Natural Dentistry

Using the drop-down menu under this heading, you can see the major services we provide at our office. If you have any questions, do not hesitate to give us a call at 727 446-6747 or send us an email. 
Thanks,
Ray Behm DDS and his Awesome Staff

How Can Biological / Holistic Dentistry help you? 

After graduating from Emory University School of Dentistry in 1968, and practicing dentistry for over 30 years, I still continue my constant quest to improve my ability to help my patients.  I now practice both neuromuscular (relating to the nerves and muscles of the head and neck) and holistic/biological dentistry, have not placed a mercury amalgam filling since 1986, and not done a root canal since 1994.

Professional organizations that I belong to are IAOMT, Holistic Dental Association, Consumers for Dental Choice, International Association of Mercury Free Dentists, DAMS, Environmental Dental Association, The International Academy of Biological Dentistry & Medicine, Mercury Free Now and Price-Pottenger Foundation.

Knowing that some materials are better than others, we test everything that goes in a person’s mouth, from fillings and crown materials, to bonding agents, cements and anesthetics.

Many of our patients bring blood serum compatibility tests to us, either Clifford or Peak Performance, and ask us to use materials that they have tested well for.  What we have found is that there are a handful of materials that test well for almost everyone.  We have those sample materials in our office, and test the person for which of those are best for him. So we are finding the best of the best for each individual person.

We have found that one of the most bio-compatible (compatible for a living organism) composite filling materials that exist today is Diamond Lite.  But again, you will be tested to determine if this is best for you.  If it’s not, other choices are Empress, APX and Estalite.

We have found the most bio-compatible, aesthetic and durable crown materials are e.max, Lava or Empress.  These  materials can be used for single crowns, inlays, onlays or bridges.  These are  totally metal-free materials which do NOT need a metal understructure (which can be seen as a dark margin around the gum line).  Many dentists are reluctant to do bridges without metal, as they feel they will break more easily.  We have done numerous bridges in these materials, and have had very little trouble.

We have found that, for the most part, people do better with anesthesia that does not contain epinephrine (a vasoconstrictor that can cause heart palpitations). As a result, we only use anesthesia that does not contain epinephrine.  We have 3 kinds of anesthesia that do not contain epinephrine; Carbocaine 3%, Citanest 4% and Polocaine 3%. Each patient is tested to see which of these three is best for their body.

We believe that epinephrine is used in dentistry for 2 reasons:

1) Epinephrine causes blood vessels to constrict, which causes the anesthetic to stay in place longer. We know that restricted blood supply can restrict oxygen getting to the cells, suffocate them, and actually cause them to die. This has been presented as a theory as to the cause of cavitations.

2) Due to the blood vessel constriction, there tends to be less bleeding with the procedures. We do not want to sacrifice living cells for increased convenience.

Partials and Dentures – We use only biocompatible materials, such as Flexite Supreme or Valplast. You can have partials made with no pink coloring for the gum area, which makes them even more biocompatible.

For extractions – we don’t use the “stand on your chest and pull” technique. This can be quite traumatic, many people tell us that their worst dental experiences have been this type of extraction.  We do only surgical extractions.

The reasons for this are:

1) it is far less traumatic;

2) this enables him to go into the extraction site and remove any necrotic (dead), infected bone. This will ensure proper healing and prevent possible cavitations. After removing all unsound bone, ozone and homeopathics are put in the site, and it is sewn up tightly.  This makes an extremely painful dry socket highly unlikely.

Ancient oriental healers mapped the energy channels in the body, called meridians. Many of these channels go through the teeth, thus energetically connecting teeth with other organs in the body.  This meridian chart shows what organs are connected with which teeth.  We have another, more detailed, larger chart at our office. Call 727 446-6747 or e-mail, and we will send one out to you.   Here is an interesting article about Dr. Rau of the Paracelsus Clinic and tooth meridians.

I have been trained in kinesiology (muscle testing) as it applies to dental applications. We know this is not for everyone, so it is an optional service that we provide.

The key way that Biological Dentistry can enhance physical health is to address the following areas that compromise the immune system:

• bacteria (gum-bone-tooth relationship)

• metals in the mouth (mercury, nickel)

• dead teeth, root canals

• unhealed extraction sites (cavitations)

• bite corrections/correct structure – the way teeth fit together

In summation, if you have a splinter in your body, get it out.  The same holds true if you have a dead organ or toxic metals in your mouth… get them out.  If the structure is not proper, you can’t chew properly.  Change it so it will work properly.

The diagnostic procedures that we utilize are a thorough oral examination, panorex and detailed digital x-rays, kinesiology (muscle testing), Cavitat scan, as well as sophisticated equipement from Myotronics to determine how the upper and lower teeth fit together.

Our approach is aimed specifically at connecting the dots with the rest of the body.  The rest of the body is connected to the teeth.

Naturally, the materials we use to restore the teeth back towards optimum health will never be as perfect as they were originally.  But we are of the opinion — and it is within our working experience, and that of other like-minded dentists over the last few years — that there are blatant errors we can prevent by using this different paradigm of natural dentistry.

Natural, holistic, or biological dentistry is dentistry based on the theory that a whole organism is a more fruitful field of study than its parts or symptoms.

Biological: “bio” means life.  Hence, “biological” means the study of life.