Dr. Steven Lin The Dental Diet Interview

Is Your Smile Costing You Your Date...?

New consumer research has revealed Aussies with pearly whites are perceived to be more attractive (95%) than people with bad teeth. As harsh as it may seem, a white smile might be the one thing costing you your date, hence why your oral health routine might be the most important beauty step you can't afford to skip.

Interview with Dr. Steven Lin, Dental Nutritionist

For further info on Steven check out his Twitter
He's also a regular TEDx presenter, check him out here


Question: Why should we be focusing on our teeth as the most important beauty step?

Dr. Steven Lin: As soon as we meet a new person we subconsciously judge them. From their clothes, to their hair, accent and teeth. As such, oral health care plays a huge role in creating a long-lasting good impression.

Recent research from Philips Sonicare actually found that:
Almost three quarters (73%) of Aussies felt that people with poor oral health were light to heavy smokers. Comparing with 88% of respondents suggesting people with healthy teeth don't smoke at all
One-quarter (25%) of Aussies with poor oral health were perceived as physically unattractive, while the majority (95%) of individuals with pearly whites were perceived as physically attractive
People with poor oral health were considered to be more aggressive, insecure and lacking in confidence

The study saw Aussies comment on two images: one where the subject had clean and healthy-looking teeth, the other where the same subjects' teeth were photo-shopped to show signs of poor oral health.


Question: What inspired your passion for dental nutrition?

Dr. Steven Lin: For a long time in dental practice, I saw people with dental problems that seemed to link to their overall health. We've known the tooth decay and sugar link for a long time, but as a dentist, I wasn't having much luck telling people to quit sugar for the sake of their teeth. After a lot of research, I found that the missing piece of the puzzle was that we need to eat foods that strengthen our teeth. Sure, reducing foods that cause disease is a part of a diet for stunning teeth, but our body is hungry for bone building nutrients that we simply don't get in our diets today. As it turns out, eating for healthy teeth also makes our bodies healthy too!

Question: Can you share with us your beauty tips on nailing a summer-ready smile?

Dr. Steven Lin: Eat the right foods and invest in the right tools
Brushing your teeth properly every day is one of the first steps to the best oral health care, the new Philips DiamondClean Smart brush uses Bluetooth technology to connect to an app in your phone, this app provides you with hints and tips on how to best brush your teeth and get the whitest smile
To complement this, make sure you're eating enough dietary fat and fat-soluble vitamins A, D, E & K2 from sources like quality butter, organ meats, avocados and eggs


Question: What food should we be eating to benefit our pearly whites?

Dr. Steven Lin: Foods that make you chew, like a serving of raw fruit and vegetables a day. Then plenty of bone building elements from calcium rich sources like salmon, almonds and kale. And don't forget to top it off with enough dietary fat and fat-soluble vitamins A, D, E & K2 from sources like quality butter, organ meats, avocados and eggs.


Question: What foods must be avoided to keep our pearly whites in shape?

Dr. Steven Lin: In short, packaged foods but the three main demons are sugar, flour, and vegetable oils. These three refined food products make up nearly every food you find in a package on the supermarket shelf. One thing that people often don't know is that refined flour found in breads, pastas and white rice behave very similarly to sugar in the body, so it's important to limit your intake. Always check packaging for the types of oils used in foods. The refined vegetable or seed oils don't digest well in the body and can affect getting those important teeth building fat soluble vitamins. They include canola oil, sunflower oil, cottonseed oil and soybean oil.


Question: Why did you decide to write The Dental Diet?

Dr. Steven Lin: I have a background in biomedical science so I've always been fascinated with the body. But it was a chance discovery of a book written by a dentist in the 30s which inspired me to dig deeper into -dental nutrition'. It led me on a journey to find that nutritional guidelines have simply left out our teeth and jaw growth as a factor in dietary intake. Today, we are in the middle of an orthodontic epidemic, where kids' jaws aren't growing enough to fit their teeth, AND it's a nutritional problem. If you needed braces or had wisdom teeth out, then this has affected you. We need to have a conversation about how our food shapes our teeth and smile and The Dental Diet takes us through that journey.

Question: Can you tell us about The Dental Diet?

Dr. Steven Lin: We explore the science of eating for straight strong teeth and then jump into a 40-day delicious food plan to get us back to how we are designed to eat. There are 4 main principles of eating for healthy teeth:

Chewing for mechanical jaw growth and healthy airways
Eating plenty of fat-soluble vitamins that grow bone and fuel an inner immunity inside your teeth
Balancing and replenishing a healthy microbiome, that's the bacteria that lives in your digestive system which begins in the mouth
Sourcing naturally and organic foods that send good epigenetic messages. Your food speaks directly to your genes and every bite is shaping your health!

You can visit www.drstevenlin.com for more mouth-body nutrition and stay tuned for the release of The Dental Diet.


Interview by Brooke Hunter