Orthotropics-A Different Approach to Orthodontics and Oxygen Advantage
*Note: This blog article was created from technical notes and handouts from a presentation Dr. Johnson has made in the past.
Our mouths are significantly smaller today than before the industrial revolution, as much as 15 mm smaller or narrower.
See Dr. Kevin Boyd's papers and Weston Price's papers.
We are smaller because:
We as a culture do not breastfeed long enough or not at all
We introduce only soft food to babies
As a culture, we eat soft, processed foods; therefore we do not need to use our jaw muscles to obtain calories to survive. We are Born Nasal Breathers:
Born this way and need to stay lifetime nasal breathers
We should breathe through our noses all the time
The nose produces Nitric Oxide - which is essential for vasodilatation and many other benefits.
This helps us to absorb more Oxygen and conditions the air
Tonsils and adenoids like it; they stay the shape they are supposed to be, don't enlarge, and don't contribute to allergies.
Lip Taping - micropore tape or first aid tape
Tongue-tie - occurs 25% in published research, but is more in this country at 45%
Need to check all babies!
Should be corrected in the first 48 hours - ideal - frenulum revision
The tongue cannot get to the roof of the mouth where it belongs; poor latching during breastfeeding
Poor arch development of the maxilla promotes downward mandibular growth (harmful), a poor swallowing pattern, which may contribute to the inferior opening of the Eustachian tubes and then to earaches
Breast Feed
Minimum of one year, longer is better
Proper breastfeeding will allow all mothers to produce enough milk (mothers should not be told they cannot produce enough milk - it is a problem of inefficient nursing on the baby's part, poor latch, baby tires before he has enough milk.
Baby-led Weaning Booklet the baby lead
Jerky and whole sugar cane stem - used in Africa, can be bought online
Sleep on back
Harvey Stalerd - Orthodontist
Shoulder blades back, good posture, easy
Facial symmetry
(Sleep on the side - rounds shoulders, creates facial asymmetry, deviated septum, head tilt)
T&A: Tonsils and Adenoids allergies
Why do we want babies to breastfeed? So that our full genetic potential can be expressed. So that our mouth will develop to its full size and forward position relative to the front of the skull or cranial base
Airway and Dental Health:
Maintaining an Airway requires your body's full attention. Taking the next breath is automatic, and the body wants to do it with the most efficiency.
Things we do to maintain our airway and the physical symptoms that result from the compensations:
1. Mouth Breathing: Tooth decay / Gum Disease, inflammation of tonsils and adenoids, allergies, stuffy nose, runny nose, asthma symptoms.
2. Grind and Clench Teeth:
Wears teeth, creates crack lines or fault lines in teeth, makes front teeth more prone to chipping, gives teeth an "Older Look", breaks teeth, wears and breaks fillings, crowns, and other dentistry, gum disease around teeth or dental implants, gum recession, notching of teeth at root or gum line.
3. Tempromandibular Joint (TMJ) Pain or Dysfunction (TMD)
Overworking the TMJ while grinding/clenching the teeth can damage the joint cartilage. Clicking and popping the Joint can result. TMJ Pain can result. Head trauma or whiplash injury can also damage the TMJ.
4. Headache and muscle Pain
Prolonged working of the muscles can result in Headache and muscle pain in the face and neck.
5. Why do we work our teeth and muscles? We do it to open up or maintain our airways.
"Our brain is willing to sacrifice your teeth to maintain airway", says Gerald Simmons MD, Cardiologist.
6. Forward Head Posture is compensation that allows for a more efficient airway if you have too small a mouth
Consequences:
Strains muscles of neck and posture to hold the head in the forward position.
Creates muscle fatigue and pain.
Contributes to arthritis in neck.
6. Fragmented Sleep
If our airway starts to close while sleeping, our body may keep the body in stage I or II sleep and keep us from getting into stage III sleep, and REM sleep is where our muscles relax, and the airway closes. Stage III and REM sleep is when we "Heal." We need to get into stage III and REM Sleep. See Book: Sleep Interrupted by Park MD
7. Reflux: see the book: Chronic Cough Enigma by Koufman MD
8. For some patients, their body realizes that the oxygenation will go down if they go to sleep. The body does not want this to happen, so the body will not let the patient go to sleep, or if the patient gets to sleep and wakes up, the patient cannot get back to sleep.
The patient wakes up feeling exhausted, not rested, and not ready to take on the day.
Consequences: Cancer, Hardening of Arteries, Heart Attack, Stroke, Diabetes, Chronic Fatigue, Fibromyalgia, Damage and wear to teeth and TMJ, headaches.
We use up our teeth surviving the night. As we wear down the teeth over the years, we use up the ability to maintain toned airways, and the quality of our sleep and health deteriorate.
Autonomic Nervous System (this is the unconscious nervous system that governs your body's processes).
The sympathetic nervous system regulates breathing, heart rate, and blood pressure—the parasympathetic nervous system: governs digestion and sexual desire.
Due to the stress of maintaining the airway, many patients habitually stay most of the time in sympathetic overdrive. As a result, an imbalance develops, and the patient is not in a parasympathetic state for the proper amount of time a day.
Creating hyperactive children and adults
Consequences:
Increased breathing pace and volume, increased heart rate, increased Blood Pressure.
Our O2 and CO2 balance is corrupted; O2 cannot leave the hemoglobin if there is not the proper amount of CO2.
Consequences: Cancer, diabetes, heart attack, stroke, depression, chronic pain, insomnia, restless leg, reflux, asthma, bronchitis, nasal congestion, otitis media, obesity, Panic Attack, Chart pg 40 Sleep Interrupted by Steven Park MD