The last bite

01 April 2011
Volume 27 · Issue 4

Who to believe?

It never ceases to astound me, although by now it should, how many pieces of advice there are in the course of a week, or sometimes even a day, on what is good and bad for us in general and our teeth in particular.

For example, we have been told by researchers in the US that chocolate of high cocoa content contains more health-giving plant chemicals than fruit. The study, carried out by researchers at the Hershey Centre for Health and Nutrition suggests that cacao seeds should be considered a 'super fruit' having proved cocoa is 'packed with more healthy plant compounds and antioxidants gram-for-gram'.

Meanwhile, a study from Naples University claims that oolong tea contains higher amounts of catechins, which have 'antimicrobial qualities' and protect against caries; while another from New York suggests nicotine may be a 'beneficial' analgesic to ease the pain of a tooth extraction. All of which is enough to drive you to drink – except even more advice suggests you consume your gin and tonic through a straw to prevent erosion. I give up!

She says, he says

There has been a remarkable case recently in which a wife and husband dental team have found themselves on opposite sides of an employment dispute, with the former making a failed attempt to sue the latter for unfair dismissal.

Helen had been the manager in the practice owned by her dentist husband John but had apparently quit the job over a pay dispute, describing the decision to go to law as a 'procedural thing'. Such situations do make one wonder what the atmosphere must be like at mealtimes, for example. Something along the lines of ; 'You'll never believe the day I've had with the practice manager'...'you should complain, I've decided to take my boss to court'. And at parties? 'This is Helen, my ex-practice manager' or 'This is John, my former employer.'

All media reports are at pains to emphasise that they remain happily married. It must be a 'dental team' thing.

Lifestyle enquiries

An increasing number of reports highlight findings which suggest that vaccination against the human papillomavirus, currently being administered to high school girls to battle the threat of cervical cancer, should be extended to include boys as the number of cases of HPV-linked oral cancer escalates. The latest figures suggest a 200 per cent increase in HPV-related oral cancer cases in young people in the last 20 years, which scientists say is a consequence of transmission through oral sex.

In the past we have felt that our role in oral hygiene advice has been mandatory, dietary advice a necessity and then more recently, smoking cessation a somewhat grudging add-on. With moves now afoot to include questions on alcohol consumption as part of medical history taking, the next step to enquiring on sexual activity in young men can only be a murmur away. Perhaps we should set aside the mirror and probe and take up lifestyle counselling instead.

 

FEBRUARY WINNER

The winner of the February prize of Beverly Hills Formula products is Habib Akram of Leicester for the caption: ‘I knew this would be a tall order!’