{"type":"rich","version":"1.0","provider_name":"Transistor","provider_url":"https://transistor.fm","author_name":"The DOC Podcast","title":"More Than The Mouth: Dentistry's Role in Total Health (w/Dr. Staci Whitman)","html":"","width":"100%","height":180,"duration":4498,"description":"Episode SummaryIn this powerful episode, Dr. Mike sits down with Dr. Staci Whitman, a board-certified pediatric dentist, functional and naturopathic dentistry expert, and one of the only dentists in the world certified by the Institute of Functional Medicine. Dr. Staci shares her remarkable journey from nearly leaving the profession entirely to becoming a trailblazer in functional pediatric dentistry. Together, they dive deep into the critical connections between oral health and whole-body health, exposing the gaps in traditional dental education and offering a roadmap for how dentists and patients can do better.\nShow Notes0:00 — Introduction & welcome\n1:49 — Topics covered today: fluoride, oral-gut microbiome, airway health, burnout, and more\n3:33 — Dr. Staci's journey: from a childhood dental trauma to nearly quitting the profession\n5:47 — \"I almost left dentistry\" — how debt kept her in and what ultimately changed\n6:57 — The pivot to pediatrics and a root-cause, upstream approach\n15:36 — Her three diagnostic priorities: nutrition, gut health, and airway (not the teeth)\n16:11 — \"We don't have dental physicians\" — connecting the mouth to the whole body\n33:12 — The fluoride debate: how Dr. Staci went from advocate to skeptic\n37:06 — Fluoride works topically, not systemically — what the science actually says\n56:06 — The oral microbiome: nitric oxide, the oral-gut axis, and why it matters\n57:02 — \"You cannot have a healthy patient without a healthy gut\"\n58:00 — Oral microbiome testing: options, tools, and why it should be standard of care\n1:05:46 — Top action step #1: nutrition and reducing snacking frequency\n1:07:40 — Top action step #2: hydration, saliva, and minerals\n1:08:02 — Top action step #3: airway and the dangers of mouth breathing\nResources & Links Mentioned:Register for the In-person Early Treatment Comprehensive ($1000 off if register by June 30): https://www.earlyorthotreatment.com/ Oral microbiome testing resources:...","thumbnail_url":"https://img.transistorcdn.com/Wf6VIMhB_ulpfJzsJlix0BOF0i4W9yk8xxJ6-5X1Y6E/rs:fill:0:0:1/w:400/h:400/q:60/mb:500000/aHR0cHM6Ly9pbWct/dXBsb2FkLXByb2R1/Y3Rpb24udHJhbnNp/c3Rvci5mbS9zaG93/LzQxOTI3LzE2OTg2/MzExNDktYXJ0d29y/ay5qcGc.webp","thumbnail_width":300,"thumbnail_height":300}