Getting to the Root Cause of Cavities—Dr. Kim Kush—CariFree

"The average patient doesn't understand what causes cavities, and quite frankly, the average dentist doesn't understand it well enough, although that's changing," says Dr. Kim Kush, who's been a practicing dentist in his hometown for 40 years now. It wasn't until about 20 years ago that he started realizing that if everything he was taught in dental school were all there is to it, then his patients wouldn't continue to get cavities, year after year. Rather than focusing on how to repair the damage of cavities once it's already occurred, Dr. Kush wanted to focus on identifying and targeting the factors that cause cavities in the first place. So, what are the causes? Why can some people go their whole life without a single cavity—and without particularly good oral hygiene—while others will have new cavities every time they see the dentist—despite flossing and brushing every day?

Dr. Kim Kush has identified four main risk factors in his practice, the first of which has been validated in large clinical trials with over 12,000 people: dry mouth, diet, biofilm, and genetics. He discusses how and why each risk factor contributes to the development of cavities, and along the way provides surprising facts about bottled water, mouthwash, prescription medications, the importance of when you brush your teeth, and how almost everything having to do with dental health boils down the pH in your mouth.

Dr. Kush offers a fascinating and informative conversation on today's podcast, so tune in and visit https://carifree.com/ to learn more.