President of the American Academy of Biological Dentistry, Edward Arana, D.D.S., states that dental infections and dental disturbances can cause pain and dysfunction throughout the body, including limited motion and loose tendons, ligaments, and muscles. Structural and physiological dysfunction can also occur, impairing organs and glands.

  Dr. Arana distinguishes main types of dental problems that can cause illness and dysfunction in the body

• Infections under and around teeth

• Problems with specific teeth related to the acupuncture meridians and the autonomic nervous system

• Root canals

• Toxicity from dental restoration materials

• Bio-incompatability to dental restoration materials

• Electrogalvanism and ion migration

• Temporomandibular joint syndrome (TMJ), a painful condition of the jaw, usually caused by stress or injury

  The most common causes of these dental problems are unerupted teeth (teeth that have not broken through the gum), wisdom teeth (both impacted and unimpacted), amalgam-filled cavities and root canals, cysts, bone cavities, and areas of bone condensation due to inflammation in the bone. These conditions can be diagnosed using testing methods such as blood tests, applied kinesiology, electroacupuncture biofeedback, and, in some cases, x-rays. Also the patient's medical and dental histories  should be complete reviewed.

Infections Under the Teeth

  Under the teeth can exist pockets of infection, which are undetectable on x-rays. This is particularly true for teeth that have had root canals, as it is very difficult to expel all the bacteria and toxins from the roots during this procedure. These infections may continue for years without the patient's knowledge.

  When infections are present, toxins can leak out and depress the function of the immune system, leading to chronic degenerative diseases throughout the body. Once the infection is cleared up, many of the symptoms of disease will disappear.

  Infections near the root of the tooth can also travel into the bone and destroy it.  Harold Ravins, D.D.S., of Los Angeles says that one way to detect this is to stick a needle into the bone. If it is too soft, there is infection. Another way is with neural therapy. Neural therapy involves the injection of anesthetic around a suspected tooth. If this relieves the problems in other parts of the body, it means there is a disturbance under the tooth.

  Some dentists use applied kinesiology testing to identify these hidden infections. Applied kinesiology uses a simple strength resistance test on a specific indicator muscle that is related to the organ or part of the body that is being tested. If the muscle tests strong, maintaining its resistance, it indicates health. If it tests weak, it can mean infection or dysfunction.

  Acupuncture points can also be used to diagnose infection. Dr. Ravins noticed that one of his patients showed sensitivity on his liver acupuncture point. This led him to an infection under the corresponding upper bicuspid.

  Electroacupuncture biofeedback is another method used to screen for hidden dental infections. Philip Jenkins, D.D.S., of Los Gatos, California, uses electroacupuncture biofeedback testing to find infections, identify them, and then determine the appropriate homeopathic remedies with which to treat them.

Electroacupuncture Biofeedback

  Electroacupuncture biofeedback was developed by Reinhold Voll, M.D., of Germany in the 1940s. This method uses the acupuncture meridian system to screen for infections and dysfunctions in the body. Today it is applied as a screening tool by alternative health practitioners worldwide, including biological dentists. In biological dentistry it involves placing an electrode on an individual tooth, then applying a small electrical current and recording the response. Any deviation from the normal reading indicates that there is an infection or disturbance in the vicinity of that particular tooth. This deviation can also indicate a similar unhealthy state in the organ that is on the same meridian as the tooth. Any determinations using electroacupuncture biofeedback should always be confirmed by a physician.

Relationship between Specific Teeth and Illness

  In the 1950s, Reinhold Voll, M.D., of Germany, discovered that each tooth in the mouth relates to a specific acupuncture meridian. Using his electroacupuncture biofeedback technique, he found that if a tooth became infected or diseased, the organ on the same meridian could also become unhealthy. He found that the opposite held true as well, that dysfunction in a specific organ could lead to a problem in the corresponding tooth.

  For example, Dr. Ravins has observed that people who hit their front teeth too hard often have kidney disturbances, as there is a specific relationship between the kidneys and the front teeth.

  Ernesto Adler, M.D., D.D.S., of Spain, reports that many diseases can also be caused by the wisdom teeth, which have a relationship to almost all organs of the body. When wisdom teeth are impacted, they press upon the nerves of the mandible (the large bone that makes up the lower jaw), which can result in disturbances in other areas of the body, including stammering, epilepsy, pain in the joints, depression, headaches, and heart problems. Dr. Adler adds that the upper wisdom teeth can cause calcium deficiency, resulting in muscle cramps.

Root Canals as a Cause of Illness

  The late Weston Price, D.D.S., M.S., F.A.C.D., former Director of Research for the American Dental Association, discovered that if teeth that have had root canals are removed from patients suffering from kidney and heart disease, these diseases will resolve in most cases. Moreover, implanting these teeth in animals results in the animals developing the same kind of disease found in the person from whom the tooth was taken. Dr. Price found that toxins seeping out of root canals can cause systemic diseases of the heart, kidney, uterus, and nervous and endocrine systems.

  Michael Ziff, D.D.S, of Orlando, Florida, reports that research has demonstrated that 100 percent of all root canals result in residual infection. This may be due to the imperfect seal that allows bacteria to penetrate. The oxygen-lacking environment of a root canal can cause the bacteria to undergo changes, producing potent toxins that can then leak out into the body. Nutrient materials are also able to seep into the root canal through the porous channels in the tooth, allowing this bacteria growth to flourish. Susceptibility to these types of reactions is usually genetic, but stresses to the system (abuse of alcohol, drugs, caffeine) can induce them in normal individuals. According to Dr. Huggins, pregnancy and influenza also increase sensitivity to leakage of toxins from root canals.

  He adds that when a tooth with a root canal is removed, the periodontal ligament that attaches the tooth to the underlying bone should also be removed, otherwise a pocket of infection can remain. Full removal of the tooth and ligament stimulates the old bone to produce new bone for curing.

  But Dr. Ziff states, there are cases where root canal teeth should not be pulled. It can be difficult to chew without certain teeth intact, and problems can arise if the teeth surrounding the extracted one become misaligned. He suggests, in such cases, a conservative approach, according to which removing the tooth is a last resort.

Toxicity from Dental Restoration Materials

  Dr. Arana says that dental amalgam fillings can release mercury, tin, copper, silver, and sometimes zinc into the body. All of these metals have various degrees of toxicity and when placed as fillings in the teeth can corrode or disassociate into metallic ions (charged atoms). These metallic ions can then migrate from the tooth into the root of the tooth, the mouth, the bone, the connective tissues of the jaw, and finally on into the nerves. They can travel into the central nervous system, where the ions will reside,  disrupting the body's normal functioning for a long time if nothing is done to remove them.

  Other types of metal-based dental restorations can similarly release toxic metals into the body. According to David E. Eggleston, D.D.S., of the Department of Restorative Dentistry at the University of Southern California in Los Angeles, a patient undergoing dental work developed kidney disease due to nickel toxicity from the dental crowns that were being placed in the patient's mouth. As each successive crown was placed, the disease intensified, verified by blood and urine tests, and physical examination. Once the nickel crowns were removed, the patient gradually became symptom free.

  Theron Randolph, M.D., of Batavia, Illinois, founded of the field of environmental medicine. He believes that both the medical and dental professions have become too lax in dealing with the scope and potential danger of toxic metals. He says that, though, it is not clear whether dental amalgams and other metals used in dental work are the primary or secondary cause of many health problems, both doctors and dentists have to be concerned with evaluating the clinical implications of using toxic metals in the human body. Dr. Randolph believes part of the problem stems from American dental schools ignoring the mounting evidence on toxicity from dental restorations, especially amalgams, despite clear documentation shown in European studies.

  In September, 1992, California governor Pete Wilson requested that the State Board of Dental Examiners develop a fact sheet on dental materials to be distributed to dentists. California is the first state to pass such legislation, notes Joyal Taylor, D.D.S., of Rancho Santa Fe, California, President of the Environmental Dental Association. He hopes this will totaly prohibit the use of mercury in dental restorations, adding that two to three thousand dentists across the country are now calling for such a ban on mercury dental amalgams.

  Mercury Dental Amalgams: While all metals used for dental restoration can be toxic, the most harmful are the mercury dental amalgams (silver/mercury) used for fillings. According to Dr. Taylor, these so-called ''silver fillings'' actually contain 50 percent mercury and only 25 percent silver.

  Mercury has been recognized as a poison since the 1500s, and yet mercury amalgams have been used in dentistry since the 1820s. They are still being used today even though, in 1988, the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) declared scrap dental amalgam a dangerous waste. Even the American Dental Association, which has so far refused to ban amalgams, now instructs dentists to "know the potential hazards and symptoms of mercury exposure such as the development of sensitivity and neuropathy," to use a no-touch technique for handling the amalgam, and to store it under liquid, preferably glycerin or radiographic fixer solution, in unbreakable, tightly sealed containers.

  Richard D. Fischer, D.D.S., dentist of Annandale, Virginia, thinks that these measures are not enough. Since becoming aware of the health risk amalgams pose, he has refused to work with them and has had his own silver fillings removed. He says, he can't throw it in the trash, bury it in the ground, or put it in a landfill, but they say it's okay to put it in people's mouths. That doesn't make sense.

  The German Ministry of Health, reports that amalgam is considered a health risk from a medical viewpoint due to the release of mercury vapor. Everyday activities such as chewing and brushing the teeth have been shown to release mercury vapors from amalgams. Amalgams can also erode and corrode with time (ideally they should be replaced after seven to ten years), adding to their toxic output.

  Studies by the World Health Organization show that a single amalgam can release three to seventeen micrograms of mercury per day, making dental amalgam a major source of mercury exposure. A Danish study of a random sample of one hundred men and one hundred women showed that increased blood mercury levels were related to the presence of more than four amalgam fillings in the teeth. American, Swedish, and German scientists examining cadavers have also found a clear relationship between the number of fillings and the mercury count in the brain and kidneys.

  In Germany the sale and manufacture of amalgams has been prohibited since March 1992, and in Sweden, after a special commission determined that amalgam was a toxic material, that country's Social Welfare and Health Administration issued an advisory against its use in the dental treatments of pregnant women. Moreover, Sweden has promised to ban amalgams entirely as soon as a suitable replacement is found. Until then the government pays 50 percent of the cost for removal of amalgams. In the United States, however, little is being done to deal with the effects of mercury amalgams because most dentists still maintain that they are safe. They continue to place mercury in their patients' mouths even though the metal is more toxic than arsenic.

  Dr. Taylor devotes his entire practice to the removal of amalgams. He states, there have been no studies in the United States on the safety of mercury in dental work, but when it leaks from the teeth it can cause both physical and mental problems. Dr. Arana adds that numbness and tingling, paralysis, tremors, and pain are just some of the symptoms of chronic metal intoxication associated with the use of mercury dental amalgams.

  Though the ideal replacement for mercury amalgams has not yet been found, biological dentists are working with some less toxic alternatives. The best one of them is the so-called "composite amalgam," which is a combination of metals that are less toxic than mercury and slower to break down.

  Dr. Huggins recommends that people who choose to have their amalgams removed ask their dentists to use a rubber dam, a thin sheet of rubber that slips over the teeth, because they prevent over 95 percent of the mixture of mercury and water produced by the drilling out of old fillings from going down your throat. They also reduce the amount of mercury that patient might absorb from his cheeks and under his tongue. Dr. Huggins also suggests that people consider early morning appointments for amalgam removal, rather than later in the day, because the mercury vapor from other patients' sessions can linger in the air for hours and be absorbed by breathing. 

  A leader in the field of environmental medicine, Charles Gableman, M.D., of Encinitas, California, always advises the removal of his patients' amalgam fillings. He states, patients with chronic fatigue syndrome, or with a lack of resistance to infections, allergies, and thyroid dysfunction, all improve after their fillings are properly removed. He believes it is possible that these patients have suffered from basic allergies their entire lives, and that the mercury toxicity from the fillings simply adds to the body's toxic load and "pushes them over the edge," resulting in chronic medical problems.

  Extensive clinical evidence based on patient case histories attests to the effects of mercury amalgam toxicity. Dr. Taylor recalls a woman who came to him suffering from rheumatoid arthritis. After having her amalgam fillings removed, she not only had relief from her arthritis, but her allergies lessened to a large extent.

  Another patient of Dr. Taylor was suffering from numerous symptoms of environmental illness. She demonstrated multiple sclerosis type symptoms, could only tolerate four or five foods, and developed sensitivities to chemicals, noise, light, and electromagnetic radiation. She also had jaundice and had been diagnosed with candida overgrowth. After having her amalgam fillings removed, she found that she was able to eat many different foods again, enabling her to put back on the sixty pounds she lost. Her sensitivities to noise, light, and electromagnetic radiation also decreased and her candida and jaundice cleared up.

  A woman in Palm Beach, Florida, for years endured fatigue, mononucleosis (for which she was hospitalized at age sixteen), bladder infections, and, eventually, Epstein-Barr virus, candida, food allergies, and muscle spasms. Finally, her own investigation led her to consider the possibility of mercury poisoning and consult with Dr. Huggins. He found a tooth with a root canal that had been filled with dental amalgam. Once the amalgam was removed, her symptoms abated.

   Mercury is a cumulative poison, building up in the body with repeated exposure, and its effects can be destructive. It can prevent nutrients from entering the cells, and wastes from leaving. Mercury can bind to the DNA (deoxyribonucleic acid) of cells, as well as to the cell membranes, distorting them and interfering with normal cell functions.When this happens, the immune system no longer recognizes the cell as part of the body and will attack it. This can cause many autoimmune diseases such as multiple sclerosis and arthritis.

  Mercury poisoning can also lead to symptoms such as anxiety, depression, confusion, irritability, insecurity, and the inability to concentrate. It can cause kidney disease and cardiac and respiratory disorders. Multiple sclerosis patients have been found to have eight times higher levels of mercury in their cerebrospinal fluid (the fluid that surrounds the brain and spinal cord) as compared to neurologically healthy patients.

  Mercury poisoning often goes undetected for years because the symptoms presented do not necessarily suggest the mercury as the initiating cause. For example, it is capable of producing symptoms indistinguishable from those of multiple sclerosis, and can mimic the symptoms of Lou Gehrig's disease (a syndrome marked by muscular weakness and atrophy due to degeneration of motor neurons of the spinal cord, medulla, and cortex).

   Mercury can also produce allergic reactions with symptoms such as urticaria (an itchy rash), eczema, headaches, asthma, and digestive problems. The Environmental Protection Agency states that women chronically exposed to mercury vapor experience increased frequencies of menstrual disturbances and spontaneous abortions. A high mortality rate has also been observed among infants born to women who displayed symptoms of mercury poisoning.

  In the same way that some people have negative reactions to prescription drugs, some people also react negatively to specific dental materials. A person can already have been sensitized to dental restoration materials through previous exposure from the environment and foods. This bio-incompatibility, or incompatibility of the body, to the dental material can lead to severe allergic reactions including food allergies, and can contribute to chronic fatigue syndrome, chronic sinusitis and headaches, and can cause intractable pain syndrome. However, dentists often don't test for sensitivity to dental restoration materials before placing them in their patients' mouths.

  The most common reactions are found to be produced by the mercury amalgams used for fillings, and by the various metal components that make them up, including mercury, copper, tin, zinc, and silver.

 Dr. Arana distinguishes some of the symptoms caused specifically by amalgam fillings: 

• Chronic fatigue syndrome and lack of energy

• Tendency to chronic inflammatory changes (including rheumatoid arthritis, phlebitis, and fibromyalgia)

• Chronic neurological illnesses, especially when numbness is one of the leading symptoms

• Lowering of the pain threshold

• Disturbances of the immune system

   

  Patients can be screened for sensitivity by a simple blood test, known as the Clifford Materials Reactivity Testing, which was developed by Walter Jess Clifford, M.S., R.M., of Colorado Springs, Colorado. In this test, the patient's serum is exposed to the various components and by-products of dental materials to see if they provoke an immune reaction (antibody production). This helps to to determine which materials the body will be sensitive to. This information is then matched through a computer database to various dental products, enabling the dentist or physician to select which products are safe for each patient. Dr. Clifford explains that this form of testing helps to check the patient for an enormous number of dental product suitabilities without having to examine the finished dental product. One only needs to know what the dental restorative material contains and what it will give off when it breaks down. Bio-incompatible and toxic materials already in the mouth can then be replaced with those materials that have proven to be nonreactive. Applied kinesiology can also be used to test all materials and anesthetics before using them on patients.

  After any dental material is removed, Dr. Huggins always recommends a thorough detoxification. According to Dr. Huggins, simply removing the fillings is not enough to rid the body of the toxic materials that may have built up over time, and may continue to cause allergic reactions. He places his patients on a detoxification regimen which can include nutritional support, acupressure, and massage treatments. Chelating agents, such as EDTA (ethylenediaminetetraacetic acid) and vitamin C, can be used intravenously or in tablet form as well. He cautions that any detoxification therapy should only be administered under the supervision of a qualified health professional.

  The following represents a summary of 1,569 patients in six different studies evaluating the health effects of replacing mercury-containing dental fillings with non-mercury fillings. The data was derived from the following sources: 762 Patient Adverse Reaction Reports submitted to the FDA by patients; and 807 patients reports from Sweden, Denmark, Canada, and the United States.

% of			Number	% of Cure
Total		Number	Improved	or
Reporting	Symptom	Reporting	or Cured	Improvement
14	Allergy	221	196	89
5	Anxiety	86	80	93
5	Bad temper	81	68	84
6	Bloating	88	70	80
6	Blood pressure problems	99	53	54
5	Chest pains	79	69	87
22	Depression	347	315	91
22	Dizziness	343	301	88
45	Fatigue	705	603	86
15	Intestinal problems	231	192	83
8	Gum problems	129	121	94
34	Headaches	531	460	87
12	Insomnia	187	146	78
10	Irregular heartbeat	159	139	87
8	Irritability	132	119	90
17	Lack of concentration	270	216	80
6	Lack of energy	91	88	97
17	Memory loss	265	193	73
17	Metallic taste	260	247	95
7	Multiple sclerosis	113	86	76
8	Muscle tremor	126	104	82

Electrogalvanism

  Due to its mineral content, the saliva in the mouth is electrically conductive. As a result, when saliva in a person's mouth interacts with a dental restoration containing metal, a battery is created, causing an effect known as electrogalvanism. Dr. Arana says,  electrogalvanism is literally the electricity generated by a person's fillings. The saliva acts as a conductant and the dissimilar metal fillings then try to neutralize each other to balance out the electrical charge. This has the effect of causing toxic material from the fillings to erode, like the terminals of a battery, and leak out into the body. Dr. Arana points out that even two similar-looking amalgam fillings, if they were not placed on the same day, are likely to be of different compositions and therefore generate an electrical current between them. Even gold fillings or crowns are usually put over old fillings of a different metal, so electrogalvanism can even occur within a single tooth.

  Since the teeth, the mouth, and the bone root all contain fluid, there are a variety of combinations that can determine where this electrical current flows. It can go from a tooth to a muscle, tooth to a joint, tooth to an organ, and even a tooth to part of the brain, to the point where it can change the permeability of the blood-brain barrier.

  Dr. Arana says that electrogalvanism is frequently the cause of lack of concentration and memory, insomnia, psychological problems, tinnitus, vertigo, epilepsy, hearing loss, and eye problems, to name but a few. Since high dental currents lead to erosion of the restoration materials, this problem rarely exists without coexisting problems of heavy metal toxicity, which can act synergistically with multiple chemical sensitivities to cause environmental illness.

  Electrogalvanism can be identified by an instrument known as an electrogalvanometer, which measures the electrical current and voltage generated by the dental amalgam in a tooth. Applied kinesiology can also be used to test for electrogalvanism between the upper and lower teeth. If the indicator muscle becomes weak when the patient gently touches the upper teeth to the lower teeth, then metal fillings from the top are forming a circuit with metal fillings on the bottom. Since high dental currents create neurological stress on the organism, the muscle becomes weak as soon as one metal touches another. Likewise, when the teeth are apart, and the circuit is broken, the indicator muscle will become strong again.

  Dr. Arana suspects that the reason why many dental splints, even bad ones, often improve a patient's TMJ dysfunction problem is that these splints are made out of plastic and work like a circuit-breaker whenever they are in place. The TMJ dysfunction problems that improve are really not TMJ dysfunction problems, but problems created by the high dental currents.

  TMJ dysfunction is caused by the malalignment of the teeth, jaws, and muscles. The symptoms of TMJ dysfunction vary, and include pain, clicking, or grating sounds when the mouth opens, and difficulty opening the mouth very wide.

 Three reasons for which TMJ dysfunction can occur: 

  First, the patient loses teeth through decay or trauma, or looses height of some teeth through bruxism (grinding) or age. 

  Second, there are iatrogenic (treatment-induced) problems such as dental restorations that make the teeth either too high or too low.

  The third cause can be developmental problems.  

  Dr. Price says,  in the last two hundred years, developmental abnormalities of the upper and/or lower jaw have become very common. This has been shown to be directly linked to the intake of processed foods, especially sugar and flour.

  Because chewing is the primary mechanism necessary for supplying nutrients to the body, if the jaws or teeth are out of alignment, the entire cranium will distort in order to chew properly. The structural compensations necessary for this readjustment can be responsible for such varied symptoms as depression, loss of concentration, insomnia, headaches, neck pain, and low back pain-all caused by TMJ dysfunction.

  TMJ dysfunction is diagnosed by observation of symmetry of facial features, midline shift of teeth, asymmetric wear of dental surfaces, asymmetry of jaw movement, tenderness over joints, and tenderness in associated muscles. It can also be diagnosed by x-rays, arthrograms (joint x-rays), MRI (magnetic resonance imaging), computerized motion studies, applied kinesiology testing, and electroacupuncture biofeedback.

  Dr. Ravins believes balancing the jaw is essential to relieving TMJ dysfunction. Using computerized technology he can measure movements of the jaw and determine where irregularities lie. By using orthopedic appliances (similar to braces) worn in the mouth at night, he can realign the jaw and relieve the symptoms. Other dentists also use craniosacral therapy or cold laser therapy to help correct TMJ syndrome.