I avoid tooth decay by brushing twice a day: upon waking up and right before sleep. I also use a tiny brush between teeth everytime I brush my teeth. I use an electric toothbrush, the cheapest OralB and generic brushhead replacements every few months.
Unfortunately, I had bad gums years ago. They’re much better now, but the improvement happened already before keto. I think keto definitely helps, because I suspect the gum bacteria love sugar. Die, bitches, die, starve! Lol
@Corals , you mention interdental brushes. I started using these recently, and they make such a difference. I had so much junk between my teeth, and more food particles are deposited daily.
I don’t like the more expensive interdental brushes (the ones that resemble a tiny bottle brush, with plastic bristles sticking out of a wire core). They bend and become useless in no time.
I prefer the cheaper, disposable ones.
I have these, too, but I like the thicker ones for two places where my teeth are apart. But I get them super cheap. It costs me about 1 euro per month.
Reducing sugar and refined carbs absolutely changes the oral environment. Less frequent acid attacks from plaque bacteria can allow early enamel demineralisation to stabilise. In very early cases, where there’s no actual hole and the surface is intact, a lesion can arrest and become harder over time. That’s different from a true cavity rebuilding itself. Once decay has progressed into dentine and there’s structural breakdown, it won’t regenerate naturally.
A dark groove on a molar that hasn’t changed in six months and isn’t painful can sometimes just be staining in a deep fissure. A “sticky” area when probed is what dentists monitor more carefully, because that can indicate early active decay but stability over time is a positive sign.
Clinicians at Indental Castle Hill, NSW often explain that diet improvement can reduce caries risk and help arrest early lesions, especially when combined with fluoride exposure and good oral hygiene. That doesn’t guarantee reversal, but it may mean monitoring is reasonable.
Asking whether the spot is “active” or “arrested,” and comparing photos or bitewing X-rays over time, can provide reassurance. Keto may be helping but ongoing review is still important to avoid a small issue becoming larger.
I do think keto has improved my dental health. Not in a magical way but over all. Gums especially seem better.
I have not had a cavity since I went keto over 8 years ago and no other issues. I am 67 years old.
I didnt have any new decay for about my first year of keto but after that I have. Been keto since feb 2020. It does seem that my gum health is better though.
Jack, my cleanings definitely seem to go more quickly since going keto (sample number of two).
I suspect fluoride is another boondoggle, and that it doesn’t really help us (this will be controversial, as is Electicenigma’s observation about the potential for teeth to -at least somewhat- repair themselves). “Do Your Own Research”, as they say!
What I do feel also contributed to less plaque buildup for me was taking a special lactobacillus capsule every so often: Lactobacillus Salivarius. I’ve gone through maybe 40 capsules over the course of the past year (60 capsules per bottle, Vitamatic “2 billion CFU”). Sometimes I would bite the capsule and chew it up, since I wanted the bugs (if survivable bugs there were indeed) to inhabit my mouth primarily.