paralleled the changes he saw in his malnourished cats to humans, which I will also cover today.
Read MorePeople with properly developed faces will always have straight teeth, room for wisdom teeth, and superior beauty. Sadly, most of us have some level of crowding and lack of jaw space for wisdom teeth today, meaning almost all of us to have deficient jaws. Since most of us have underdeveloped faces, this epidemic has gone primarily unnoticed by us, including most physicians and dentists. This needs to change because it is one of the major contributing factors to many, if not most, of our modern health problems; most of which originate in poor breathing from small airways.
I am writing this post as I fly back home from an amazing conference called Airway Palooza. I want to share some pearls of wisdom that can help you recognize if you have an airway problem and ways it can be addressed.
Read MoreYou may have heard of people with tongue ties before. Many of them are never diagnosed, and patients can suffer from many problems related to the tie. Short and tight frena cause tongue ties. We have several frena in the mouth that can cause other problems. This post will cover what frena are, the problems they can cause, and what to do about them.
Read MoreNo one human trait can stand alone as a benchmark of health and esthetics, but many fields of science have concluded that quickly identifying healthy perspective mates has an evolutionary basis. Indeed, most of us can assess attractiveness only after a few seconds. Age, symmetry, strength, and skin tone imply good genes and a lack of disease. Both sexes prefer physically attractive mates and have preferences for the level of attractiveness sought in a potential partner. Teeth Loom large in our sexual appraisals of each other. In a recent study by the Invisalign company, 94% of respondents noticed the other person's smile upon meeting them for the first time. In addition, 84% thought that an attractive smile is important for considering marriage. Additionally, one-third would not consider matching their friends with someone with crooked teeth. This post will discuss what constitutes a sexually attractive smile, the different preferences between males and females, how to have a naturally sexy smile, and what to do if you don’t think yours is good enough.
Read MoreThis is the presentation I am giving today at PaleoFx in Austin Texas.
Read MoreDentists have a simple tool known as the Bolton Tracings to assess facial development in children and adults. It was developed over many decades by measuring the growth of thousands of children. It is a simple tool to quickly understand whether a child is growing normally or not. Sadly, many of us don’t, as evidenced by the fact that we have no room for our wisdom teeth. This post will talk about the development of the standard and show a sample.
Read MoreI want to share a shocking brief digital simulation showing how our faces have been drastically shrinking over several hundred years. I got it from Dr. Michael Gelb DDS in NYC, who got it from best-selling author James Nestor. Please concentrate on the lower face; you will see how the jaws are shrinking and moving back toward the throat. This causes the tongue to partially or fully occlude the airway, especially when we sleep. You should also notice how the face is less attractive now. In fact, it is rare to see someone who has realized their potential for full facial development. People with properly developed faces will always have straight teeth, room for their wisdom teeth, superior beauty, and better health. Whatever they do for a living, they appear to be actors and models. Since most of us have underdeveloped faces, this epidemic has gone primarily unnoticed by us, including most physicians and dentists. This needs to change because, as you will see in this post, it is one of the major contributing factors for many, if not most, of our modern health problems.
Read MoreToday I am sharing a video about a child who was incorrectly diagnosed as having ADD/ADHD when his real problems were allergies and poor breathing that we call sleep disordered breathing. His mother describes a kind of domino effect that when recognized, is easily treatable. At my offices, we have teams of pediatric dentists, orthodontists, surgeons, orofacial myofunctional therapists, and lactation specialists to detect and treat these problems early. When needed, we refer to ENT, allergists, speech pathologists, and more. If more people were aware of the connection between childhood behavioral problems and sleep disordered breathing, millions of children would not suffer as they do. Please watch the video and share it; even if only one child is helped by your sharing, it will be worth it.
Read MoreVitamin A is critical for healthy teeth and jaws. There are a few misconceptions about it. One issue is that β-carotene is equivalent to vitamin A. This is not the case and could lead to low vitamin A status.
Read MoreIn Part two, I discuss the top ten things you should be doing to ensure your child has a perfect mouth.
Read MoreIn today's post I am going to talk about neonatal oral care, the assessment of your newborn’s mouth, tongue and face for neonatal problems, and when to take your baby to the dentist for the first time. The recommendations are not universal. I will explain why in this post.
Read MoreLip incompetence is a condition where the lips cannot form a seal when your jaw is at rest without straining. It should be diagnosed and correct as soon as possible. It is generally very easy to detect, but in some cases it can be tricky. If you suspect you may have this condition, consult with your dentist as soon as you can.
Read MoreSleep and breathing are two of the most important elements to a happy, healthy, vibrant life. They are both affected by the tongue, upper and lower jaws and oral habits that are the purvue of your dentist.
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