>As for the rest, I too would like advice about fillings, cavities, etc.
>
I wouldn't say that my dentist is really paleo, but he *is* a really
great
dentist. When I first started going to him, I had a lot of fillings to
be
done, as I had been traumatized by a particularly bad dentist as a
child and
had avoided all dentistry for too long. I was absolutely terrified of
any
dental procedure, and was so jumpy I was probably *his* worst
nightmare!

But -- to show how far I've come (and this is the paleo part): several
years
ago I had some minor fillings to be done. My dentist talked to me
calmly
before doing them, and told me that given the fact that they were
small and
not deep, and that novocaine is really not good for you, it would be
best if
he did them without freezing my mouth. I was a bit skeptical, but said
I'd
try it. All it took was some mental focus, and I got through it.

A few years ago, I had a deep infection in the roots of a tooth that
had
been injured in an accident some years before. By this time, my focus
was so
good, I was able to have the root canal without freezing. (The
endodontist
congratulated me on that one.)

I do have a few deep cavities in my molars, which occasionally need to
be
replaced. In those cases, I definitely opt for the freezing. But if
you can
get past the initial fear, I highly recommend forgoing the freezing
for most
fillings and other procedures.

>At first I went for the "white" composite fillings but now I'm wondering
>what the heck is in THOSE and now I'm going to ask for future ones to be gold.

I brought up this issue to my dentist some time ago. He told me that
in his
opinion, it was 6 of one, half a dozen of the other, but that the
amalgam
fillings were stronger. He showed me a list of ingredients in both. I
don't
specifically remember much, but they are both pretty long.

I recently had one of my amalgam fillings break and had it replaced
with a
white composite, just because I like the look of white natural teeth
better
than all that metal inlay.

Irene