Not the same thing…
I had dental problems while taking fin. The problems were unprecedented and not brought on by a change in dental hygiene.
I had major gum inflammation and recession. Bloody gums even.
My dentist was shocked. So was I.
I was given a dental rinse (Peridex) which helped. He also suggested I dip my tooth brush in Listerine and brush my gums this way without toothpaste (after normal brushing).
At the time I thought it was some sort of auto immune reaction as I know it was not brought on by my diet or dental hygiene.
Post edited. Reserving further judgement until any bone mineral density tests are performed.
Hey Guys,
Regarding these tooth problems I feel that there might be three possible reasons why:
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Inflammation of the gums causing gingivitis to run rampant. This might be caused by the overall high inflammation in our bodies or due to something else.
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Vitamin D which is synthesized by the Parathyroid hormones is not being synthesized properly and this plus calcium and phosphorous make up the dentine (under the enamel). We all pretty much have low Vitamin D and possibly calcium is out of whack too causing tooth decay. Both Vitamin D and Calcium in the body are controlled by Parathyroid hormone.
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Drier mouth not producing enough saliva to fight off night-time bacteria. Saliva protects our teeth from bacteria. I don’t think I have this problem yet I have sensitive teeth too.
I really think its # 2.
I had a regular 6-month cleaning yesterday and took the opportunity to ask my dentist about potential affects of low testosterone on the teeth (I did not mention low vitamin D). Essentially, he said that the bone comprising the teeth is different than the long bone (all other bones). Assuming good hygiene, the bones in the teeth are typically the last to be affected by age, external factors, etc. He has seen patients with osteoporosis with healthy teeth.
I am not saying that low vitamin D cannot be a contributor to tooth decay, however, I am saying that, in one NYC dentist’s opinion, teeth are very resilient and typically hold up better than the other bones of the body.
He also said that as bones decay, they are released into the bloodstream. High levels of calcium in the blood MAY be one way to measure this.
Hi York,
Yes but as most doctors deny our case and our problems, any dentist will not make any assumptions about our condition and its effect on teeth unless we specifically tell them that we’re sick and one big cause is low vitamin D. If you google Dentin and Vitamin D you will see what I mean. Also, if you tell a dentist “hey my vitamin D is super low, should I be worried about this”, that might be a different story. BTW, my father is a dentist.
correiovip this is very interesting. I noticed that when I took a holiday from all endogenous testosterone boosting substances in February that my testosterone of course dropped below 300, but in addition my estradiol went under 10 (below 18 is a trigger for osteoporosis, and E is synthesized from T). Estradiol is needed along with vit D and calcium for bone mineralization. And, this coincided with a flare up of some tooth sensitivity issues that my dentist >thinks< is cracked tooth syndrome . . . I have a test order for a bone density test will keep everyone posted. Near as I can tell I’ve been hypogonadal since quiting fin about 8 years ago.
kazman
“Curiously I did experience an increase in dental cavities the year after my castration. I am not sure that castration had anything to do with that, though it’s possible. For now I believe that was a random fluctuation in dental cavities which may have happened to me anyway were I not castrated.”
I am noticing some gum recession too.
I notice that before fin, i could eat cold food and never notice any tooth sensitivity, some time after quitting finasteride my teeth became very sensitive to eating anything cold. It was a very noticeable change and to this day my teeth are very sensitive.
I absolutely noticed my teeth started to rapidly deteriorate when I started finasteride. I never thought in a million years that could be why, but it makes perfect sense.
I am dreading my next visit to the dentist. The tips of my teeth have turned transparent, they often ache all the way around my jaw, in the morning my jaw is stiff to the point it is almost seized, my gums turn white in just half a day. I really look after my teeth and gums too.
To those with dental problems; do your teeth look like this:
Is anyone on the forum NOT having dental problems? my teeth look good (i think) and they are no longer sensitive. The tips have gone transparent since going paleo-ish diet and getting healthier.
I am scared to go to the dentist. If my teeth go, then that will be the last straw.
I have had three root canals since starting propecia.
i will be getting all 3 teeth with root canals extracted and replaced with a bridge (ultra conservative bridge is poss.)
Root canals are unhealthy, as your immune system cannot reach any bacteria living inside the tooth.
Check the link in Lennons post here:
viewtopic.php?f=27&t=6181&p=51667&hilit=root+canal#p51667
Also i would advise against titanium dental implants, as they can lead to auto immune problems. An example is here:
medhelp.org/posts/Allergy/Ti … how/674895
I’m having dental problems too. It looks as if my teeth are thinning.
Re: Calcium. I read that the body is unable to absorb calcium when it is under stress. Considering most of us are in flight or fight mode it would make sense we are calcium deficient. I take a bone supplement before sleep hoping that it will absorb when my body is slightly more relaxed. Calcium and magnesium are needed for sleep too, so two birds, one stone.
Im hoping that once I get my hands on xyrem and body/nerves are finally calmed and I’m getting deep sleep, things will start to improve. Here’s hoping.
Also, one thing you may find helpful is ‘oil-pulling’. I use coconut oil (which is anti-bacterial) and swish it around and through my teeth for twenty minutes. It supposedly draws out all the bacteria.
Guys…let me ask you all this. How many of you have gut/digestive issues? I’d say most if not all of us. I’ve been on this hell coaster for 6 years. Every symptom known to man. My teeth started feeling frail and feeling like the enamel was gone or mostly gone. At the height of my issues…a back molar just cracked a big chunk off and I didn’t even know when or how it happened…it just fell off at some point.
This was also the height of my gut/digestive issues which have been bad the whole 6 years amongst many other issues. I couldn’t eat anything anymore without issues. Hence…leaky gut, brought on by propecia…or propecia brought on the gluten intolerance…which over 5 years of continuing to eat it brought on the leaky gut. Either way, don’t matter. I decided to say F everything else…I’m healing my gut first. I figured nothing is ever going to work right or get the nutrition it needs if my guts won’t digest anything…so there’s no point trying to deal with the other symptoms. I gave up gluten, rice, beans, corn and dairy and got on a strict paleo diet and my naturopath put me on a stable of supplements. He also put me on bone broth. So, I have bone broth brewing in my crockpot at all times…and drink 8 oz of that per day, EVERY DAY. My guts have calmed down…my teeth feel strong and lubricated like with a strong enamel feeling.
Not to mention, my HEINOUS loss of collagen in my face, hands, feet, elbows and knees has improved a bit too. We’re all malnourished man…there’s no way the body is gonna heal anything w/o what it needs.
I think the bottom line is if you’re desperate about your teeth, you have to start absorbing vitamins and minerals better and that means being strict as hell. I know some of you will say i’m already eating good. But I’m talking no slip ups…eat no irritants or potential allergens. I have taken every supplement known to man and done everything you guys have. But why is it nothing works? Because you’re not absorbing it. You must Heal the guts FIRST.
“As research in this field continues, scientists increasingly believe that leaky gut syndrome may lead to abdominal cramps, pains, anxiety, depression, bi-polar disorder, and other mental health issues. A leaky gut can also impair the natural absorption of nutrients, which ultimately deprives the teeth of essential minerals. In this way, a leaky gut can lead to tooth decay, dental caries, gum disease, and other issues simply by depriving the body of calcium, phosphorous, and other minerals that promote oral health”.
Also, I note that many here are on the Paleo diet which includes a lot of nuts and legumes- these contain the anti-nutrient Phytic acid which leads to mineral deficiencies:
http://www.marksdailyapple.com/nuts-and-phytic-acid/#ixzz2roG0PpMh
Hi everyone (in advance: sry for my english, I’m from Germany)
the most important information first: please go and get your DHEA(S)-levels checked. I did a lot of research in the past couple of week/months (not only because I suffer from severe ‘brain fog’ but also because of dental problems especially gum recession that, like yours, came out of nothing and seem to worsen almost daily) and there’s more than just one evidence that our dental problems are related to a serious decrease in this steroid hormone caused by propecia (relevant links underneath).
Short background:
I took Propecia for about 6 years (from 18 to 24) and quit about 2 years ago cold turkey. Since that my mental side effects (as do my dental problems and general body-symptoms like muscle weakness, joint pain, bone loss, tiredness) seem to even worsen, esp. in the last 2 month. I will do a larger post in the mental side affects section later.
The reason for geeting deeper into DHEA was a recent blood test by my family doctor to make sure my dental problems don’t result from any vitamin/nutrient deficiency. Well, when I went to the my doc to discuss the results she was pretty shocked, cause my DHEA(S)-level was 125,4 µg/dL (160-449 µg/dL), particularly in light of the fact that in the age of 25 (I’m 26 right now) DHEA normally reaches its peak to decline 2% each year from then on. (BTW: my vitamin/nutrient were all okay, except for Vit D, which also seems to be caused by Propecia.) By that time she wasn’t familiar with my propecia story and even thought it was an error in measurement. Of course I took that for a reason to inform her about the Post finasterid syndrom, and although she wasn’t into the topic, she said that this could be a logical explanation for such a hormone defiency. Unfortunatelly I had to wait until yesterday to get DHEA-capsules cause here in Germany you not only have to get a prescription for DHEA but also the pharmacy has to import it from foreign countries like USA. So I can’t say anything about the effect yet.
I know that it’s nothing new that Propecia can cause DHEA to decline but after all I’ve read I’m pretty sure that it’s not only the reason for symptoms like muscle weakness, tiredness etc. but also for the dental problems a lot of Propecia-victims seem to suffer from. I even found a patent that explains how to treat periodontitis with DHEA-Gel/Cream that gets directly applied on the gums respectively in the gum pockets. So IMHO it would be best to use the sublingual DHEA-Tabs which are even more difficult to get in Germany Last but not least I even found a hint that some of those “little” symptoms that are explained in this thread (and that I’m experiencing as well) like dry mouth/less salive production might be caused by DHEA-deficiency (Link no.2).
But before you start taking DHEA I REALLY ask you to let your DHEA-LEVELS CHECKED AND POST THEM HERE IN THIS THREAD so we can be sure (or at least “more sure”) that there’s a connection.
PATENT: google.com/patents/DE10018221A1?cl=en
DRY MOUTH: ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/19318446
EVOLUTION OF CHIN: anthropogeny.com/Evolution%20of%20the%20Chin.htm
HORMONES AND PERIODONTITIS: dailymail.co.uk/health/artic … lings.html
Since propeciahelp.com helped me through a lot of hard times by just reading comments of other sufferers I’m really hoping that this time it’s my who makes a contribution. God bless you all!
Dreiser
I have gum recession.
I’m using a fluroide free toothpaste, electric toothbrush plus water flossing gadget.
Oil pulling with coconut oil is helping.
I’ve just ordered DHEA to help with gums, bones and sleep. I’ll post updates.