Natural Dental Remedies


Alternative medicine or “natural remedies” for dental care have been around for centuries only now there is research to prove if they are effective or just hogwash.

Important: Always tell your dentist about all medications and supplements you are taking and how much you take.

We do caution people when using any alternative “natural” treatments including herbal supplements. Remember that even the most common herbs such as St. John’s Wort and Ginko Biloba can cause serious health problems if taken in combination with other drugs or in extreme doses.

Natural Medications are capable of dangerous drug interactions that can put a person at an increased risk for a complication during and after dental treatment.

Cautions:

Blood thinners, such as ginko biloba and even vitamin E can be dangerous when taken with aspirin, which also acts as a blood thinner.
Ginko may also increase gum disease. This product may also cause uncontrollable bleeding or speed up existing gum disease.
If you take aspirin regularly, talk to your doctor before starting any other “natural” supplements.
Vitamin C, when taken excessively can cause problems and weaken the effects of anesthesia.
Calming supplements, such as Kava Kava or St. John’s Wort can enhance the effects of the anesthesia to cause problems.
Garlic can cause bleeding through platelet aggregation and can increase the action of coumadin in anticoagulant therapy.
Ephedrine, which is illegal, can cause:
Cardiovascular instability through increased heart rate
Risk of heart attacks
Seizures
Blood pressure
Risk of heart ischemia, stroke, and even death.
Avoid mixing ephedra with:
Caffeine
Decongestants
Stimulants
Heart drugs
Antidepressants
Combined with these drugs, ephedra becomes even more risky.
Echinacea, is a possible immune depressant with long term use, therefore decreasing the effectiveness of your immune system.
This herb can be toxic to the liver and shouldn’t be combined with other drugs.
Feverfew can increase bleeding and can increase the action of coumadin.
Ginseng can cause bleeding and hypoglycemia by lowering blood sugar. Avoid mixing with :
Warfarin (coumadin)
Nardil
Digoxin (lanoxin)
Sanguinarine is not recommended due to its links to predisposing gum tissue to oral cancer.
Garlic, ginko and feverfew can increase the effectiveness of aspirin and can greatly increase bleeding.
St John’s Wort can cause drowsiness and sensitivity to light. It also interferes with the effectiveness of other drugs, including coumadin and Tylenol.
Avoid mixing St John’s Wort with any prescription medications. Such as:
Antidepressants
Digoxin (lanoxin)
Theophylline
Versed
Valium
Halcion
Coumadin
Tylenol
Cyclosporin
Chemotherapy
St. John’s Wort has been shown to affect your body’s metabolism of all these drugs, and many others. Until more is known about the ability to alter the metabolism of these drugs, it is best not to combine such medications with St. John’s Wort.
Kava alert: Avoid mixing with:
Sedatives
Sleeping pills
Antipsychotics
Alcohol
Drugs treating anxiety or Parkinson’s disease.
Herbal tea may be harmful to your teeth. It can erode the protective layers of enamel that surround every tooth. Many of the herbal teas that have been tested were acidic enough to erode tooth enamel. Some herbal teas were up to 3 times more acidic that fruit juice. Therefore try to avoid herbal and fruit teas.

Recommendations Before Having Dental Surgery: Stop taking any of these herbal medications prior to surgery:
Ephedra at least 24 hours before surgery
Garlic- 7 days before surgery
Ginkgo- 36 hours before surgery
Ginseng- 7 days before surgery
Kava- 24 hours before surgery
St. John’s Wort- 5 days before surgery

Remedies:
Fluoride- naturally occurring mineral has been proven to protect teeth from decay.
Green tea- halts the growth of oral cancer cells and breaks down and kills existing oral cancer. Green tea can also inhibit the growth and spread of cancerous cells. The lining in the mouth must be exposed to 4-6 cups of green tea a day, to benefit at all.
Black tea- can help prevent gum disease and fight cavities by rinsing your mouth with the tea. Rinsing for 1 minutes 10 times a day resulted in a decrease of plaque buildup. The chemicals in black tea, suppress the growth of cavity-causing bacteria in plaque and reduce acid production levels.

Always tell your dentist about all medications and supplements you are taking and how much you take. Everything that you put in your body causes a certain reaction, some good and some bad.

If your dentist doesn’t know what drugs or supplements you have taken, he or she will not know how to protect you from possible substance interactions.