On Tue, 9 Sep 1997, Paul Getty wrote:

> As much as most people want to find a reason why their
> teeth are so bad besides their own neglect, the truth is that if a person
> is conscientious, regardless of diet unless at some extreme, their teeth
> will remain healthy.

I doubt this.  Or rather, one's teeth may remain healthy, but
they won't necessarily remain in one's mouth.  In my own case,
although brushing, flossing, and proxy-brushing kept my teeth
squeaky clean, they did nothing to arrest the periodontal disease
process, as a result of which I have lost three molars to date.
What *did* greatly improve the periodontal situation was the
low-carb diet.  Within a couple of weeks, my gums went from red
and puffy (as they had been for years) to pink and tight.  Only
one spot remains inflamed, for reasons that no dentist or
periodontist has yet been able to divine.  On the low-carb diet,
even the periodontal "pockets" began to shrink.

Sears' eicosanoid-based theory of low-carb dieting offers at
least some explanation for why this sort of diet would alleviate
some of the problems of periodontitis.

Todd Moody
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