Completely off topic! Good multivitamin/mineral for mid-age men

This topic has 12 replies, 11 voices, and was last updated 9 years, 1 month ago by treehugger.

Viewing 13 posts - 1 through 13 (of 13 total)

Author

Posts
October 16, 2015 at 2:35 PM #21727

bibsoconner
Participant

I’m impressed with the good answers here on everything from solar heating of pools, to computer programming jobs, so I thought I’d ask about vitamins! Surely someone has already researched this. What is a good, reasonably priced multivitamin for a middle-aged (48) male?

Bonus thanks if you can solve the problem that got me thinking about multi-vitamins in the first place: bleeding gums and deep pockets around teeth. When the dentist does that test where they stick a sharp object between your teeth and gums, he manages to call out “4, 5, 6” as opposed to “1, 2, 3”. I tried solving the problem by changing dentists, but the new dentist came up with even worse numbers. I’ve let them do the planar scaling once. They’re still saying I have problems. I’m wondering if at least some of the problem is due to diet (lack of vitamin C?). I don’t currently take a multivitamin, and was thinking it might be a good idea to take one even though I think my diet is healthier than most (I almost never get fast food or eat candy, sodas, etc. I do enjoy my coffee and red wine).

Please no nagging about brushing and flossing. I’m already paying a professional (the dentist) a great deal of money to handle the nagging 🙂

-Dave

October 16, 2015 at 5:33 PM #790307

FlyerInHi
Guest

Not to nag about brushing… But you are doing something to wear your gum. Maybe brushing too vigorously which is what I used to do when I was young.

Gargle with hydrogen peroxide after eating. Don’t let sugar/starch sit in your month too long after eating

I doubt the dentist is nagging. He’s happy you have issues so he can upsell you to deep cleaning, cleaning every 3 months etc…. He’s all too happy to list the remedial actions. I would say avoid the dental groups if possible.

I’m in late 40s but don’t take anything. A low dose aspirin once a week. Fish oil once in a while. Still very healthy and young at heart.

Your plate of food should look colorful with lots of veggies. I do believe that you are what you eat.

October 16, 2015 at 9:19 PM #790326

hillsilly
Participant

No expert here, but you might look into Livionex dental gel. It’s a little pricey— but if it helps, it will seem like the deal of a lifetime!

October 17, 2015 at 8:10 AM #790334

zk
Participant

I’m not going to nag about brushing, but I am going to very strongly suggest an electric toothbrush, if you’re not already using one. Plaque removal is essential to healthy gums, and an electric toothbrush does more to remove plaque than a manual one.

I’m not sure why dentists aren’t more vigorous in their recommendation of electric toothbrushes. If you ask them, they’ll tell you, yes, they work better. But they don’t push them on you or tell you they definitely work a lot better or tell you you should definitely use one.

I had thought the sales points/commercials saying they remove a lot more plaque than regular toothbrushes was just advertising. Until I started using one. Despite regular brushing (with a manual toothrbrush) and flossing, I couldn’t get rid of build up behind my bottom front teeth. There’s kind of some nooks and crannies in there. After I got my teeth cleaned, it would build up in a matter of a week and continue to build up until my next cleaning despite at-least-twice-daily brushing and flossing. Since I’ve gotten an electric toothbrush, I can go the whole six months between cleanings with no noticeable build up.

And you can get one that has a sensor that will tell you if you’re brushing too hard.

October 17, 2015 at 8:39 AM #790337

moneymaker
Participant

Agree that electric toothbrushes are awesome. I had thought that once the gums start to go there is no turning back, but my last checkup had lower numbers, so I may be wrong. It is a somewhat subjective test so will see what happens at the next cleaning.

October 17, 2015 at 10:36 AM #790339

FlyerInHi
Guest

Yes to electric brushes.

Some people think it’s more manly to brush hard. But that just wears your gum.

October 17, 2015 at 11:15 AM #790353

Coronita
Participant

Viagra, if the natural way doesn’t happen frequently. Just kidding. But in all seriousness, why does one need vitamin supplements if one is eating properly?

October 18, 2015 at 2:31 PM #790390

zk
Participant

Just saw a commercial for an Oral B electric toothbrush. The woman recounts asking her dentist if she should use an electric toothbrush. His response was, “sure.”

That sounds about right. You have to ask them, and then they say, “meh, sure.”

I am, by nature, probably less cynical about people’s intentions than I should be. But I’m starting to wonder if dentists don’t push electric toothbrushes because more people using electric toothbrushes would result in less dental/periodontal work being needed.

October 18, 2015 at 2:41 PM #790391

exsdgal
Participant

As for brushing/flossing I agree with the electric brush suggestions. Between Oral-B and Soniccare I prefer Oral-B, and since using them don’t have as much bleeding gums. By far the best find for me was the water floss! It has made flossing a lot less of a chore. Perio is my stand by toothbrush. A combination of this trio has definitely had a positive effect in my dental regime. As for toothpaste I switched to a less chemical based version by Peelu. Hope this helps.

October 18, 2015 at 2:41 PM #790392

no_such_reality
Participant

The electric toothbrushes are also good about stimulating the gums which helps

How’s your tongue? Is it coated in a white crud layer? If so, make sure to brush it, scrape it and increase your probiotic intake to correct your guy biology. The white crud coated tongue is a sign of bad yeast and whack out GI fauna.

October 18, 2015 at 3:33 PM #790396

outtamojo
Participant

recommend:

1. tongue scraper
2. interdental cleanerhttp://www.amazon.com/Dentek-Brush-Interdental-Cleaners-Count/dp/B00CD2922A/ref=sr_1_4/183-6189194-4338924?ie=UTF8&qid=1445207366&sr=8-4&keywords=Interproximal+Brush

3. gum stimulator http://www.amazon.com/GUM-STIMULATOR-HANDLE-600-1EA/dp/B004EBO1FG/ref=pd_sim_194_3?ie=UTF8&refRID=1NWCHC8BXMKQZZNZ6EY3&dpID=31%2BrGbjVcFL&dpSrc=sims&preST=_AC_UL160_SR160%2C160_

All 3 once a day along with regular brushing for 3 months stopped all bleeding for me. Gum disease is no joke!

October 19, 2015 at 11:44 PM #790484

ucodegen
Participant

[quote bibsoconner] bleeding gums and deep pockets around teeth. When the dentist does that test where they stick a sharp object between your teeth and gums, he manages to call out “4, 5, 6” as opposed to “1, 2, 3″[/quote]
This tends to be an indication of gingivitis. Things to look at:
Brushing – At least after meals, before bed. You want sugars to be on the teeth/gums for as short a period of time. Flossing is also important. I use a water-pik forsome of my flossing. After brushing, rinse with Listerine.
Toothpaste – don’t use the sweet ones. I tend to use Arm&Hammer’s Peroxicare. Tastes like crap, but works well and contains both hydrogen-peroxide and baking soda.
Diet – Cut sweets/sugars and things that can be quickly converted to sugars.
Immune issues – are you immuno-suppressed? Taking immuno-suppressants (medicines to reduce rashes etc are immuno-suppressive)
How are your teeth in general? cavities can contribute to gingivitis.

Vitamins – I take Nature Made Multi-Complete. I used to take Twin-Labs multi, but seemed to find that they were losing ‘potency’. There is no real inspection/standard for purity and concentration (that the vitamins really contain the vitamins they claim). Some vitamins are cert’d by USP (U. S. Pharmacopeial Convention). They have some standards and lists of vitamins that they test/verify. NatureMade, Kirkland, TruNature and Berkley & Jensen are listed.

http://www.usp.org/usp-verification-services/usp-verified-dietary-supplements/verified-supplements

— hope this helps.