If you or a loved one has had a small-to-medium-sized cavity filled in the last 6 years, on a molar, premolar, or baby tooth, you’ve fallen for the biggest scam in dentistry, a scam of a magnitude that would make the wellness trade association green with envy.

You are getting most cavities filled for no reason at all, other than for dentists to make money. 

It turns out the large majority of cavities can be treated with Silver Diamine Fluoride, or SDF. That solution — used in Japan for 60 years — arrests the decay and to some extent can remineralize the tooth.  The cavity can’t be too deep, and it has to be in place where it can be easily reached.  It also turns the decay black, so it’s probably not a good idea for front teeth, at least for people who are hoping to be swiped right.

Quizzifans among TSW Nation may think they’ve heard this song before. They’d be right. Quizzify has been asking questions about SDF and writing on this topic for years.

Marty Makary and some colleagues have also highlighted the benefits of SDF, and correctly predicted that dentists would be very tardy in adopting it.

The difference now?  Not unlike the wellness perps, it turns out that dentists’ own words are their own worst enemy. If you read this new Quizzify blog, peruse the quotes carefully, and link through to the sources, you’ll see what I mean: they’ve known all along this along.