Customer Reviews

Cure Tooth Decay: Heal and Prevent Cavities with Nutrition, 2nd Edition

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I noticed some deterioration in my teeth last year, so I started searching online to find out whether anyone knew anything about healing teeth. I found Rami's website and decided to buy his book. Although I had heard of Weston Price and Nourishing Traditions before, it was through Rami's book that I really came face to face with that information. It made a lot of sense to me. Especially thought-provoking for me was Rami's message to vegetarians (I had been one for 15 years). It was also helpful that he had actually set down a dietary protocol whose specific objective is to help teeth heal, which Dr. Price reportedly did not do. The protocol is challenging for me, but I have been introducing elements of it to the best of my ability.

Then I lost a filling. The first dentist I saw diagnosed decay and a probable need for a root canal, and said that the tooth might already be dead. Her pronouncement caused me untold agony over the next several weeks. Then a holistic dentist determined that the tooth is alive and recognized that it has totally re-enamelized. He simply replaced the lost filling. He told me I am lucky, because most people are not able to get their teeth to re-enamelize like that. Well, I am now a believer. Nourishing Traditions is for real, and it was with Rami's explanation and guidance that I found a way to help my body contain the damage in my teeth. My relief at this outcome is immeasurable.

We have been conditioned to believe that the only opinions worth having are those that come from people who have been formally trained and licensed, but I believe that formal training can be restricted and biased, and does not necessarily consider all possibilities. Here is the work of someone who questions the knee-jerk assumptions of the industry and who has taken the trouble to do the research and the self-experimentation in an effort to find a better way. I am very appreciative that Rami has chosen to share his findings, relieving us from each having to go through the whole process of trial and error from scratch. And he brings some much-needed balance to a subject that is approached by so many from a place of fear.

Why is our modern society so plagued by tooth decay? Did indigenous people from primitive cultures suffer as we do, with rotting teeth? Knowing the cause of the problem is always the first step in correcting it. Ramiel Nagel, in this book about curing tooth decay, addresses these questions and much more. Ramiel does an excellent job exposing the root of the problem. He explains the difference between true prevention and just temporarily treating the symptoms.

The author is not a doctor or a dentist, but became intensely interested in the subject of curing tooth decay due to his young daughter's badly decaying teeth. This situation caused him to be fearful and it was this fear and his love for his daughter which motivated him to find a solution to his daughter's pain and suffering.

I have come to learn through much negative experience with the mainstream medical system, that knowledge acquired through medical school, which is mostly funded by the drug companies and other corporations, is not designed to serve the public's best interests. It is instead designed for profit. Discouraging natural preventative and curative treatments, while promoting only symptomatic treatments, allows the disease process to progress underneath the surface and provides an avenue for future profits. Ramiel Nagel reveals how this conundrum is especially relevant to modern dental care. I love the following example he uses to illustrate this concept.

" In this example, imagine that a tooth is an orange. Imagine a rotting orange, with a small moldy spot. The moldy spot is equivalent to tooth decay. The equivalent of a dentist placing a dental filling would be removing the moldy spot with a knife and filling the spot with glue. Once the mold is removed, the decay process temporarily slows down. A few more days sitting out, and another moldy spot forms. This is just like how, over time, tooth decay continues to progress even after you get a filling." Ramiel travels a bit farther with this comparison, including the root canal procedure.

The author's purpose in writing this book is to share information with readers which will aide them in taking responsibility for their own dental care and for the dental care of their children. Nagel has researched the groundbreaking works of Dr. Weston Price, a dentist who traveled the world, comparing the health of indigenous people eating their native diets, to those in or near the cities who were consuming refined foods. Dr. Weston Price found, without exception, that those eating the unrefined natural foods had very strong constitutions, moral character and well formed facial and jaw structure. Their health was so excellent that there was no need for doctors or prisons. Those eating the denatured foods, in the more "civilized" areas, had to deal with deformed sinus and jaw structure, rotting teeth, increased crime and increased susceptibility to infectious disease.

Nagel stresses the importance of fat soluble vitamins and activators. He explains what they are and what foods supply them. Activators are natural substances, which are not usually present in our modernized diets. They are needed to aide the absorption of important vitamins and minerals. He talks about the importance of eating some foods raw and fermented, including dairy products and organ meats. Fish liver oil also plays an important role in dental and overall skeletal health.

The book provides a daily guideline or protocol for curing and preventing tooth decay. Ramiel lists the foods which are important in helping to form strong teeth and bones. He also lists food to avoid. He tells us it is not possible to regrow a whole tooth but decay can be stopped and hard dentin can be formed over the pulp of a decayed tooth, which prevents pain and the need for a root canal. Our body's calcium phosphorus ratio needs to be in balance and so do our blood sugar levels. I'd like to include one more quote from page 37 of "Cure Tooth Decay"

"The longer your blood sugar is out of balance, and the greater the imbalance, the more the calcium and phosphorus ratios are altered, and thus the higher the likelihood of tooth decay. This explains why frequent snacking on sugar causes significant decay; the blood sugar remains out of balance for a longer period of time, causing more calcium to be removed from the bones. This also illustrates that even natural sugars from fruits, natural sweeteners, and alcohols can contribute to tooth decay. All of them can place the blood sugar level out of balance."

Nagel also includes discussion on root canals, fillings, the dangers of fluoride, xrays and a special section on children's dental health. I found this book to be packed with helpful common sense information. I will keep it close by as a personal guide to not only achieving superior dental health but also general overall health. Our teeth are one of the outward visible manifestations of the internal balance and health of the body.

Ramiel Nagel has no conflicts of interest, no products to sell, except his book, which he hopes will reach and help many overcome and prevent tooth decay. This is a very different type of health book, written from the heart. The information provided is rooted in trial and error experience along with extensive research into the works of Dr.Weston Price, dentist Melvin Page, anthropologist Leon Abrams, and others. The dietary advice put forth in this book is not only crucial for preventing tooth decay but for preserving the health of the human race.

When his daughter's teeth began rapidly decaying, the author embarked on a journey to find a solution. Through the writtings of Weston A. Price and Marvin Page, and his own experimentation, he found that tooth decay can be prevented or stopped by diet.

The book starts with a brief denunciation of modern dental notions then reviews the work of Price and Page, paying special attention to their recommendations on diet. Next the author presents his own recommendations on diet (including both the "best" protocol and an alternate vegetarian protocol). The book continues with more detailed discussion of tooth decay, dentistry, and prevention of childhood tooth decay.

Being based on large part on the work of Price and Page, the book's main theme and basic findings are solid, but the author, while railing against modern dental theories that, in his assessment, parade as "science" demonstrates his own poor understanding of the subject matter and inadequate critical thinking skills. As a result, the book is of somewhat dubious value.

For example, on page 6, he rails against the supposed contradiction of the "experts" by quoting the website of the American Dental Association in which they state that tooth decay is caused by sugars and starches in our foods that contact our teeth and PROMOTE bacterial growth. He then quotes the Sugar Association's website where they say that sugar DISABLES bacterial growth. He states, "Basically, what I am saying is that if you leave a bowl of white flour and sugar outside next to a piece of raw fish, in a few hours or days the fish will be ridden with bacteria while the flour and sugar remain the same, nearly impervious to bacterial destruction." He neglects to notice that the DRY item remains while the one with moisture is the one that decays. Drying foods has long been a method of preserving them. (Beef jerky, anyone?)

He also makes some mistakes in summarizing the research of Weston Price. For example, on page 27, he lists the principle sources of fat-soluble vitamins that Price identified in the diets of indigenous groups immune to tooth decay. He states that the third source is "Organs of land animals." In fact, Price names the sources in his book Nutrition and Physical Degeneration which on page 282 lists the third source as, "the organs of animals, and the eggs of birds, wild and domesticated." While few Americans eat organ meats, the vast majority do eat eggs, making this omission non-trivial.

Unfortunately, I am not familiar with Page's research, so I cannot comment on how accurately the author portrayed this research.

Pros:

* The idea that tooth decay can be halted or prevented by diet, coming from the research of Price and Page, is an important idea to get across to people, and this is the book's main point.
* The book is engaging.
* The author's own experience with diet and tooth decay and what he has found to work for his family and others is useful.

Cons:

* The author's lack of clear thinking and resultant logical mistakes.
* While the author ridicules the idea that bacteria are the cause of tooth decay, he fails to realize they do in fact play a role, if not the most critical one.

Rather than reading this book, I would recommend reading Nutrition and Physical Degeneration by Price and perhaps a book by Page. If you can get this book at a library, you may find chapter 4, in which the author presents his dietary recommendations, thought provoking.

About a month ago I noticed that my enamel was stripping off. I don't believe this was typical enamel erosion. I don't eat citrus fruits or drink soda, don't have gerd or acid reflux, and I'm not bulemic. I have patches and dull strips where there used to be shiny enamel. I bought this book and changed my diet immediately. Within a few weeks the stripping of the enamel stopped. And all of a sudden in a matter of days, I started noticing vast improvements in the surface of my teeth. I read that tooth structure is lattice like, and it really is. You can really see it! For a couple of days, I actually watched it re-knit, and some of the patches have shrunk, by refilling with shiny enamel. I cheated on my birthday and the progress slowed for several days and I didn't notice daily improvements. I am just starting to see them again. There will be no more cheating. I don't want to slow this down.

My daughter just started getting her permanent teeth this spring and they don't have any shine to them at all. She is also getting some enamel finally. Hers doesn't have the appearance of lattice, yet. She is just now getting her first vertical lines. If I could capture this, I'd probably just post the pictures online for the whole world to see that dentists are wrong! Everywhere you read online, "enamel does not grow back..." But, it does. I don't think this is just the enamel "like" glassy coating that Rami refers to. I really believe this is actual enamel re-knitting.

My husband is getting improvements in his teeth as well. A couple of his molars appeared to have black decay in them, and the blackness is fading away.

A bonus from this diet, is that I am finally starting to absorb my nutrients. Both myself and my daughter suffer from deficiencies caused by malabsorption. We are both doing better. And the proof for me, besides my teeth healing, is that my prematurely gray hair is reversing. Premature gray hair is caused by a lack of minerals. So, I must be absorbing some finally.

This book shows you how important proper nutrition is, not just for teeth but for all health. The teeth are not just for eating. They are not unnecessary and expendible. They are keys to your health. They can tell you when something is wrong in your body. Dentures can't do that. If you have cavities, or enamel issues, it's not just a "dental" issue. It's a HEALTH issue. And fillings are just a bandaid. You MUST take responsibility and take control of your health. Only YOU can do that. No doctor or dentist can do that for you. It is hard work. Change is not easy, and not always fun. But it is SO WORTH the effort. Not only will you feel better physically because you're getting proper nutrition, you will feel good knowing that YOU did this for yourself. No bandaids, no magic pills.

I also recommend Sally Fallon's, Nourishing Traditions book along with your purchase of Ramiel Nagel's, Cure Tooth Decay. Her book will help you keep with the guidelines that Rami suggests in this book.

I just want to add a thank you to Rami for his hard work and dedication to writing this book.

I was ready to have a tooth pulled, the dentist told me I needed a root canal but had no money. I was in pain and the check had actually started to swell up. After some herbal medication and fasting, within three weeks of trying the diet I could tell I was turning the corner. The tooth stopped hurting, my teeth over all became whiter. After over a month on the diet it is hard for me to feel which tooth was bothering me. To look at it in the mirror, it still has a hole but the tooth feels like it is healing. After being out in the cold it used to hurt so bad(oh the pain!), now the cold has no effect what so ever.

Thanks a million to Ramiel Nagiel for writing a book on what seems so obvious to me now.

Leroy Transfield

I recently tried the Cod Liver Oil by itself for a tooth that was bothering me for 6 months, and boy what results. Having gone to the dentist 3 times and getting fillings for the same tooth twice, then being told I needed a crown and possibly a root canal, I decided to do some investigating. Tried the Cod liver Oil that I got at GNC, and my tooth stopped hurting that same day, and everyday it got stronger and now I can chew on it. Our bodies are amazing thanks rami.

marc

The book is largely base on the work of Weston A Price, Nutrition and Physical Degeneration which is certainly an outstanding work very worth reading, but it was published 65 years ago and much has been learned in the last 65 years. Also, it is not an easy read.

Weston Price found that cod liver oil, together with butter, provided the nutrients which prevented tooth decay. Price identified vitamin A and Vitamin D as the essential nutrients in cod liver oil, but was unable to identify the essential nutrient in butter and therefore referred to it as the X factor.

It is now know that the mysterious X-factor is vitamin K2 as described the an article by Chris Masterjohn in the Spring 2007 issue of Wise Traditions, the Journal of the Weston A price Association. The article is available on the website of the Weston A. Price Association:

[...]

The article contains a very readable synopsis of Nutrition and Physical Degeneration, and updated nutritional information.

For example, it is now know that vitamin K2 is not heat sensitive, so pasteurized butter is as effective as raw butter. Further, it is now known that fermented dairy products are very high in vitamin K2, so aged cheese is much higher in vitamin K2 than butter. Further, raw milk aged cheese that is aged over 60 days can be shipped across state lines legally and is therefore more readily available to those who prefer raw dairy products.

While cod liver oil is an excellent source of vitamin A and vitamin D, there are other sources that can be used as alternatives.

I recommend reading the article by Chris Masterjohn to anyone interesting in preventing tooth day.

When my 4 year old daughter's teeth began to have lots of tooth decay (for her age), we visited a few dentists and all of them were blaming me that I did not brush her teeth enough. But I did... Basically, they wanted to do dental anesthesia on her and repair all her cavities at once. My husband and I talked and decided not to put her through this. After all, she had no pain at all and her teeth did not bother her.

I decided to take the matter into my own hands. I started researching about tooth decay, and stumbled upon Rami's web site. I even wrote to him, and he was very helpful. A while later, when his book was published, I bought it. I already knew about the diet from Rami's book, and I was implementing parts of it, but I guess that was not enough to protect my oldest daughter from tooth decay....

This book gave me hope for my daughter's teeth - and now I know that we are responsible for our health. I have also forgiven the dentists that kept showing me how to brush her teeth, I mean, they don't know better...When I asked one of the dentists if my daughter does not have enough nutrients in the body, and that's maybe why her teeth decay (because the body takes all the essential nutrients from the teeth first), he disregarded it and said this could not be the case because all her teeth are formed very well. I did not argue with him, because I knew he was not taught anything about diet in his medical school. I just stopped going to dentists and now I try my best to follow the diet (for my daughter and rest of family) Rami outlines in his book.

If you are discouraged and don't know what to do, get this book. I was very worried and upset about my daughter's teeth at first, but now I am actually very calm because I know I am doing the right thing.

the rare combination of detailed research and first-hand experience, "Cure Tooth Decay" tells the truth--even if we don't want to hear it. Its amazing to me how many educated and health-aware people automatically think the only thing that can help their dental problems is a visit to the dentist. Ramiel Nagel begs to differ. He shows that we have the power to control the state of our teeth and gums. It means being conscious of what we eat,and how we eat it.

He doesn't preach, and he doesn't want to be your guru. Nagel wants you to find out what works for you by showing what foods and protocol worked for his daughter and himself. Then its up to you. There's before and after pictures proving that nutritional therapy works. The body wants to heal; your part of the equation is to give it the nutritional building blocks it needs.

Yes, it means a change in habits and attitude. It'll take an effort, and initially it will probably cost you more money as you're buying quality products and not the mediocre compromises most of us are accustomed to.

The alternative is to pay the dentist thousands of dollars for short term solutions that only delay the inevitable deterioration of the teeth and gums, and even causes said decay, according to Nagel's research.

If you have dental insurance, it may not be an issue for you. Unless you realize that your hard-earned money paid in premiums is only further sending you down the road of aging, poor health, and degeneration.

Dentists tell us that food left on teeth is the major cause of decay.
Nagel tells us that's like saying that rain causes the roof to leak.
If that makes sense to you, I strongly urge you to read this book. Its a
life and thought changing book written by a man who's not trying to sell you anything...and how rare is that?

The great thing about this book is that it allowed me to take control over problems that I had once felt I had little control over not matter how hard I tried. The information presented makes so much sense and it is something that you will most likely never hear from your dentist.

I highly recommend this book to anyone who is interested in taking responsibility for their own health and want to live a life of optimal health.

I want to also mention that I had contacted the author via e-mail with questions in regards to his book and other issues of health and he was always extremely helpful. I feel it really showed he has a genuine interesting in helping people.