Enamel

[Tooth]

Our child is three years old, he didn't like to clean teeth and his enamel had been destructed and caries of quite all has begun. Though we live in Moscow all dentists say that this happens because of veganizm, we don't have any person to ask a question. We would like to hear from you any ideas about the diet and lifestyle, we want to speak to dentist-vegan. If you can help, please write us to e-mail creperum_noctis@yahoo.com or to ICQ 263-263-6. Thanks.

[Korn]

Hi,
Even vegan kids need to clean/brush their teeth. :)

Many of the members here have vegan kids.... I'm one of them, and my 7 year old don't have any signs of caries; his dentist actually said that he could see (by looking at his teeth) that he was eating healthily.

I wouldn't expect dentists in Moscow to know much about vegan nutrition, because veganism don't seem to be common there yet.

Good luck with with your dentist - maybe you could remind him that even non-vegans normally get their nutrients from animals who have gotten their nutrients from plants!

[Tooth]

Could you say what food your child had eaten since 3 years? The main food of our child consists of various spaghetti, potatoes, broccoli, tomatoes, cucumbers, peas, haricot, soy, many fresh fruit: bananas, pineapples, pears, laminaria, almond, nuts. Also he eats some other products. Could you advice us to take vitamins or medicine? Teeth we clean with force. THANKS.

[cvC]

I did a search on whether the tap water in Moscow is fluoridated and, while I didn't find a definitive answer, it looks as if it may be. If so, then he may have dental fluorosis and the following quote is from the page about that at the link below:


Excessive ingestion of fluoride during the early childhood years may damage the tooth-forming cells, leading to a defect in the enamel known as dental fluorosis.

Teeth impacted by fluorosis have visible discoloration, ranging from white spots to brown and black stains.

http://www.fluoridealert.org/health/teeth/fluorosis/index.html

There are more pictures of dental fluorosis at the following link and below that is one to a thread on the subject of fluoride:

http://www.fluoridealert.org/health/teeth/fluorosis/biology.html
http://veganforum.com/forums/showthread.php?t=10789&highlight=fluoride

[Korn]

Hi, here's some of the stuff he has been eating regularly:

Brown, unpolished rice (almost daily)
Hummus - contains both chick peas and tahini (sesame seeds)
Tahini sauce
Broccoli
Various beans/lentils
Wholemeal bread
Rice milk (normally the calcium fortified version)
Sunflower spread
Something green, uncooked almost every day (he prefers salad with fresh lemon juice squeezed on top of it, and prefers the really crispy lettuce leaves)
Tofu (in periods)
Organic, raw carrots (almost daily)
Hazelnut butter (very often)
Whole grain pasta
Apple and mango juice (but too much fruit juice ain't good for our teeth...)





(Here's some of the stuff we have been avoiding as much as possible:

White bread
Anything containing sugar
Fluoride-fortified toothpaste)

[kriz]

Tooth, does your child drink fortified orange juice and soy/rice/almond milks? I get much of my calcium from those sources.

My teeth problem started at that early age, too, and it it was a combination of genetics and bad brushing techniques (not close enough supervision in that area).
With frequent brushing and FLOSSING + more calcium, you'll hopefully be able to beat it!:)