by Daniel P. Reardon, DDS, with Information from Harry S. Wilbur, DDS
Dr. Charles Mayo observed decades ago that patients who retained their teeth lived ten years longer that their contemporaries who did not keep their teeth. He attributed this increased longevity to their ability to chew food and to provide themselves better nutrition. What he did not observe was that the biological process that was causing them to loose their teeth was also causing them to die.
In 1954, Linus Pauling, Ph.D. he won the Nobel Prize in Chemistry. His study in proteins led to the discovery of the cross linking of amino acids to build collagen and elastin. He noticed that cross linking would not happen without vitamin C, zinc, copper, and magnesium.
Jacques Cartier discovered in 1536 that his men were afflicted with a disease that was characterized by bleeding gums they were exploring the St. Lawrence River. Scurvy occurs in an environment where there is a deficiency of vitamin C, zinc, copper and magnesium, leading to defective hydroxylation of collagen.
Dr. Linus Pauling met Dr. Matthias Rath, a German cardiologist, in July of 1983 at a Nobel Laureates meeting at the University of Mainz in Germany. Dr. Rath shared with Dr. Pauling his hunch that if you were low in vitamin C you produced more LDL cholesterol (the bad one). The reverse is also true. If you have more vitamin C, you produce less LDL cholesterol. If we are losing collagen on our vessel walls, we are also losing collagen around our teeth. Atherosclerosis appears to be a defensive mechanism so that we don't bleed to death from scurvy -- scurvy weakens blood vessels. Instead, we die later from heart disease. The formation of cholesterol plaques is the body's way of "patching" the vessel walls, weakened by deficiency of vitamin C, zinc, copper and magnesium.
Dr. Rath's work correlates with that of a 1989 Finnish research group. In a paper published in the August '94 issue of The Compendium ofContinuing Education in Dentistry, Walter J. Loesche, DMD, Ph.D., supports the group's conclusions that the relationship between periodontal disease and coronary disease was most evident in men aged 25 to 49 years. After the known risk factors were accounted for, such as smoking and serum cholesterol levels, periodontitis was still significantly associated with death from any cause!
In other words, the underlying causes of atherosclerosis and gum disease may appear to be related to nutritional deficiencies that mirror subclinical scurvy!
Vitamin C also comes into the picture in its role as an antioxidant. Antioxidants tie up unstable oxygen molecules called "free radicals" that come from ozone layers, dust, carbon particles, petroleum particles and smoking -- every puff of a cigarette produces 1011 freeradicals! We also ingest free radicals from our diet when we eat fried foods and rancid vegetable oils.
These unstable oxygen molecules are very dangerous to tissue. They can cause tears and irritation in the artery walls, and on the cellular level lead to changes that initiate cancer. The oxidation process is similar to that of an apple turning brown after it is cut. The vitamin C in lime juice, orange juice and lemon juice stops this biological "rusting" on the apple in a way similar to that in the body. Betacarotene, vitamin E and selenium are also antioxidants that work with vitamin C.
Individuals with few teeth were more likely to report a positive history for cardiovascular problems. These patients are 2.6 times more likely to die by the time of subsequent examinations than the individuals with no periodontal disease.
While the data is preliminary, they confirm the three previous Finnish and U.S. reports of a similar association. Dr. Walter J. Loesche's studies arrive at the same conclusion: individuals with teeth in poor periodontal health, or with few teeth, have a much higher prevalence of cardiovascular disease than individuals retaining most of their teeth. Scientific research thus continues to vindicate the findings of Dr. Weston Price who observed that freedom from tooth decay and a high immunity to chronic and acute illness always go hand in hand.
PPNF recommended book:
Nutrition and Physical Degeneration
by Weston A. Price, DDS
First published in 1939, this monumental but highly readable book is designed to preserve the classic study of Dr. Price's worldwide investigation of the deleterious effects of processed foods and synthetic farming methods on human health, and the promise of regeneration through sound nutrition. This bestseller contains guidelines for approaching optimum health and reproduction, now and through future generations, as did the primitives. Dr. Price has been universally accepted as one of the foremost authorities on the role of foods in their natural form in the overall health pattern and the development of degenerative illnesses as a result of the addition of processed foods to our diet.
To learn more about Dr. Price: CLICK HERE:
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