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Holistic Dentistry: Understanding the Mouth as Part of the Whole Person

by Susan Sun Nunamaker · September 10, 2026

Dear Friends & Neighbors,

Windermere Blue Sunset (credit: Windermere Sun-Susan Sun Nunamaker)

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When most of us visit a dentist, we expect the dentist to examine our teeth and gums, look for cavities, evaluate X-rays, and repair whatever needs attention. Holistic dentistry does all of those things, but begins with a broader question:

How might what is happening in the mouth relate to the health of the rest of the person—and how can dental treatment restore oral health while minimizing unnecessary biological burden?

That basic idea is not as radical as it may once have sounded. Modern health organizations increasingly recognize that the mouth should not be considered an isolated part of the body. The FDI World Dental Federation, for example, emphasizes the relationship between oral and general health and advocates greater integration between oral health professionals and other health professionals.

Holistic dentistry—also frequently called biological, biologic, integrative, or biocompatible dentistry, although the terms are not perfectly interchangeable—takes this whole-person concept particularly seriously.

What Does “Holistic” Mean?

The word holistic comes from the idea of considering something as a whole rather than simply as a collection of separate parts.

In health care, this philosophy asks practitioners to consider not merely a disease or an organ but the person in whom that condition occurs.

This concept is increasingly reflected in mainstream medical research. The National Institutes of Health’s National Center for Complementary and Integrative Health describes “whole person health” as looking beyond separate organs and considering interconnected biological, behavioral, social, and environmental factors that influence health.

Applied to dentistry, the principle is straightforward:

The teeth, gums, jaw, oral microbiome, immune system, nutrition, circulation and the rest of the body are interconnected.

A holistic dentist is still a dentist. Holistic dentistry is not a formally recognized dental specialty in the way orthodontics, periodontics or oral surgery is. Rather, it describes a philosophy or approach that may influence how a dentist evaluates materials, prevention and treatment.

The International Academy of Oral Medicine and Toxicology (IAOMT), one organization associated with biological dentistry, similarly describes biological dentistry not as a separate specialty but as an approach emphasizing biocompatibility and seeking less toxic ways of accomplishing the objectives of modern dentistry.

The Mouth Really Is Connected to the Rest of the Body

One reason holistic dentistry deserves thoughtful consideration is that an important part of its underlying premise—the connection between oral and systemic health—is no longer particularly controversial.

Consider periodontal disease.

Periodontitis is a chronic inflammatory disease involving the tissues supporting the teeth. It does not exist completely independently of the rest of the body.

The FDI World Dental Federation notes relationships between periodontal disease and several systemic conditions and describes mechanisms involving inflammation, bacteremia, dysbiosis and shared risk factors. Diabetes has an especially well-established two-way relationship with periodontal disease: diabetes can make periodontal disease more difficult to control, while periodontal inflammation can complicate metabolic health.

This does not mean that every illness originates in the mouth or that dental treatment can cure unrelated systemic diseases. Such claims require evidence.

It does mean that the old mental picture of the dentist treating a mouth completely separate from the patient’s overall health is increasingly outdated.

What Holistic Dentists May Do Differently

There is considerable variation among holistic and biological dentists. There is no single universal protocol.

Many emphasize prevention and conservation of natural tooth structure. Instead of asking only how to repair a damaged tooth, they may spend more time considering why disease developed in the first place—diet, oral hygiene, dry mouth, bacterial ecology, grinding or clenching, airway issues, medications and other contributing factors.

Many also pay particular attention to dental materials and biocompatibility. They may prefer mercury-free restorative materials, carefully evaluate metals placed in the mouth, or consider a patient’s history of sensitivities when choosing materials.

Nutrition may receive greater attention as well. Since tooth decay is fundamentally influenced by diet, bacterial metabolism, saliva and mineral balance, prevention may include discussion of eating patterns rather than relying exclusively on repeated restorative treatment.

Some holistic practices also emphasize minimally invasive dentistry: preserving as much healthy tooth structure as possible and avoiding treatment that is more extensive than necessary.

These concepts are not inherently opposed to conventional dentistry. In fact, many overlap substantially with modern preventive, minimally invasive and patient-centered dental care.

Mercury Amalgam and the Rise of Biological Dentistry

One of the most important historical issues in the development of biological dentistry has been dental amalgam.

Amalgam has been used for more than 150 years and is composed of mercury combined with an alloy containing metals such as silver, tin and copper. It became popular because it was inexpensive, durable and relatively forgiving to place.

Concern about mercury exposure, however, became one of the issues around which the modern biological-dentistry movement developed.

Organizations such as the IAOMT, founded in 1984, brought together dentists, physicians and scientists interested in the biological effects and biocompatibility of dental materials.

Over subsequent decades, environmental concerns about mercury also became an international issue extending far beyond holistic dentistry.

This history is important because the scientific discussion is more nuanced than either extreme sometimes suggests.

The American Dental Association continues to regard amalgam as a safe, durable and appropriate restorative material for the general population and does not recommend removing sound amalgam fillings merely because they contain mercury.

At the same time, amalgam contains elemental mercury, and its use has been declining. Environmental mercury concerns have prompted regulatory action internationally, while U.S. guidance has identified certain populations for whom alternatives to amalgam should be considered when possible.

The international movement has gone further still: in 2025, parties to the Minamata Convention agreed on a global phaseout of the manufacture, import and export of dental amalgam by 2034, subject to an exception when a dentist considers its use necessary for a patient’s needs.

So it is possible to hold two ideas simultaneously: amalgam has been an extraordinarily useful restorative material, and legitimate questions about mercury exposure and environmental mercury management deserve serious scientific consideration.

Holistic Does Not Have to Mean “Alternative”

There is another misunderstanding worth correcting.

Holistic dentistry does not necessarily mean rejecting conventional dental treatment.

The NIH distinguishes alternative medicine, which substitutes a non-mainstream practice for conventional care, from integrative health care, which brings conventional and complementary approaches together in a coordinated way.

That distinction is useful in dentistry as well.

A thoughtful holistic dentist may use conventional examinations, digital X-rays, periodontal treatment, fillings, crowns, oral surgery and other established treatments while simultaneously considering nutrition, prevention, material selection, environmental exposures and systemic health.

In that sense, the most scientifically responsible form of holistic dentistry might better be described as integrative dentistry: excellent conventional dental care viewed through a wider biological lens.

A Brief History of the Idea

The philosophy behind holistic dentistry is older than the modern term.

Medicine historically moved toward increasing specialization as scientific knowledge expanded. Dentistry likewise developed as a distinct profession, with enormous benefits: sophisticated restorative materials, anesthesia, radiography, antibiotics, implant dentistry, endodontics and advanced oral surgery have saved countless teeth and relieved enormous suffering.

But specialization can also encourage practitioners to concentrate intensely on one part of the body.

During the twentieth century, growing interest in nutrition, environmental exposures, preventive medicine, immunology and the relationship between chronic inflammation and systemic disease encouraged some dentists to reconsider that separation.

By the 1970s and 1980s, dentists interested in nutrition, biocompatible materials, acupuncture, environmental medicine and mercury exposure increasingly organized around what became known as holistic or biological dentistry. The IAOMT was established in 1984, and the term “biological dentistry” also emerged within this broader movement during that period.

Over the following decades, some ideas once considered peripheral—particularly the importance of oral-systemic relationships—became increasingly incorporated into mainstream research.

Today, major international dental organizations themselves speak about whole-body health and integrating oral health with general health care.

That does not validate every historical or contemporary claim made under the banner of holistic dentistry. But it demonstrates why the movement cannot fairly be reduced to a single caricature.

Science and Holistic Thinking Need Not Be Enemies

Perhaps the greatest misconception is that patients must choose between being “scientific” and being “holistic.”

We should reject that false choice.

Science is a method for determining what is likely to be true. Holistic care is a philosophy that asks us to consider the person as an interconnected whole.

The two can—and should—work together.

Modern dentistry has accomplished extraordinary things. At the same time, medicine and dentistry continue to evolve as researchers learn more about microbiomes, inflammation, nutrition, environmental exposures, immune responses and relationships between oral and systemic health.

The appropriate response to new questions is neither automatic acceptance nor ridicule. It is investigation.

Some holistic-dentistry claims may ultimately prove incorrect. Others may become better supported as evidence develops. And some principles—particularly prevention, individualized treatment, conservation of healthy tissue, thoughtful consideration of materials and recognition that oral health is part of overall health—already fit comfortably within modern health care.

Perhaps, then, the most useful question is not:

“Is holistic dentistry conventional or alternative?”

It is:

“How can we combine the best available scientific evidence with the safest, most preventive, least invasive and most patient-centered dental care possible?”

That is a conversation worth having—for dentists, physicians, researchers and, most importantly, patients.

To better understand some of the practices of holistic dentistry, please refer to videos below: