Refresh Life, a book by Dr. Dan SindelarThis is the first book written for patients by a dentist that tells the story of how oral disease affects the rest of the body. In language that patients can understand, Dr. Dan Sindelar states his message, “Good oral health is essential to your overall well-being.” This is a proven message that dentists know is true, and well proven by study after study. As stated in the Washington Post (Sept. 3, 2008), “In diabetes … the body-mouth connection is clear-cut. You would think that physicians would be telling their diabetic patients to make regular visits to head off gum disease and that dentists would be advising patients who develop persistent gum disease to be tested for diabetes.” The great lack of communication between physicians and dentists must be changed if we are to make any progress in improving the lives of patients through proper care of the oral cavity. When was the last time a physician referred a patient to you for treatment of obvious periodontal conditions? How many physicians and dentists don’t treat periodontal disease as life threatening? In 2008, Science Daily published an article that said, “Each year, cardiovascular disease kills more Americans than cancer. And while most people are aware that lifestyle choices such as eating right, getting exercise, and quitting smoking can help prevent cardiovascular disease, they may not know that just by brushing and flossing their teeth each day, they might also be avoiding this potentially lethal condition.” This is information that patients need and deserve so they can make critical decisions about their overall health and well-being. In his introduction, Dr. Sindelar makes his purpose clear: “The research is mounting daily. Lack of oral health is a major risk factor to your body’s total health. The mouth is where life begins. So when, where, how, and why did the mouth become separated from the rest of the body? Medical research is finding oral bacteria to be associated with cardiovascular disease, stroke, cancer, diabetes, preterm birth, and Alzheimer’s, just to name a few.” In another quote from his introduction, Dr. Sindelar states some of his observations. “Over the years as a dentist, I have noticed that most of my older patients in their 80s and 90s that were vibrant, living active lives, and had a lot of positives in their life, all had very healthy mouths. They had what I call young gums. I would often joke with them that they had the ‘gums of a teenager.’ On the other hand, I noticed most of the older, noncompliant gum disease patients who took poor care of their oral health and refused any recommended treatment lived very unhealthy, disease-filled lives. They looked older than their age, and were almost never a part of the group of patients in their 80s and 90s. They always seemed to ‘move on,’ passing away before they reached these decades of their life.” Refresh Life should be read by every dentist. In addition, dentists should buy extra copies to give to physician friends (especially cardiologists) so that they will begin looking at the condition of the teeth and gingival tissues. Then give them to patients to help them improve their health. I am proud to say that Dr. Sindelar was born and raised in St. Louis, Mo., and is a good friend of mine. In Refresh Life, he opens a door to your health and the health of patients by showing why it is so crucial to care for teeth and gums, and how to go about refreshing their whole lives by simply taking better care of the mouth. Patients and you will add 10 healthy, active years to your life by reading this book. Refresh Life is available on Amazon.com. For more information, visit www.drdansindelar.com.
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