We had a very interesting and lively gathering with Rupam Henry! About 18 people came from Marin, SF and the East Bay with a delicious array of foods ~ two chicken liver pates, green salad, zucchini saute, water kefir, acai kefir soday, egg frittata, several tasty krauts, cheese and crackers.
Rupam combines her experience as a hygienist in conventional dentistry for 20 years with her wisdom of herbs and medicine making. She is also a holistic health counselor.
Here are some of her tips, recommendations and bits of wisdom for a healthy mouth:
1. Eat a nutrient-dense diet:
- Raw dairy
- Raw, fresh vegetable juices (not overly sweet)
- Wild fish, raw or slightly cooked
- Raw, pastured egg (smoothies)
- Fermented foods (sauerkraut, for example)
- Organic organ meat of fish and land animals
- Whole fish or poultry broth
- Avoid all processed and denatured foods
- Limit fruit to 1-2 pieces/day
- Use these sugars sparingly: maple syrup, rapadura or jagari, stevia, raw honey
2. Good oral home care includes flossing, brushing, tongue scraping, oil pulling, Waterpik. She recommends the Sonicare.
Bacteria don’t cause cavities ~ it’s the acid that makes the cavities. So it’s important to focus on the environment of the mouth so the bacteria don’t like it. Focus on how to stay pH balanced.
3. Use pH strips to see if the diet you are on is working for you. First thing in the morning test your saliva and urine. Saliva should be 7 and urine should be 5.8.
If the body is too acidic, that will rob the body of minerals. These help with alkalizing:
- Nettle, spearmint, oatstraw, red clover (Daily mineral tea ~ nettle, oatstraw, spearmint, red clover, horsetail and rose petals. She likes Mountain Rose Herbs and Pacific Botanicals for herb companies. )
- Alkaline water
- Himalayan salt
- Alkalizing foods
4. Healing Cavities
- Healthy teeth = phosphorus + raw dairy + organs of land and sea animals + activator X – processed or overly sweet foods
- 1/8-1/2 teaspoon of fermented cod liver oil, 2-3 times/day or ½ to 4 tablespoons liver with
- 1/8-1/4 teaspoon of high vitamin butter oil, 2-3 times/day; or 1-2 tablespoons of yellow, high vitamin, organic butter/meal
- Acitvator X: Vitamin K1 (from rapid-growing green grasses), synthesized into Vitamin K2, found only in dairy products (milk, cheese, butter, butter oil) from grass-eating animals during the spring and summer.
- Phosphorus sources: pumpkin, sesame and sunflower seeds, fish and shellfish, roots, soaked almonds, raw dairy, hard cheese, muscle meats, grains, leafy vegetables, lentils, nuts, fish eggs, oats
- Good sources of minerals: Himalayan rock salt, seaweeds, nettles, oatstraw, red clover, spearmint, bone broth, fish broth, raw organic dairy, raw milk, leafy greens
Some conventional mis-information about cavities and gum disease: bacteria are not the cause. Acid + lack of good nutrition + use of processed foods + overly sweet foods = cavities and gum disease.
Fluoride is not recommended because it destroys 83 enzymes in the body. It destroys connective tissue. It penetrates the blood-brain barrier. It lowers IQ and depresses the nervous system and it is linked to ADD and ADHD.
5. Tidbits
- Swish mouth with water after eating to bring the pH back to alkaline. While eating, saliva becomes acidic to help break down the food.
- Wait 40 minutes after eating before brushing. While you eat, your mouth becomes more acidic to help digest the food and the teeth will be in a “soft” state.
- Activated charcoal to remove stains (open a capsule of activated charcoal, sprinkle on wet toothbrush and apply to clean teeth; wait 3-5 minutes then rinse). Or use baking soda on a wet Q-tip to gently rub away stains.
- Oil pulling ~ started in Russia. As you pull the oil through the mouth, toxins and bacteria are removed. Spit out after 15-20 minutes then rinse with water.
- With receding gums you want to harden what is exposed to take the sensitivity away.
- Brush in tiny circles.
- Herb to strengthen the immune system: Siberian ginseng, ashwaganda, reishi mushroom, holy basil, maca root, rhodiola, shisandra, astragalus, olive leaf, propolis, echinacea, rosehips
- Doesn’t recommend hydrogen peroxide ~ says it’s harsh on the cells of the gums; baking soda is too harsh on gums but she says you can use on a wet Q-tip for stains: tooth whitening in a dentists office is too harsh; toothpaste has vegetable glycerin which is sticky and tooth powders shred the gums.
- Suggests waving hand over food three times to align energy of food with your own personal energy.
- Gratitude ~ It switches us into a different state of clear guidance.
To contact Rupam Henry at Rupam’s Herbals.
By Karen Hamilton-Roth