Good news for those who fear the dentist’s chair: Australian Nathan Cochrane at the Cooperative Research Centre for Oral Health Sciences has created a liquid that can re-grow tooth enamel, effectively curing cavities while you sleep.
It sounds awesome, but it only works if you catch the cavities before they start—long before any sign of a hole appears in the tooth. The liquid works because of a protein known as casein phosphopeptide, which can be isolated from cow’s milk. When this substance is mixed with calcium, phosphate, and fluoride ions, it forms a special liquid that can attach and seep into parts of the tooth enamel that need strengthening, helping any damaged enamel to re-grow. A tray will be used to keep saliva out, which can prevent the liquid from hardening properly inside damaged teeth.
Cochrane’s dental invention should be available within the next five years if the clinical trial goes as planned. And while growing totally new enamel from scratch is not possible now, with stem cell treatment, it may soon be.
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Image: flickr/ nmoira
June 1st, 2009 at 5:13 pm
Yay! I hate getting fillings, and this would be a great (and less painful) alternative.
June 1st, 2009 at 7:47 pm
Sounds promising – except the fluoride part. The teeth need calcium; they don’t need fluoride – and neither does the rest of the body.
June 1st, 2009 at 10:41 pm
I wonder how they stop it growing once it starts? Don’t think I will be first to try it!
June 2nd, 2009 at 8:29 am
[...] it all seems so needless coupled with news that a development in Australia prevents tooth decay. [Link] Of course, there may be communication problems. It is one thing to understand a Scot, or an [...]
June 2nd, 2009 at 10:23 am
Can it cause teeth to fuse together? It would be kind of interesting to have just two large teeth in your mouth
June 4th, 2009 at 3:20 pm
There are already products on the market that will prevent “de-mineralized” enamel from becoming a cavity. Some contain sodium fluoride and some contain calcium phosphate–both of which will “re-mineralize” the enamel. MI Paste is one product without fluoride. Brush with it and then floss it between the teeth and the incidence cavities will be very low. It can also be “dabbed” onto the affected surface of the tooth and left over night. We prescribe it often in our Cincinnati Dental Practice for patients who have lots of cavities to prevent more cavities from forming. It works by replacing the calcium that has been “leached” from the enamel surface.