Oral Health and Overall Well-being Published in Forever Wellness: September/October 2007 It's a good guess that the readers of Forever Wellness are motivated to be healthier and want to make informed decisions that will benefit themselves and the health of those around them. In this short article, my goal as a practicing dentist is to help you understand the strong link between you oral health and your overall physical health. For you to be a better informed consumer of dental care and choices of treatment that not only affect your oral health but your overall well-being. There are five main areas that link oral health to today an emotional health. Comfort - Whether it be a toothache, sensitive teeth, jaw joint pain or some other malady. Discomfort will place increasing stress on any individual. Stress in any form is like trying to hold a beach ball underwater, it takes a lot of effort to manage and then often can "resurface off center". That means symptoms can show up elsewhere. Esthetics - This may sound somewhat less important but it is crucial to our health. It is vitally important that we like ourselves and our smiles; it naturally improves our motivation priority ability to take batter long-lasting care of our teeth and gums. If we are not proud of our smile, we ar much more prone to neglect our mouth. Infections - Sometimes painful, but often chronic and unnoticed, gum disease and other oral infections, if left untreated, will often put us at much higher long-term risk of stroke, diabetes, heart disease and osteoporosis, to name a few. Bite, Jaw or Joint Unbalances - These alignments are critical to neck and spinal health as well as premature wear, arthritis and tooth loss. Toxicology - This has been a controversial issue in dentistry for over 175 years. Dentists and physicians are still highly polarized on this issue. It is interesting to not that the term "quack" comes form mercury fillings. Another name for mercury is quick silver. In German the translation is quack silver and a dentist who placed mercury fillings in the early 1800's was called a "quack". Clearly not a good endorsement. despite a downward trend, over 80% of dentists today place mercury fillings in the United States. Dental offices are now the major polluter of mercury into our country's environment. So how do you make good choices in selecting dental care? The best way is for you to examine your dentist before they examine you. Ask for a comprehensive exam, ask how long and how expensive it will be. A good answer would be over 30 minutes and at least $75.00. Ask for their opinion on mercury. Do not be surprised that many dentists scoff at the concept that mercury fillings may present health risks, it's the way we all are trained and educated. It may take some effort to find a dentist that can partner with you on this issue, but it is well worth it. Good web sites to find a dentist include www.AACD.com, www.IAOMT.org, or www.OBI.com. Dr. John Merrill is one of just 212 dentists worldwide accredited by the American Academy of Cosmetic Dentistry. His 25 years of experience, combined with state-of-the-art technology and training, bring a world class level of expertise to Northern Michigan.