permaculture

[venaurafarm <venaurafarm@bellsouth.net>]

On 8/16/2012 9:48 PM, Alia Tsang wrote:

> Keeping your mouth alkaline (like by brushing/rinsing with baking soda) is
> supposed to help your teeth remineralize. Also, you have natural tooth
> decay fighting and remineralizing stuff in your saliva so avoid letting
> your mouth dry out.
>
> Anyone here use home made tooth powders?

I'll bet there are a lot of great homebrew formulas for that.
Here's one I just found:
Ingredients:
1/2 c. bentonite clay
1/8 c. aluminum-free baking soda
6-10 drops peppermint essential oil
glass jar
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I would substitute fennel or anise flavoring for peppermint as it can 
affect digestion. I use Trader Joes's clone toothpaste of the various 
Tom's varieties, the fennell flavored being my favorite. Propolis is 
also good to add.

I chew a lot of sugarless gum and only one brand: Trident which has
xylitol in it which is said to conteract dangerous stomach bacteria,
specifically, from Wikipedia:
Helicobacter pylori (/ˌhɛlɪkɵˈbæktər paɪˈlɔraɪ/; H. pylori), previously 
named Campylobacter pyloridis, is a Gram-negative, microaerophilic 
bacterium found in the stomach. It was identified in 1982 by Barry 
Marshall and Robin Warren, who found that it was present in patients 
with chronic gastritis and gastric ulcers, conditions that were not 
previously believed to have a microbial cause. It is also linked to the 
development of duodenal ulcers and stomach cancer. However, over 80 
percent of individuals infected with the bacterium are asymptomatic and 
it has been postulated that it may play an important role in the natural 
stomach ecology.[1]

More than 50% of the world's population harbor H. pylori in their upper 
gastrointestinal tract. Infection is more prevalent in developing 
countries, and incidence is decreasing in Western countries. H. pylori's 
helix shape (from which the generic name is derived) is thought to have 
evolved to penetrate the mucoid lining of the stomach.[2][3]

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So, HP may play an important role in stomach ecology so getting rid of 
it may not be wise. Still Trident seems to clean my teeth and I do not 
chew it all the time. I expect that the dangerous role HP may play is 
related to poor diet and lack of effective probiotics. Miso, kim chee, 
kraut, kombucha, kefir, yoghurt, Bragg natural, unpasteurized vinegar 
and other products will help sustain colonies of beneficial 
microorganisms in the digestive tract.

LL