Heya friends!
I'm chagrined to report that my 57-year record of never having a cavity is now broken. During my annual dental exam a couple of weeks ago, two "occlusions" were discovered. My dentist told me I can technically continue to say I've never had cavities because occlusions are sorta like pre-cavities. (He was just being nice—these were more like small cavities.)
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| Photo by H Hagi on Unsplash |
He asked if something in my diet had lately changed. Like, was I suddenly drinking sugar sodas every day? Nope, nothing like that. Well, we talked about it and came up with one hypothesis.
About 2 years ago, wanting to trim my plastic waste, I switched to dry toothpaste bits. They arrive in a glass jar instead of a plastic tube, and the refills come in compostable bags. Cool, right? The thing is, they also use hydroxyapatite instead of fluoride. I hadn't even thought about it; I just assumed they had fluoride. So, my dentist speculates that my switch to those could be the culprit, as the research to support that hydroxyapatite is as good as fluoride in preventing tooth decay is lacking. Oops.
Anyway, I just got back from another visit to the dentist with two new fillings with the latest generation of composite. My dentist says no one will ever be able to tell I've had cavities... except other dentists. (Oh, and now all ya'll.)
Now, as it happens, one of the main characters in my novel, The Dreamrider in the Nightland, is also about to learn about a cavity. But more of one in reality than in his mouth.
