Dentist / manual osteopath, Dr. Paul Greenacre, DDS, DOMP, one of National Academy of Osteopathy alumni in Ottawa, Canada, wrote this article that is scheduled to be published by Cranio UK next month. Dr Greenacre gave us permission to share this article.
DEFICIENCY DYSMORPHOGENESIS SYNDROME (DDS)
A personal view by Dr. Paul Greenacre, DDS, DOMP
Introduction:
Today we are faced with an epidemic of disturbed and deficient
human growth patterns termed Musculo-skeletal Dysmorphogenesis (MD), which are
being caused by widespread micronutrient deficiencies. These are due to such
factors as deficient maternal nutrient supply or insufficient resources within
the mother’s system generally, and this might include other factors such as
poor modern macronutrient food choices, most probably due to the massive
world-wide soil nutrient depletion, combined with a dangerous decline in
breastfeeding. In summary, all of these factors lead to imperfect epigenetic
expression of the human physical genome.
The first obvious indicator-area of Mankind’s Dysmorphogenesis
or skeletal breakdown is the shape or width of the palatal arch – Maxillary
Dysmorphogenesis (MD) - that starts forming at about 8½ weeks in utero. No one in clinical medicine is measuring the size or
shape of the palatal arch at birth or beyond. This is a major medical oversight
as it is vital diagnostic information. It is a key biological marker
measurement that is being overlooked by all practitioners worldwide.
Under-developed palates mean that 60% of the children today will
need orthodontics. Small palates have serious jaw, cranial, airway and spinal
consequences.
An under-developed palate can cause a posteriorly displaced
lower jaw, leading to a forward-head posture so that C2 and C3 are displaced.
Consequently, the whole spine suffers. Putting it very simply, “the head does not balance well if the palate
and the mandible are off”. Similarly, the (female) pelvis does not develop as
widely as intended and therefore there is no full pelvic brim development to
facilitate traditional vaginal deliveries. This may lead to a need for a
C-section.
One astute Australian Obstetrician, Dr. Kathleen Vaughn, told Dr. Weston Price
that she could usually predict which women would need a C-section by looking at
their faces and their crowded teeth and smaller jaws and also by the nature of
their gait due to their narrow under-developed hips.
The
Dysmorphogenesis Dilemma:
Maxillary
DDysmorphogenesis (MD) leads to shrinking Faces, shrinking
airways, shrinking pelvises and possibly premature brain dysfunction.
Why are human palates, pelvises, airways and faces shrinking? Is this related
to Brain Dysmorphogenesis and Sleep Apnea Dysfunction?
Why do
today’s humans not grow wide healthy palates like they did for 2 million years
of humanoid history? Dr. Clark Spencer-Larsen, professor of anthropology at
Ohio State University, states - “Over the past 10,000 years there has been a
trend toward rounder skulls with smaller faces and jaws.”
Could it
be that our jaws, faces and brains are all exhibiting Musculo-skeletal Dysmorphogenesis
for the same reasons? Dr. Harold Arlen, MD ENT specialist, often spoke about jaw
deterioration and the connection between the Tensor Veli Palatini (TVP) muscle,
jaw dysfunction, stuffy ears or hearing loss and the Trigeminal nerve.
“ the TVP is the
only muscle of the soft palate innervated by the Trigeminal nerve and the only
muscle that functions to open the Eustachian tube. This is the key to the
relationship between the jaw and ear dysfunction that is plaguing modern man,
along with the deterioration of other parts of the jaw and the dental
apparatus.” Others have referred to Maxillo-mandibular Dysmorphogenesis as
well.
The
following summary of a TMJ/MRI study refers to Maxillary Dysmorphogenesis in
relation to TMJ problems and retrognathia and midline distortions:
A
retrospective MRI study on 128 children 14 years of age or younger by two
neuro-radiologists and an oral surgeon was designed to “evaluate the
relationship between internal derangements of the temporomandibular joints and
disturbed facial skeleton growth (Dysmorphogenesis),.........We conclude that
TMJ derangements are both common in children and may contribute to the
development of retrognathia, with or without asymmetry, in many cases.”
(Pediatric Internal Derangements of the TM Joint: Effect on Facial Development.
Published in the American J of Orthodontics and Dentofacial Orthopedics 1993;
104:51-9)
Authors: Dr. K.P.Schelhas,MD ,
neuroradiologist. Dr. S.R.Pollei,MD, neuroradiologist.
Dr. C.H.Wilkes,MD, oral surgeon.
Why do
humans have noticeably more narrow skulls while other mammals’ skulls and jaws
have not changed? What are we doing wrong? Is our “civilized” diet now becoming
a major disease factor?
Humans
and our Hominid ancestors consistently grew great wide jaws with an almost
edge-to-edge bite for about two million years without any effort. These jaws grew to be very wide and healthy.
Their simple raw and partly cooked diet and consistent tongue-swallow pattern
essentially powered all this magnificent palatal growth. However, our civilized
diet and feeding practices have changed this pattern of growth for the worse.
Today 60 to 70 per cent of children require some form of orthodontics. There is
now an epidemic of smaller maxillae creating under developed jaws and faces.
Maxillary
Dysmorphogenesis, or a smaller than acceptable palate, is very common today.
This is, in fact, an undiagnosed medical epidemic, a poorly underestimated osseous
key marker of human health. It is simply overlooked and an undeclared modern
human crisis. The first consequence of a small upper jaw is that this problem
affects and disturbs the lower jaw posture and the function of the two jaw
joints as a direct consequence. If your jaw grows properly to be full sized how
could it fit into an undersized maxilla? This is why everyone knows about TMJ
problems. As my teacher and orthodontist confrere, Dr. Lawrence Funt, used to
say:
“The
Maxilla is the Criminal and the Mandible is the Victim.”
Archeologists
and anthropologists know that the human palates, faces and pelvises are
shrinking but they do not know why. Perhaps this is all part of a larger overlooked
problem - The Deficiency Dysmorphogenesis Syndrome or “DDS”.
Here are
a few of the possible reasons for Mankind’s Dysmorphogenesis:
1.
Changes in how
modern humans swallow. The hypoglossal
muscle gets mistrained when we use badly designed and unphysiologic latex
nipples when we bottle feed. This means the tongue does not consistently push
up and forward on the developing palate to empower or stimulate proper palatal
growth. This means the palatal and the two lateral growth plates do not grow to
their full genetic potential.
2.
Micronutrient deficiencies in our food supply due to soil depletion means fewer
trace minerals, vitamins, amino acids and enzymes and essential oils. Dr Roger
Williams said years ago
“After 55 years in the field of
biochemistry, I believe strongly that good nutrition is the key to expanding
our physical, mental and emotional powers.”
Other experts have recognized Micronutrient
Deficiencies. Linus Pauling, PhD. said “You
can trace every sickness, every disease and every ailment to a mineral
deficiency.”
Sadly
many children are deficient in trace minerals and other nutrients today. Yet we
as dentists could measure these easily using baby teeth for mineral assay.
Teeth
are the most mineral-dense structures in our bodies. Our baby teeth and our
adult teeth could provide us with an exact trace mineral record or mineral
assay of any trace minerals that we have lacked during prenatal and post natal
development. Some researchers think that they can predict our future disease tendencies
by knowing our trace mineral deficiencies.
Certainly, this is true in veterinary medicine and logically it should hold true in human medicine. The concentration of trace minerals in our
baby teeth and adult teeth is a unique biological phenomenon. We should be using information about minerals
more in modern medical and dental diagnosis. Imagine counseling all your
patients on their actual trace mineral
deficiencies and which diseases these deficiencies will make them susceptible
to develop. This knowledge and methodology is coming soon.
Dr
Haigivara, MD and medical researcher stated “Modern science has made it clear that all changes within the cells of
Humankind are performed by the action of enzymes. It has been found that
minerals have much to do with the activities of enzymes. In that sense ,
minerals can be said to be enzymes for the enzymes.”
Dr.
Alfred Aslander wrote about trace minerals over 50 years ago in the Journal of
Applied Nutrition (Vol 17 No 4, 1964).
He applied the principles of plant-based trace mineral supplementation
to his children via bone meal. They all grew perfect teeth.
3. Less
breastfeeding, or none at all, for economic or other reasons. This is made
worse by substituting cow’s milk for human milk; cow’s milk is high fat and
human milk is only 4% fat content. Think about that fact. Look up Milksucks
.org. Read and think. “What in milk’s
name are we doing?” Cow’s milk has so many large molecules that can damage the
child’s immature microbiome before he or she has the chance to make an informed
decision on what he or she should eat for food. Why not stick with Mother Nature’s
original plan?
4. Poor
macronutrients food choices are made by too many people. We consume too many
sweet drinks, sugars, synthetic sweeteners, and non-foods from the “just for
profit” junk food industry; these are dangerous to human health. Contrast this
modern fast food to Stone Age man. They used their stone clubs to smash open
bones left behind by other animals to get the bone marrow “treat” in the center
of the bones. Native North American Indians would transition a breast-feeding
infant on to bone marrow from deer or moose. Today we stress out our infants’
microbiomes by introducing solids too early. Drop in at your local butchers and
buy some bones for a bone marrow “treat” and make bone broth soup like your
grandparents used to do. Corn syrup and fructose production increases every
year in the USA and so does the level of Diabetes. We consume far too much
sugar.
5.
Metabolic Disruptors in our diet and chemicals in our environment are
disturbing human growth and development. We have added 100,000 new chemicals to
our food and our environment since World War II. The chemical industries
actually won the war. How can good fertilizers come from the oil industry? Instead of traditional biologically smart
farming methods we now farm chemically.
6. More
allergies and food sensitivities block more noses and this changes the pattern
of facial growth. Look at all the kids with open mouths and long faces. They
are mostly victims of environmental allergens. Blocked noses are signs of
lymphoid reactions to the wrong foods and other allergens and perhaps even
earlier in utero predisposing nutrient deficiencies
7. More
high-speed traumas to children’s jaws because we move at a much faster speed in
high-speed vehicles. One of the overlooked issues in almost all accidents and
falls is the damage done to the discs and ligaments of the jaw joints caused by
whiplash. Reciprocal to whiplash is ‘jaw lash’, which is always present and
rarely checked. Every accident victim
should be checked for “jaw lash” to the growing jaw joints - the two most important joints in the human
body. Most test crash dummies do not even have jaw joints incorporated into
their design. How stupid is that.
8.
Frenum ties, both lingual to the tongue and under the upper lip are often
undiagnosed or untreated. Midwives a hundred years ago treated these problems
within minutes of the child being born. I have several midwives as patients and
I greatly respect their knowledge and opinions. Actually palates and noses are
getting measurably narrower and this in turn causes maxilla-mandibular-nasal-hyoid
dysfunction. Lower jaw displacement can contribute to airway distress and even
more myo-neurologic and myofascial distress and the incidence of epileptic
seizures.
9.
‘Disuse atrophy’ is another theory that says we just do not chew enough any
more. It is true that we do not chew as heavily or as heartily as we used to.
Can you imagine the Kardashians being invited over to a “hide chewing” party to
make some new animal hide clothes? Actually the Kardashians would probably do
it as a publicity stunt.
I guess
times have changed in the clothing industry. Jaw muscles simple are not used
that much as in the time of our hunter-gatherer ancestors.
Maxillary
Dysmorphogenesis due to the “Deficiency Dysmorphogenesis Syndrome “ leads to
major health problems for the lower jaw and for the growing child. Then the
adult suffers from this loss of facial form for a lifetime if the palate and
jaws are not corrected. We should look now at the importance of the maxilla and
its development to all humans through the eyes of a great researcher, Dr.
Weston Price DDS, who went on a worldwide odyssey to study human palates and
jaws and the effect of the civilized diet on jaw growth. He wrote a book called
“Nutrition and Physical Degeneration. A Comparison of Primitive and Modern
Diets and Their Effects.” Every physician and dentist and health care worker in
the world should read this book. He knew human palates well. When Dr Price
summarized his life’s work, studying the beautiful wide arches of primitive
cultures that were not exposed to the so-called
“modern diet” or “civilized diet”, he said this:
“The
most indelible impression left by my investigations among primitive races is
that which came from examining 1276 skulls of (Peruvian) people who had been
buried hundreds of years ago, without finding a single skull with the typical
marked narrowing of the face and dental arches that afflicts a considerable
proportion of the residents in modernized Peru, the United States and many
communities of Europe today. I know of no problem so important to our modern
civilization as the finding of the reason for this, and the elimination of the
cause. Few will recognize the significance of this important point.”
This
last sentence sums up his lifetime’s work; it is important that every family
know this fact. The human face is shrinking. Jaws and faces are getting
narrower. We should all know why this is and to understand how to reverse this
pathological trend. The key to reversing this is to keep our natural tongue to
palate swallow, use no artificial nipples, intake more enzymes, more trace
minerals, more good fats in our diet through more seaweed, more bone marrow and
bone broth soups and of course more breastfeeding for our children.
Dr Price
was right and is still right. Today few if any medical practitioners or
researchers are considering the importance of the growth and development of the
upper dental arch or our palates. Our palates form the anatomical basis for our
airways, our sinuses, our eye sockets, our noses and make our beautiful facial
form.
Do more
children today need reading glasses because the maxilla is not enabling the
development of the eyeball and its attached ligaments? I could find no
investigative research articles on this topic. If you do please inform me at
once.
The
palate or maxilla is actually the gateway between the neurocranium and the
viscerocranium. So does a small palate reflect Brain Dysmorphogenesis and
Dysfunction as well as Facial Dysmorphogenesis and Dysfunction? Some
researchers see a co-relation. “In the context of human developmental
conditions, we review the conceptualization of schizophrenia as a
neurodevelopmental disorder, the status of craniofacial dysmorphology as a
clinically accessible index of brain Dysmorphogenesis…” (Waddington et al).
Then
Buckley and Dean et al said “Subtle
Dysmorphogenesis of the craniofacial region constitutes important corroborating
evidence of the neuro-developmental origins of schizophrenia”.
It seems
several experts have correlated these two problems but it is not well known in
the dental or medical clinical contexts and not well correlated in our clinical
literature yet. Perhaps we have missed a critical correlation of these major
orthopedic and neurocranial contexts of problems associated with the
“civilized” modern diet.
Sir
William Osler said, “What the brain
does not know, the eye will not see.”
This
seems to be the case in this matter of “Dysmorphogenesis
Misunderstood”
Dentists
and orthodontists see fewer and fewer well-developed maxillae these days.
However, we do not see it for what it might really represent. A full body and
mind phenomenon.
This can
be corrected only if we recognize it as a major growth deficiency nutritional
epidemic. Then we can feed our children differently to reverse this epidemic of
shrunken palates and faces and dysfunctioning brains and underdeveloped
pelvises. Most doctors do not look for this problem at all and thus do not
observe it in their practices. We overlook this anthropologic whole body
tragedy every day. This will have to change in the future of medical education.
One doctor actually saw this a long time ago. His name is Dr. John Diamond, MD
of New York State. Here is his assessment of the importance of the Palatal
Arch:
“One of the greatest gifts a child can
receive from his mother is a well-formed palatal arch. But it is doubtful
whether any of us have ever seen a normal arch because it may well be that only
primitive man on his so called “primitive” diet has a fairly normal arch. With
such an arch the following benefits are conferred:
1. There
will be minimal occlusal problems.
2. Three
of the structures with the most to do with centering and balancing the body in
space will be free to function normally: the sphenoid bone, the hyoid bone, and
the temporomandibular joint.
3.There
will be an accompanying development of the lateral aspects of the face
–especially of the malar and zygoma (cheek) bones.
4 Normal
development and stimulation of the pituitary will be facilitated (master
hormonal gland.)
5. The
overall health and well being of the patient will be sound.”
Dr.
Diamond concluded by further saying: “ Maternal
nutrition, proper infant feeding and the ability to smile are three of the most
important essentials for good health and they all relate to the palatal arch.”
Thus, we
need to grow bigger “back in the day” paleo-sized palates and develop better
jaws and tongue function because our mouth is the mirror of our health. The
swallow is far more important to human health than we have ever realized. It is
no accident that Yoga experts ask us to place out tongue on the rugae just
behind our upper front teeth and swallow with that tongue position or yoga
posture. Since good facial growth is critical to our overall good health; we
need to grow the next generation to be “Paleo-moderns”.
This issue is probably why Albert Szent-Gyorgyi, the Nobel prize winning Hungarian Biochemist,
said: “If structure does not tell us anything about function, it means that
we have not looked at it correctly.”
We doctors and dentists overlook this small under-developed
palate and retrusive jaws/deep bite problem which we now know is an
anthropological and growth-deficient tragedy. We need to look more closely at
human structural changes and start doing daily palatal measurements now on all
our patients. This will change the future of medical education and incorporate
dental medicine into general medicine.
Dr Roger
Williams would agree since we will repeat what he said many years ago “after
55 years in the field of biochemistry, I believe strongly that good nutrition
is the key to expanding our physical, mental and emotional powers.”
Could airway
problems like snoring and sleep apnea, brain dysfunction, visual disturbances,
ear problems headaches, neck aches, sinus problems all be related to Maxillo-mandibular
Dysmorphogenesis? Could all this be
related to and caused by the “deficiency dysmorphogenesis syndrome”?
I leave
you with this challenge; how can we inspire people to make this change in their
diet? This requires more thought, work and insight from more doctors,
anthropologists, archeologists and medical researchers. Dental palatal width measurements
are key modern osseous measurements and should definitely be included in daily
clinical practice and facial skeletal research. Politicians could be asked to
put their energy and influence behind the idea of financial reward for mothers
who breastfeed. Plus supporting the simple concepts of growing more healthy
children by using Dr. Aslander’s super supplementation methods to create paleo-moderns.
This would result in children with well-formed palates and well formed teeth
with better airways, pelvises, resistance to diseases and overall better mental
and physical development.
“If civilized man
is to survive, he must incorporate the fundamentals of primitive nutritional
wisdom into his modern lifestyle.” Good
advice from Dr Weston Price
Dr
George Paul Greenacre, DDS and Manual Osteopath..
613 875
2654
Ottawa, Canada
Editor
writes:
Most
dentists will be familiar with the “Schwarz-Korkhaus” method of measuring the
size and shape of the dental arches, which is based on the original work of
French dentist Dr Pont in 1910.
For the convenience
of those unfamiliar with this method, I am showing the relevant chart devised
by Drs Schwarz and Korkhaus. The
original plastic chart is available from North American Orthodontic Laboratory
(US) and from Triple “O” Laboratory (UK).
