An important insight from dentist Melvin Page explains how blood sugar fluctua- tions can influence tooth decay. In blood chemistry tests, Dr. Page determined that different types of sugar consumption cause different fluctuations in blood sugar levels. When blood sugar fluctuates, the calcium and phosphorus ratios in the blood fluctuate along with it. White sugar produces the most significant blood sugar fluctuations, which last five hours. Fruit sugar produces fewer fluctuations but the blood sugar still remains out of balance for five hours. Honey causes even fewer fluctuations and blood sugar stabilizes after three hours.1 1 6 Blood
sugar fluctuations can increase blood calcium. This is because calcium is being pulled from your teeth or your bones depending upon which glands are strong and which glands are weak in your body. The calcium and phosphorous ratios in your blood are negatively affected over time by blood sugar fluctuations. Dr. Page found that the combination of stable blood sugar levels with the correct ratio of calcium and phosphorous in the blood results in immunity to tooth decay.117
The longer your blood sugar is out of control, the longer and more signifi- cantly the calcium and phosphorus ratios are altered, the higher the likelihood of tooth decay. Regardless of whether the sugar is white sugar or sugar f r o m fruit consumption, it still affects your blood sugar level. If sweet foods, natural or processed, are consumed several times per day, then the alteration in blood sugar will be prolonged and consistent. Over time, this will lead to a consistent
alteration of blood calcium and phosphorous levels and likely cause cavities. All sweet foods, no matter how natural, cause blood sugar fluctuations. How much blood sugar fluctuates is related to the intensity of the sweetness. Therefore dates, or dried fruit, may cause significantly more blood sugar fluctuations than a fresh green apple. If sugar is a part of your regular diet, particularly in large amounts, then your blood sugar level never has much time to recover to normal.
While conventional dentistry believes that it is the carbohydrate factor of the food sticking to teeth that causes cavities, in reality it is the changes of the blood chemistry that cause tooth decay from sugar. Conventional dentistry advises patients against frequent snacking. Here the ADA writes, "Frequent snacking on carbohydrate-containing foods can be an invitation to tooth decay."1 1 8 Frequent
snacking typically is an invitation for tooth decay, not because snacking itself is bad or wrong, but because of the types of foods most people choose for snacks. Typical snacks could be: fast foods, potato chips, candy bars, "health food" bars, breakfast cereals and flour products of every type. Thus conventional dentistry is partially correct: frequent snacking from sugar-laden convenience foods of commerce produces tooth decay. Dr. Page found that frequent meals contain- ing vegetables, protein and fat are beneficial in controlling blood sugar fluctua- tions. Conventional dentistry is also incorrect about snacking, because frequent snacking of balancing foods like vegetables, proteins and fats will not cause tooth decay. Tooth decay has more of a connection to the type of food eaten than to the frequency of snacking. Wise food choices containing some protein allow you to snack all day long while inhibiting tooth decay.
Fruit
Fruit, particularly berries, can add to your health. But too much fruit means too much sugar and that can cause tooth cavities by causing blood sugar fluctuations. Most of the fruit on the store shelves today is hybridized. For example, an ancient ipple was a small sour fruit, which probably needed to be cooked to be edible. But hundreds and even thousands of years of cultivation, selection, and hybridization lave created apples with high sugar content. While fruit is natural, the high sugar :ontent of most fruits means that many people cannot eat as much fruit as they .vant and remain healthy. Fruit is not a bad food choice, but many people eat too nuch. Many people have mistakenly made fruit a staple item of their diets, rather :han seeing it as a snack, side dish, or occasional treat.
Fruit is best eaten with fat. Fruit and cream go well together, such as peaches )r strawberries and cream. Some fruit goes well with cheese, such as apples or jears. Some people consume excess a m o u n t s of very sweet fruits. The sugar in hese fruits helps calm hunger by providing rapid energy. But fruit does not give he body sufficient nutrient building blocks like protein. Sweet fruits include )ranges, peaches, grapes and bananas. I highly recommend limiting these very
sweet fruits when you are trying to keep tooth decay at a m i n i m u m . Having cavities is a sign that your blood sugar mechanism is not working optimally, and eating excessive natural sweets will not allow your system to correct itself. Once your cavities are a distant memory, you could safely eat more sweet fruits. For some people, cooking all of their fruit before eating is helpful as it transforms the sugars and can increase digestibility.
Basic fruit recommendations: Avoid or greatly limit highly sweet fruits like
dates, peaches, pineapples, dried fruit, blueberries and bananas until you do not have tooth decay anymore.
Intermediate fruit recommendations: Only have fruit once a r o u n d the
middle of the day such as after lunch. The fruit you do eat should not be too sweet. Examples of less sweet fruits are: sour berries such as raspberries, as well as kiwi, and green apples.
Advanced fruit recommendations: If you have bad cavities or want to
immediately stop the rapid process of tooth decay, avoid all sweets and fruits completely.
Sweeteners
The work of dentist Melvin Page and the telling photographs of Weston Price show us the disastrous effects of too much sugar in our diet. The m o r e refined the sugar is, the more it is going to cause your blood sugar to fluctuate. The more extreme the fluctuation, the more disturbed your calcium and phosphorous metabolism will be. Fructose-containing sweeteners or sweeteners labeled as low glycemic may not raise your blood glucose level, but they do raise your blood fructose levels. The end result is an even deeper disturbance in your calcium and phosphorous balance than that caused by white sugar. We already have the chal- lenge of obtaining enough minerals in our diet. The more sweet foods that you eat the less room you will have for mineral- dense foods like vegetables and nuts.