Kiss Your Dentist Goodbye

Ellie Phillips, DDS wants you to look inside your mouth and see the truth.

In her book, Kiss Your Dentist Goodbye - a January 2010 release from Greenleaf Book Group Press (www.zellies.com), Dr. Phillips reveals the secrets to keeping your teeth and gums healthy and reducing filling appoints at the dentist. Anyone who wants a healthy oral environment will find the information in this book to be invaluable.

Tooth damage comes from bacterial infections, according to Phillips. If the bacterial infection is not cured the problems will continue, and further dental work and maintenance is needed.

"Traditional care may help you live without pain, but it does not stop the contagious bacterial infection that caused the damage in the first place," Phillips said. The science isn't new.

Many dentists are now evaluating their patients' risk of dental disease and using preventative approach. Using research developed over the last 50 years Phillips has a do-it-yourself, three step system that she has proven time and time again with friends, family and patients. Her goals are to help you have healthy teeth and gums and to make your visits to the dentist a pleasure and not something to fear and avoid.

"Once you are empowered by this simple system, you will most likely find that dental visits will become more rewarding and happier experiences, something you can look forward to without fear, emotion, or worry," she said. "Imagine loving dental visits!"

Prevention is key according to Phillips, but most dentists have fallen into a brush n floss trap blaming patients for their infection chasing the effects of the oral imbalance with fillings.

"Dentists have been trained to believe that prevention is flossing, sugar control, regular dental cleanings, fluoride in the water and oral examinations," she said. "We never discussed such variables as acidic saliva or mentioned tooth damage that occurs directly from acidic foods or drinks in the mouth."

Weak, soft teeth are often an excuse for dental problems but they don't tell WHY the problems are there. Finding out WHY is the key to solving your dental issues. Dentists should be evaluators, they should explore for potential problems and suggest ways to prevent the problems, not mask them with filling after filling. They also need to be fitness trainers, teaching their patients how to keep healthy and avoid problems.

The first step is to balance the chemistry in the mouth. If there is too much acidity in the mouth, the enamel loses minerals, becomes more porous and the tooth breaks down leaving it weaker and more susceptible to cavities. Remineralization builds the enamel back up and works to rebuild the tooth. This occurs naturally, but can be sped up with the use of a natural plant based sugar, xylitol.

"Xylitol stimulates a rapid flow of mineral-rich saliva into the mouth, which quickly raises the pH and bathes teeth in healing minerals," said Phillips. "Xylitol makes the mouth instantly alkaline. The shift helps topical fluoride enter into the enamel, so it's good all around."

Neutralizing the pH in your mouth can be as simple as eating the right foods and removing the acidity left behind by certain drinks, such as citrus juices.

Phillips' system for a healthy oral environment includes:
• Cleaning prerinse
• Toothbrushing
• Rinse (twice) after brushing - once with an antiseptic rinse, then immediately after with a protective rinse

She teaches everyone to take charge of their own dental health.

"I hope that perhaps we can turn dental health into a gift enjoyed by everyone," she said.

Dr. Ellie Phillips is a dentist specializing in preventive dental care. Dr. Ellie has years of dental experience caring for geriatric patients, special needs children and adults and the developmentally disabled. Dr. Ellie was in private practice for many years, and particularly enjoyed working with the fearful and phobic.