There is currently nowhere for vegan patients to find a vegan dentists.
If you are a vegan dentist please get in touch by leaving a comment below. When I get a enough dentists I may make some sort of vegan dentist directory…
Canines though?!
A common argument used by carnists is that humans have canine teeth, canine teeth are for eating meat, therefore humans should eat meat.
As a dentist, I feel frustrated that that this argument is so widely accepted despite it being nonsense.
A common valid counter argument is that possession of an ability, tool or weapon does not justify its use – we have fists and fingernails but don’t feel inclined punch and claw others on a daily basis.
If we examine canine teeth in humans, we see they are short and stubby compared with carnivores and omnivores. Canine teeth in humans are obviously not so good for gripping prey or slicing raw meat from carcasses. This makes sense though, since for millions of years humans have been eating soft diets. We have farmed rather than hunt, and have used tools to kill, process and cook our food, so we don’t need big sharp canine teeth.
Human canine teeth still have evolutionary advantages: they help protect our back teeth against fractures, and they help us talk and smile.
Canine teeth in humans have a single long root, and conical or triangular shaped crown with usually just one large cusp – perfect for taking the strain of side on forces during chewing. Meanwhile our molar and premolar teeth have multiple shorter roots, and bigger flatter crowns with many smaller flatter cusps – and so are much better suited to taking the strain of vertical forces during chewing. In this way canine teeth are said to provide “canine guidance” – separating the premolar and molar teeth during sideways movements and so protecting them from fractures.
Canine teeth are very rarely missing in humans, but its not uncommon to see them impacted and unerupted. Humans whose canine teeth never erupted are still able to eat meat without issue, but they are more likely to experience fractures in their back teeth.
The next time a carnist asks “why do we have canines if we’re not supposed to eat meat?” you can confidently answer: to provide canine guidance to protect against fractures in molar and premolar teeth!
Bamboo Toothbrushes
Are bamboo toothbrushes vegan?
Yes – bamboo toothbrushes are vegan and vegetarian as long as they have nylon (and not hog hair) bristles.
Should I use a bamboo toothbrush as a vegan?
While plastic toothbrushes are not “unvegan”, bamboo toothbrushes are the best type of manual toothbrush when considering efficiency and the environment.
Electric toothbrushes are however proven to be better for plaque removal and gum health compared with manual toothbrushes. That being said, a manual toothbrush is perfectly fine when used with a good brushing technique. The advantage of a bamboo toothbrush is that it has a lower environmental impact compared to both a plastic manual toothbrush and an electric toothbrush.
If your dentist is generally happy with your brushing and you normally use a manual toothbrush then you could definitely make the easy swap to a bamboo toothbrush. Using a bamboo toothbrush with a good brushing technique will keep your teeth and gums healthy and help minimise your environmental impact.
If your dentist has recommended you use an electric toothbrush then your manual brushing technique might be not be good enough to maintain the health of your teeth and gums. You could stick with your electric toothbrush or research good manual brushing techniques. Consider discussing the switch with your dentist or dental hygienist and ask for a demonstration of a good manual brushing technique.
What to look for when choosing a bamboo toothbrush
You can find out what to look for when choosing a bamboo toothbrush by reading the Dental Choices guide on bamboo toothbrushes.
Should I use a fluoride toothpaste as a vegan?
Yes – read our post on vegan toothpaste to found out why, what to look for in a vegan toothpaste and which are the best vegan toothpastes in the UK.
Zero Waste Vegan Toothpaste
I’m looking for the perfect zero waste, vegan & cruelty free toothpaste – it has to have no plastic packaging, contain fluoride at a level between 1400-1500ppm, and have a strong minty flavour.
If you have found the perfect zero waste vegan toothpaste then please let me know in the comments below. If you make vegan toothpaste and would like to send me a sample then use the contact form to get in touch.
Find an NHS dentist
It can be difficult to find a NHS dentist and hard to know whether to choose an NHS or private dentist. Read on if you want help deciding whether NHS dentistry is for you. Skip to the end if you just want to find an NHS dentist.
In the UK we are blessed with our National Health Service. The NHS aims to provide universal access to healthcare based on clinical and need not restricted by patients’ ability to pay. However, dentistry is a poor relation of the NHS since patients are required to contribute towards the cost of their NHS dental treatment (unless they qualify for an exemption).
The NHS promises to provide all treatment clinically required to maintain oral health, but the purposeful limitation of funding by the government inevitably limits provision of NHS dental care. NHS dentistry is relatively cheap due to the cost being heavily subsidised by taxpayers and an almost universal culture of philanthropy among NHS dentists who effectively provide lots of treatment for free. The NHS also impressively manages to match the quality of dental care provided by insurance based systems in other countries.
The downsides to NHS dentistry are however, that the limitation of funding inevitably limits access to NHS dental services as well as the range of dental treatment available on the NHS. It can be very difficult to find a dentist taking on new NHS patients, and many expensive materials, equipment and techniques are simply way beyond the NHS budget.
In summary NHS dentistry is fantastic value for money but should be considered “budget dentistry” – patients historically have struggled to sign up with an NHS dentist and should expect to pay privately or seek a private dentist for cosmetic or expensive treatment options.
Thankfully the Dental Choices website makes it quick and easy to find a NHS dentist taking new NHS patients in England. You just type in your postcode or use your current location and Dental Choices gives you a list of your closest dental practices that are currently taking new NHS patients.
Calcium in a Plant Based Diet
Calcium is an essential mineral important in bones, teeth, blood, muscles and nerves.
Teeth begin calcifying (hardening) from the 4th month of pregnancy and most are completed by 16 years of age (22 for wisdom teeth). Fully formed teeth also use calcium to build more dentine throughout life and in their limited capacity to react and repair in response to tooth damage.
Calcium Sources for Vegans
Your diet should include 700mg of calcium each day. A rich and varied plant based diet will easily provide enough, since calcium is readily available in loads of plant based foods including:
- green vegetables – broccoli, cabbage, kale, okra, watercress (but not spinach)
- sweet potatoes and butternut squash
- beans – black turtle beans, kidney beans, soya beans
- tofu
- fortified plant milks and yogurts
- nuts – almonds, brazil nuts, hazelnuts, pistachio nuts, walnuts
- seeds – chia seeds, poppy seeds, sesame seeds
- bread and anything made with fortified flour
Calcium Myths
You need to drink milk for strong teeth and bones
Calcium is needed both to grow strong teeth and bones, to maintain strong bones, and to enable teeth and bones to repair and react to damage …and milk famously is a source of calcium. However there any many other dietary sources of calcium …and there is evidence that milk consumption is associated with significantly higher risk of hip fractures, cancer, and premature death.
Tooth decay is caused by not eating/drinking enough calcium
Tooth decay is caused by bacteria fermenting free sugar into plaque acid which in turn dissolves calcium from teeth. This makes tooth enamel and dentine increasingly soft and weak until the surface collapses, leaving a cavity. Eating more calcium unfortunately will not prevent tooth decay if you are having lots of sugary snacks and drinks …but using a fluoride toothpaste and avoiding sugary snacks and drinks between mealtimes will harden your teeth and help tip the balance away from this process of demineralisation in favour of remineralisation – re-hardening of teeth.