Recommendations

• Take no more than 2000 mg of vitamin C on the day of treatment. Excessive amounts of the vitamin decrease the effectiveness of oral anesthetics.
• For best results, it is recommended to use the same filling material (if the material has a metal component) for all of the cavities in your mouth. Some studies show that a galvanic reaction or battery effect may result when different metals are placed in the mouth. Currents are generated from a metal when it contacts saliva; this effect is compounded when different metals, such as those from gold fillings and amalgam fillings, are present in the same mouth. Some experience this effect as a shock when a fork touches a particular filling. However, nonmetallic filling materials, such as porcelain and composite resins, can be used in conjunction with metal fillings without causing a galvanic reaction.
• Pregnant and breastfeeding women should have cavities filled only in an emergency. Dental anesthetics cross the placental barrier, and x-rays, stress, and trauma experienced during a dental visit may affect the unborn baby. It is generally safest to have teeth filled during the fourth through seventh months of pregnancy. The most hazardous times are the first and last trimesters, when the baby is at the most crucial stages of its development

From The Complete Book of Dental Remedies by Flora Parsa Stay, DDS , ©1996. Published by Avery Publishing, New York. For personal use only; neither the digital nor printed copy may be copied or sold. Reproduced by permission.