By Dominik Nischwitz, DDS

In 1957, a year before the World Cup in Sweden, Vicente Feola, coach of the Brazilian national soccer team, took a groundbreaking approach to tournament preparations.

Like any coach, he sought the most talented players and the best training methods, but he also thought beyond conventional wisdom.

Determined to optimize every aspect of his team’s performance, Feola implemented measures never before seen in soccer training. He not only enlisted a psychologist to support his players but also took an unprecedented step—sending the entire team to the dentist.

The results were eye-opening: of the 470 teeth examined, thirty-two were diseased or inflamed and had to be extracted. By the time the Brazilians entered the tournament a year later, they likely had the healthiest teeth of any team on the field. Despite grueling preliminaries and fierce competition, they delivered one of the most dominant victories in World Cup history.

At the time, Feola’s methods seemed unorthodox. After all, weren’t skill, stamina, and strength the essential ingredients for success? Yet mounting research confirms what he intuitively knew: peak physical performance is only possible when oral health is also performing.

Biological Dentistry for the Win

Our teeth are not just food-grinding tools that need fixing when they break. Rather, as Coach Feola recognized, teeth are complex, living structures deeply integrated with the rest of the body.

Hidden beneath the tooth surface exists everything that defines a vital organ—pulsating blood vessels, lymph vessels, a nervous system, and even an immune system. A delicate yet resilient coating reinforces this remarkable ecosystem—strengthened by a nourishing diet and lifestyle.

These principles form the foundation of biological dentistry—a patient-centered approach that views teeth as integral to overall health, rather than isolated structures. Guided by the motto, “The mouth is a mirror for health,” biological dentistry focuses not just on treating symptoms but treating the health of the entire organ.

With modern oral biology research, we now possess significantly more data and resources than the intuitive approach Coach Feola relied on. And with this clarity, Biological Dentistry stands at the forefront of a new era in dentistry. Let the healing begin!

The Hidden World of Dental Pellicles

What can you expect to find in the average mouth? To start with, there should be thirty-two teeth. Then of course you’ve got the gums and the tongue. But there’s another key player—one that often goes unnoticed and underappreciated—the dental pellicle. If you’ve never heard of it, you’re not alone. Even scientists overlooked the pellicle for many years. Yet we can clearly feel it when we run our tongue over our teeth.

Most of us assume the smooth feeling on our teeth comes from a simple coating of saliva, and while that’s part of the story, our teeth are also permanently coated with the delicate, transparent net.

Scientists have named this coating the pellicle (from the Latin word “pellicular,” which means membrane or thin film). This thin film is broken several times a day, such as when we brush our teeth, or as a result of abrasion when we eat something hard, like a carrot. It’s not a problem, however, because the pellicle can re-form in the blink of an eye, over and over again.

The process really is magical. No sooner have we brushed our teeth than this net-like film begins to regenerate, gradually covering our teeth once again.

Researchers who have studied the pellicle extensively have concluded that it is far more than just a passive by-product of the mouth—it functions as its own entity, much like the tongue or teeth. For this reason, it is often described as autochthonous—a naturally occurring, self-forming structure within the body’s system.

The discovery of an autochthonous protective layer for teeth is a breakthrough for scientists! A naturally occurring shield as effective and discreet as the pellicle could have significant potential, especially in enhancing protection against dental erosion.

However, despite numerous attempts, researchers have yet to successfully replicate it. Any material applied to the teeth is quickly washed away, making the pellicle a subject of ongoing intensive study.

While the delicate netting may only be visible on a nanoscopic scale, it plays a surprisingly powerful role in protecting our teeth, including allowing them to glide past one another as we chew without excessive wear.

This protection is very important because our teeth are exposed to grinding through the chewing motion hundreds of times per day, often with a bite force of several pounds. Without any form of lubricant, they would quickly wear down.

Beyond mechanical protection, the pellicle plays an important role in the remineralization process of the teeth and acts as a barrier against toxins, carcinogens, and acids—reinforcing the tooth’s natural defenses and contributing to overall oral health.

Strengthening the Pellicle with Diet and Natural Compounds

We can actively help the pellicle do its job by eating the right types of food. Studies have shown that the more (healthy) fat our diet contains, the better and stronger the pellicle becomes. Even rinsing with unrefined olive oil, coconut oil, or aloe vera seems to have a positive effect on the fat content of the pellicle.

Additionally, plant extracts high in polyphenols have been shown to help by binding proteins in saliva, which then attach more effectively to the enamel, making the pellicle even better at protecting against dental erosion.

A 2021 study published in the Journal of Dentistry investigated the effects of different polyphenol-rich plant extracts and teas on pellicle structure and function. While identifying the single most effective polyphenol proved challenging, the study highlighted EGCG (from green tea), theaflavins (from black tea), OPC (from grape seed extract), and flavanones and naringenin (from grapefruit seed extract) as particularly promising.

This exciting research holds great promise for biological dentistry, particularly in the development of targeted and personalized preventative and therapeutic strategies for oral health.

Saliva: Underrated Miracle Water

When discussing oral health, we can’t overlook the importance of saliva—something we often find a little disgusting when it’s not in its rightful place: the mouth. But saliva is truly a miracle natural defense and deserves more attention, particularly in conversations between dentists and their patients.

Most people are surprised to find out that we produce up to a quart and a half of saliva per day. Saliva becomes fascinating, however, when we take a closer look at what it carries and the different tasks it performs simultaneously.

Ninety-five percent of saliva is exactly what it appears to be—water. However, the remaining five percent is remarkably complex, prompting ongoing research to identify all its components.

To date, over two thousand components have been discovered, though only the most essential have been extensively studied. What we do know is that saliva delivers a rich cocktail of nutrients—including calcium, magnesium, sodium, potassium, iron, and copper—that help support and protect the teeth throughout the day.

Everyone experiences a slight degree of tooth decay throughout the day. However, this isn’t an issue as long as our teeth can regularly restore lost minerals. This natural process, called remineralization, is essential for dental health, and saliva plays a key role in supporting it.

Specifically, saliva not only delivers essential nutrients to our teeth, but it also contains buffering substances like phosphate and bicarbonate, which help neutralize acidity and create a balanced pH that allows remineralization to occur. Without this buffering action, the process is halted in an acidic environment.

In dental laboratories, saliva is studied with such focus that it now has its own set of parameters. Just as we measure car speed in “miles per hour” and storm intensity by “wind speed,” scientists track the average amount of saliva produced in the human mouth using a parameter called the “clearance rate.”

An understanding of the salivation clearance rate is important due to the prevalence of insufficient saliva production. A diminished clearance rate results in a more significant and prolonged decrease in salivary pH, which may negatively impact the diversity and balance of the oral microbial community. This imbalance may contribute to issues ranging from tooth decay to oral infections.

Among its many other benefits, saliva provides powerful antibacterial protection through various proteins, immunoglobulins, and peptides. (Antibacterials aren’t just the domain of the pharmaceutical industry—our bodies naturally produce them!)

Think about what you do when you cut your finger—you probably instinctively put it in your mouth. This natural reaction makes sense, as saliva contains a peptide called histatin—which helps kill germs, accelerates wound healing, and stops bleeding.

Mucins are another key player in this process. These gel-like molecules give saliva its characteristic, slightly slippery texture. Rather than directly killing pathogens, mucins employ a multi-pronged approach:

• Preventing adhesion: They keep microbes in constant motion, making it difficult for them to cling to surfaces—almost as if they’re disoriented.

• Disrupting communication: Mucins interfere with bacterial communication, hindering coordination.

• Removing microbes: Mucins gather and escort unwanted microbes out of the mouth, helping maintain a healthy oral environment.

As we continue to explore the intricate connections between oral and systemic health, biological dentistry reaffirms a simple truth—taking care of your mouth means taking care of a crucial gateway to your overall health.

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Dominik Nischwitz, DDS, is a dentist and naturopath, a world-renowned specialist in biological dentistry and ceramic implants, and the president of the International Society of Metal Free Implantology (ISMI). In 2015, Dr. Nischwitz co-founded DNA Health and Aesthetics, Center for Biological Dentistry with his father in Tübingen, Germany.

Dr. Nischwitz has exclusively used ceramic implants since 2013, placing more than 3,000 to date. A pioneer in the field of holistic odontology, Dr. Nischwitz regularly gives lectures around the world. He trains traditional dentists in biological dentistry and believes that all health starts in the mouth.

Well Being Journal adapted the above excerpt from It’s All in Your Mouth by Dominik Nischwitz, DDS, copyright © 2020 by Chelsea Green Publishing and reprinted with permission by Chelsea Green Publishing.

Reference

Niemeyer SH, Baumann T, Lussi A, et al. “Salivary pellicle modification with polyphenol-rich teas and natural extracts to improve protection against dental erosion,” J Dent. 2021 Feb:105:103567.