Less Common Oral Hygiene Options

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Less Common Alternatives For Oral Hygiene!

You almost certainly brush your teeth. You might use mouthwash. A lot of people floss for three weeks at a time, often in January.

There are a lot of options for oral hygiene; variations of the above, and many alternatives too. This is a big topic, so rather than try to squeeze it all in one, this will be a several-part series.

Tooth soap

The idea here is simplicity, and brushing with as few ingredients as possible. Soap cleans your teeth the same way it cleans your (sometimes compositionally quite similar—enamel and all) dishes, without damaging them.

We’d love to link to some science here, but alas, it appears to have not yet been done—at least, we couldn’t find any!

You can make your own tooth soap if you are feeling confident, or you might prefer to buy one ready-made (here’s an example product on Amazon, with various flavor options)

Oil pulling

We are getting gradually more scientific now; there is science for this one… But the (scientific) reviews are mixed:

Wooley et al., 2020, conducted a review of extant studies, and concluded:

❝The limited evidence suggests that oil pulling with coconut oil may have a beneficial effect on improving oral health and dental hygiene❞

Source: The effect of oil pulling with coconut oil to improve dental hygiene and oral health: A systematic review

The “Science-Based Medicine” project was less positive in its assessment, and declared that all and any studies that found oil pulling to be effective were a matter of researcher/publication bias. We would note that SBM is a private project and is not without its own biases, but for balance, here is what they had to offer:

SBM | Oil Pulling Your Leg

A more rounded view seems to be that it is a good method for cleaning your teeth if you don’t have better options available (whereby, “better options” is “almost any other method”).

One final consideration, which the above seemed not to consider, is:

If you have sensitive teeth/gums, oil-pulling is the gentlest way of cleaning them, and getting them back into sufficient order that you can comfortably use other methods.

Want to try it? You can use any food-grade oil (coconut oil or olive oil are common choices).

Chewing stick

Not just any stick—a twig of the Salvadora persica tree. This time, there’s lots of science for it, and it’s uncontroversially effective:

❝A number of scientific studies have demonstrated that the miswak (Salvadora persica) possesses antibacterial, anti-fungal, anti-viral, anti-cariogenic, and anti-plaque properties.

Several studies have also claimed that miswak has anti-oxidant, analgesic, and anti-inflammatory effects. The use of a miswak has an immediate effect on the composition of saliva.

Several clinical studies have confirmed that the mechanical and chemical cleansing efficacy of miswak chewing sticks are equal and at times greater than that of the toothbrush❞

~ Hague et al.

Read in full: A review of the therapeutic effects of using miswak (Salvadora Persica) on oral health

And about the efficacy vs using a toothbrush, here’s an example:

Comparative effect of chewing sticks and toothbrushing on plaque removal and gingival health

Want to try the miswak stick? Here’s an example product on Amazon.

Enjoy!

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  • The Osteoporosis Breakthrough – by Dr. Doug Lucas

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    “Osteoporosis” and “break” often don’t go well together, but here they do. So, what’s the breakthrough here?

    There isn’t one, honestly. But if we overlook the marketing choices and focus on the book itself, the content here is genuinely good:

    The book offers a comprehensive multivector approach to combatting osteoporosis, e.g:

    • Diet
    • Exercise
    • Other lifestyle considerations
    • Supplements
    • Hormones
    • Drugs

    The author considers drugs a good and important tool for some people with osteoporosis, but not most. The majority of people, he considers, will do better without drugs—by tackling things more holistically.

    The advice here is sound and covers all reasonable angles without getting hung up on the idea of there being a single magical solution for all.

    Bottom line: if you’re looking for a book that’s a one-stop-shop for strategies against osteoporosis, this is a good option.

    Click here to check out The Osteoporosis Breakthrough, and keep your bones strong!

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  • Survival of the Prettiest – by Dr. Nancy Etcoff

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    Beauty is in the eye of the beholder, right? And what does it matter, in this modern world, especially if we are already in a happy stable partnership?

    The science of it, as it turns out, is less poetic. Not only is evolutionary psychology still the foundation of our perception of human beauty (yes, even if we have zero possibility of further procreation personally), but also, its effects are far, far wider than partner selection.

    From how nice people are to you, to how much they trust you, to how easily they will forgive a (real or perceived) misdeed, to what kind of medical care you get (or don’t), your looks shape your experiences.

    In this very easy-reading work that nevertheless contains very many references, Dr. Etcoff explores the science of beauty. Not just what traits are attractive and why, but also, what they will do for (or against) us—in concrete terms, with numbers.

    Bottom line: if you’d like to better understand the subconscious biases held by yourself and others, this book is a top-tier primer.

    Click here to check out Survival of the Prettiest, and learn more about how this blessing/curse affects you and those around you!

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  • How To Avoid Age-Related Macular Degeneration

    10almonds is reader-supported. We may, at no cost to you, receive a portion of sales if you purchase a product through a link in this article.

    Avoiding Age-Related Macular Degeneration

    Eye problems can strike at any age, but as we get older, it becomes a lot more likely. In particular, age-related macular degeneration is, as the name suggests, an age-bound disease.

    Is there no escaping it, then?

    The risk factors for age-related macular degeneration are as follows:

    • Being over the age of 55 (can’t do much about this one)
    • Being over the age of 65 (risk climbs sharply now)
    • Having a genetic predisposition (can’t do much about this one)
    • Having high cholesterol (this one we can tackle)
    • Having cardiovascular disease (this one we can tackle)
    • Smoking (so, just don’t)

    Genes predispose; they don’t predetermine. Or to put it another way: genes load the gun, but lifestyle pulls the trigger.

    Preventative interventions against age-related macular degeneration

    Prevention is better than a cure in general, and this especially goes for things like age-related macular degeneration, because the most common form of it has no known cure.

    So first, look after your heart (because your heart feeds your eyes).

    See also: The Mediterranean Diet

    Next, eat to feed your eyes specifically. There’s a lot of research to show that lutein helps avoid age-related diseases in the eyes and the rest of the brain, too:

    See also: Brain Food? The Eyes Have It

    Do supplements help?

    They can! There was a multiple-part landmark study by the National Eye Institute, a formula was developed that reduced the 5-year risk of intermediate disease progressing to late disease by 25–30%. It also reduced the risk of vision loss by 19%.

    You can read about both parts of the study here:

    Age-Related Eye Disease Studies (AREDS/AREDS2): major findings

    As you can see, an improvement was made between the initial study and the second one, by replacing beta-carotene with lutein and zeaxanthin.

    The AREDS2 formula contains:

    • 500 mg vitamin C
    • 180 mg vitamin E
    • 80 mg zinc
    • 10 mg lutein
    • 2 mg copper

    You can learn more about these supplements, and where to get them, here on the NEI’s corner of the official NIH website:

    AREDS 2 Supplements for Age-Related Macular Degeneration

    Take care of yourself!

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Related Posts

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  • The Art of Being Unflappable (Tricks For Daily Life)

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    The Art of Being Unflappable

    From Stoicism to CBT, thinkers through the ages have sought the unflappable life.

    Today, in true 10almonds fashion, we’re going to distil it down to some concentrated essentials that we can all apply in our daily lives:

    Most Common/Impactful Cognitive Distortions To Catch (And Thus Avoid)

    These are like the rhetorical fallacies with which you might be familiar (ad hominem, no true Scotsman, begging the question, tu quoque, straw man, etc), but are about what goes on between your own ears, pertaining to your own life.

    If we learn about them and how to recognize them, however, we can catch them before they sabotage us, and remain “unflappable” in situations that could otherwise turn disastrous.

    Let’s take a look at a few:

    Catastrophizing / Crystal Ball

    • Distortion: not just blowing something out of proportion, but taking an idea and running with it to its worst possible conclusion. For example, we cook one meal that’s a “miss” and conclude we are a terrible cook, and in fact for this reason a terrible housewife/mother/friend/etc, and for this reason everyone will probably abandon us and would be right to do so
    • Reality: by tomorrow, you’ll probably be the only one who even remembers it happened

    Mind Reading

    • Distortion: attributing motivations that may or may not be there, and making assumptions about other people’s thoughts/feelings. An example is the joke about two partners’ diary entries; one is long and full of feelings about how the other is surely dissatisfied in their marriage, has been acting “off” with them all day, is closed and distant, probably wants to divorce, may be having an affair and is wondering which way to jump, and/or is just wondering how to break the news—the other partner’s diary entry is short, and reads “motorcycle won’t start; can’t figure out why”
    • Reality: sometimes, asking open questions is better than guessing, and much better than assuming!

    All-or-Nothing Thinking / Disqualifying the Positive / Magnifying the Negative

    • Distortion: having a negative bias that not only finds a cloud in every silver lining, but stretches it out so that it’s all that we can see. In a relationship, this might mean that one argument makes us feel like our relationship is nothing but strife. In life in general, it may lead us to feel like we are “naturally unlucky”.
    • Reality: those negative things wouldn’t even register as negative to us if there weren’t a commensurate positive we’ve experienced to hold them in contrast against. So, find and remember that positive too.

    For brevity, we put a spotlight on (and in some cases, clumped together) the ones we think have the most bang-for-buck to know about, but there are many more.

    So for the curious, here’s some further reading:

    Psychology Today: 50 Common Cognitive Distortions

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  • Hair Growth: Caffeine and Minoxidil Strategies

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    Questions and Answers at 10almonds

    Have a question or a request? You can always hit “reply” to any of our emails, or use the feedback widget at the bottom!

    This newsletter has been growing a lot lately, and so have the questions/requests, and we love that! In cases where we’ve already covered something, we might link to what we wrote before, but will always be happy to revisit any of our topics again in the future too—there’s always more to say!

    As ever: if the question/request can be answered briefly, we’ll do it here in our Q&A Thursday edition. If not, we’ll make a main feature of it shortly afterwards!

    So, no question/request too big or small

    Hair growth strategies for men combing caffeine and minoxidil?

    Well, the strategy for that is to use caffeine and minoxidil! Some more specific tips, though:

    • Both of those things need to be massaged (gently!) into your scalp especially around your hairline.
      • In the case of caffeine, that boosts hair growth. No extra thought or care needed for that one.
      • In the case of minoxidil, it reboots the hair growth cycle, so if you’ve only recently started, don’t be surprised (or worried) if you see more shedding in the first three months. It’s jettisoning your old hairs because new ones were just prompted (by the minoxidil) to start growing behind them. So: it will get briefly worse before it gets better, but then it’ll stay better… provided you keep using it.
    • If you’d like other options besides minoxidil, finasteride is a commonly prescribed oral drug that blocks the conversion of testosterone to DHT, which latter is what tells your hairline to recede.
    • If you’d like other options besides prescription drugs, saw palmetto performs comparably to finasteride (and works the same way).
      • You may also want to consider biotin supplementation if you don’t already enjoy that
    • Consider also using a dermaroller on your scalp. If you’re unfamiliar, this is a device that looks like a tiny lawn aerator, with many tiny needles, and you roll it gently across your skin.
      • It can be used for promoting hair growth, as well as for reducing wrinkles and (more slowly) healing scars.
      • It works by breaking up the sebum that may be blocking new hair growth, and also makes the skin healthier by stimulating production of collagen and elastin (in response to the thousands of microscopic wounds that the needles make).
      • Sounds drastic, but it doesn’t hurt and doesn’t leave any visible marks—the needles are that tiny. Still, practise good sterilization and ensure your skin is clean when using it.

    See: How To Use A Dermaroller ← also explains more of the science of it

    PS: this question was asked in the context of men, but the information goes the same for women suffering from androgenic alepoceia—which is a lot more common than most people think!

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  • Paris in spring, Bali in winter. How ‘bucket lists’ help cancer patients handle life and death

    10almonds is reader-supported. We may, at no cost to you, receive a portion of sales if you purchase a product through a link in this article.

    In the 2007 film The Bucket List Jack Nicholson and Morgan Freeman play two main characters who respond to their terminal cancer diagnoses by rejecting experimental treatment. Instead, they go on a range of energetic, overseas escapades.

    Since then, the term “bucket list” – a list of experiences or achievements to complete before you “kick the bucket” or die – has become common.

    You can read articles listing the seven cities you must visit before you die or the 100 Australian bucket-list travel experiences. https://www.youtube.com/embed/UvdTpywTmQg?wmode=transparent&start=0

    But there is a more serious side to the idea behind bucket lists. One of the key forms of suffering at the end of life is regret for things left unsaid or undone. So bucket lists can serve as a form of insurance against this potential regret.

    The bucket-list search for adventure, memories and meaning takes on a life of its own with a diagnosis of life-limiting illness.

    In a study published this week, we spoke to 54 people living with cancer, and 28 of their friends and family. For many, a key bucket list item was travel.

    Why is travel so important?

    There are lots of reasons why travel plays such a central role in our ideas about a “life well-lived”. Travel is often linked to important life transitions: the youthful gap year, the journey to self-discovery in the 2010 film Eat Pray Love, or the popular figure of the “grey nomad”.

    The significance of travel is not merely in the destination, nor even in the journey. For many people, planning the travel is just as important. A cancer diagnosis affects people’s sense of control over their future, throwing into question their ability to write their own life story or plan their travel dreams.

    Mark, the recently retired husband of a woman with cancer, told us about their stalled travel plans:

    We’re just in that part of our lives where we were going to jump in the caravan and do the big trip and all this sort of thing, and now [our plans are] on blocks in the shed.

    For others, a cancer diagnosis brought an urgent need to “tick things off” their bucket list. Asha, a woman living with breast cancer, told us she’d always been driven to “get things done” but the cancer diagnosis made this worse:

    So, I had to do all the travel, I had to empty my bucket list now, which has kind of driven my partner round the bend.

    People’s travel dreams ranged from whale watching in Queensland to seeing polar bears in the Arctic, and from driving a caravan across the Nullarbor Plain to skiing in Switzerland.

    Humpback whale breaching off the coast
    Whale watching in Queensland was on one person’s bucket list. Uwe Bergwitz/Shutterstock

    Nadia, who was 38 years old when we spoke to her, said travelling with her family had made important memories and given her a sense of vitality, despite her health struggles. She told us how being diagnosed with cancer had given her the chance to live her life at a younger age, rather than waiting for retirement:

    In the last three years, I think I’ve lived more than a lot of 80-year-olds.

    But travel is expensive

    Of course, travel is expensive. It’s not by chance Nicholson’s character in The Bucket List is a billionaire.

    Some people we spoke to had emptied their savings, assuming they would no longer need to provide for aged care or retirement. Others had used insurance payouts or charity to make their bucket-list dreams come true.

    But not everyone can do this. Jim, a 60-year-old whose wife had been diagnosed with cancer, told us:

    We’ve actually bought a new car and [been] talking about getting a new caravan […] But I’ve got to work. It’d be nice if there was a little money tree out the back but never mind.

    Not everyone’s bucket list items were expensive. Some chose to spend more time with loved ones, take up a new hobby or get a pet.

    Our study showed making plans to tick items off a list can give people a sense of self-determination and hope for the future. It was a way of exerting control in the face of an illness that can leave people feeling powerless. Asha said:

    This disease is not going to control me. I am not going to sit still and do nothing. I want to go travel.

    Something we ‘ought’ to do?

    Bucket lists are also a symptom of a broader culture that emphasises conspicuous consumption and productivity, even into the end of life.

    Indeed, people told us travelling could be exhausting, expensive and stressful, especially when they’re also living with the symptoms and side effects of treatment. Nevertheless, they felt travel was something they “ought” to do.

    Travel can be deeply meaningful, as our study found. But a life well-lived need not be extravagant or adventurous. Finding what is meaningful is a deeply personal journey.

    Names of study participants mentioned in this article are pseudonyms.

    Leah Williams Veazey, ARC DECRA Research Fellow, University of Sydney; Alex Broom, Professor of Sociology & Director, Sydney Centre for Healthy Societies, University of Sydney, and Katherine Kenny, ARC DECRA Senior Research Fellow, University of Sydney

    This article is republished from The Conversation under a Creative Commons license. Read the original article.

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