Great Falls tribune. [volume] (Great Falls, Mont.) 1921-current, 1922-01-19
The HaSki,1 Letter % ';1 %ssz
BLAME IT ON THE TEETH

The connection between defective
teeth and heart disease has been defln-
itely proved to the satisfaction OF the
Society for the Prevention Of Heart
Disease; while a New Jersey aienist
of note has succeeded in convincing the
profession that certain types Of lnsan,
ity are undoubtedly caused by bacterial
infection in the intestines, introduced
through defective teeth. Moreover, 1t
is claimed that victims of insanity ID
considerable numbers have been cured
by proper attention to decayed or the
removal of misplaced teeth
IF this seems preposterous to the
laymen," says one medical authority,
''let him bear in mind that the hollow
in a tooth can easily harDor two bill
lion 2,OOOO0O,OOO-the figures are
more impressive) germs and that there
may be 60 varieties of those in a single
decayed spot. All of them are await
ing a favorable opportunity to get into
the blood circulation, by means OF
which the particular kind of infection
which they represent is carried to the
tissues most suitable for the propaga-
ton of the germ and the exploitation
Of the malady."
Colonel Roosevelt heads the impress
sive fatalities attributed to focal infec-
ton. According to the bulletin issued
at the time of his death, he had been
suffering from an attack Of rheuma-
tism about two months. His progress
had been entirely satisfactory and his
condition had not given cause for any
special concern :. 1ne cause
of death was an embolus.'
blood which gets into the blood stream
and floats along until it meets blood
vessel whose caiber is too small to
permit its passage. In Colonel Roose-
yelt's case, according to his physician,
DR.. George w. Faller, the clot was
probably arrested in the lungs, but IT
might have stopped in the brain. But
, the significant feature is that both the
coIoneIs rheumatism and the resulting
blood clot were attributed by his ply
sicians to an infected tooth 20 years
earlier.
"Cancer" Only Bad Tooth
One of the most interesting cases 10
which a serious ailment was traced oil
rectly to an infected tooth is given IN
recent book ON the subject Of the
'teeth-theory" by DE-. Ryan. a well
known practical dentist, and DIR. Bow
ers, well known physician author.
IA woman" it says, was being
treated by a physician for what he sup
posed was a cancer at the lower mar
gin Of the breast 1t was a suppurat-
ing sore and required constant atten-
ton. One day when the physician
started to dress it, he exclaimed
| sharply:
".You have been going to some
| other doctor for treatment.
1.-THE patient denied it, but the doc
tor declared that he could smell creo-
, sote coming out Of the supposed cancer
Il went to my dentist yesterday,
said the patient, and he put some
| creosote in a tooth
| 500 back to him at once and tell
him to pull that TOOTH said the ply
stefan. -,
"As soon as the tooth was out. the
| cancer healed. This is the astonish-
! ing explanations: The pus from ar
liberated tooth in the patients lower
/ law had followed the line of least re-
sistance and had burrowed channel
among the muscles Of the neck ane
chest, finally emerging at the lower
( margin of the left breast"
| The authors of this book present ar
extremely rational and convincing case
| for the "teeth-theory." They do not
advocate the ruthless extraction of
teeth. They believe that all teeth be
| saved that can be saved. always pro
yided their retention does not interfere
! with the normal process of health
| The teeth of children, they urge, shoult
be given particular attention, because
1 ia tooth infection in early life may be
traced ailments that often do not re-
veal their malignant character unit
| we'll past middle age.