peeing a lot and bleeding gums

[Peata]

FYI- I just read that you shouldn't take the salt like I do so I wanted to pass that along. It was recommended in another post to have a pinch of salt between sips of fluid. I'm not one to pretend to be 100% right and I'm new too and still learning. I will always come correct if I tell someone what I have done and find out it isn't optimal. So there you have it! A pinch of salt between sips of fluid instead of a 1/2 tsp all at once, that about sums it up.

Blossom, where did you read not to shoot 1/2 t. salt at once? I do the same thing, so I'd like to know why this isn't good.

 

[Blossom]

The recent post 'how do I know how much salt...' sorry I can't link from my mobile device. I've been doing it for months but I would hate to be the cause of someone's problems since we are all different. I definitely don't want someone to choose to go to the ER just because I shared something helpful to me that I thought was in line with a Peat inspired approach!

 

[charlie]

Me and another forum member made ourselves sick by adding too much salt at one time. Slow and easy wins the race. :)

 

[Peata]

OK. I think I reached my sodium limit the other night when I felt thirsty before bed. I'm usually not thirsty because I drink coffee, milk, etc. and rarely drink plain water or feel the need for it. But I did then. So I have backed off the added 1/2 t. salt and just using it like normal in food and drinks for a while.

 

[Blossom]

Sounds very sensible to me. Peat does say let your thirst be your guide. Not in those exact words, but I've always thought that was his basic message.

 

[natedawggh]

My mother had frequent urination problems as well, often waking in the night too. It's not at all a muscle problem or bladder elasticity or those kinds of popular self diagnoses. You might have edema, but it's definitely a metabolism issue. Your body is not able to properly manage all the liquid you consume during the day, absorbing every bit of it like a sponge and tries to flush it all out during the night. My mother found relief after cutting out starches and diet soda, and her edema was better when taking enough salt and carbohydrate (are you also on estrogen? That can cause both these issues severely). Fluoride toothpaste makes my gums recede and then bleed. The bleeding is caused by water retention in the gums (caused by estrogen) and they come back and heal when I use natural, non fluoride toothpaste and got even better when I started using progesterone. Salt will make you a little thirsty at first and that's fine, it will balance out. Try not to dink any plain water, alway put at least a tiny bit of baking soda, or salt, or drink milk and orange juice too.

 

[ballomar]

On the bleeding gums, it could well be bacterial. I'd have my teeth cleaned by a proper dental hygienist. In fact I did. It worked a treat.

Then, be careful with your gut flora. The make-up of the bacteria in your mouth is highly dependent on the bacteria in your gut and intestines. I think Peat recommends grated carrot and apple-cider vinegar. You could try that. Eating plenty of fruit (i.e. soluble fibre) should help. And if you want to go non-Peatish - fermented foods will probably do you good too.

 

[catan]

Everyone's replies have given me a lot to think about.

I've had my teeth cleaned by a dental hygienist a few months ago. I mentioned my bleeding gums and occasional sore jaw, but he said it's probably inflammation from not having had my teeth cleaned in awhile (3 years). But since cleaning my gums still bleed. No other dental problems.

I stopped using toothpaste and baking soda. I just do oil pulling now in the mornings, and brushing with water in the evenings. Gums bleed a little still. The bleeding in always from the same area, where I had my tooth removed for braces back when I was 11.

I have my daily carrot and lots of fruit. I do eat starch I'm having trouble filling up on just fruit.

I've been using progest-e since ovulation and nothing else, not even aspirin. At first I thought it was the aspirin, but it's not.

My daily liquid intake is 16-20 oz each of OJ, milk, coffee, broth, water. I sip water when I feel thirsty and not consume a large amount at once.

I add a bit of salt to OJ, broth, and the starch I eat. Probably around 3-5 tsp a day.

 

[Blossom]

Thanks for the update. At least you know from the dental hygienist there is nothing terribly wrong with your oral health! I had the same situation occur after not being to a dentist in over ten years . He pretty much told me I had great teeth I just needed to floss regularly. It sounds like the situation may have improved a bit from your original post. Are you still peeing a lot?

 

[ballomar]

I'd suggest that if it's bleeding from where you had a tooth removed, there might be a little pocket or fold of skin where bacteria can gather. You might want to get your dentist to look at that. People have been saying that coconut oil has at bacterial properties, so you might want to try that.

There is another thing that you could try, which is anti-bacterial mouthwash. I really DON'T recommend it, because it caused me problems. I think that killing off all the natural bacteria in one's mouth is stupid, what we should be doing is tuning the mix. On the other hand, it might work for you.

On the urination issue, my problem was caused by being too paleo - precisely as Matt Stone suggested - more sugar and fat fixed it

 

[catan]

@Blossom, it really is a relief that nothing was wrong after not seeing a dentist for 3 years. I really dislike going to the dentist! I'm still peeing a lot, but I just found out I'm pregnant (very early), so that might have something to do with it.

@ballomar, I'm using coconut oil for oil pulling every morning. My mouth feels better overall. Thanks for that tip about the pocket/fold of skin. I never thought of that... will check that out. Thanks!

How long did it take you to fix the frequent urination issue? I was low-carbing for awhile but higher sugar intake hasn't solved the urination problem.

 

[Blossom]

Congratulations! My frequent urination that went on for YEARS gradually improved over 3-4 months. Every now and then it will flare back up ever so slightly but usually resolves within a day or two. Once I pinpointed it to some gluten free corn tortillas my sister in law lovingly served me. I read the package later and they had parabens, gums and all sorts of obnoxious ingredients in them! As long as I stick with my Peat inspired approach everything works smoothly. I'm sure the frequent urination triggers can be different for us all to some extent and sometimes only we can really figure out upon reflection what might have been the cause. Just keep taking extra good care of yourself and your baby and keep us posted on how thing are going!

 

[natedawggh]

I know this is late, and hope you've discovered some helpful information.

Bleeding gums are not caused by bacteria at all. There is bacteria in your mouth from the time you are born. Just because they might be able to proliferate in an unhealthy mouth does not mean that they are the cause of the bleeding. They are just opportunistic and can easily be killed off by coconut oil, brushing, mouthwash, etc.

It's interesting that you listed both of these issues at once, as Dr. Peat has said that both frequent urination to pass relatively small amounts of liquid (meaning you didn't just chug a liter of soda), and easily bleeding gums are both signs of excess estrogen. This causes bleeding gums because estrogen causes cells to swell, lowering their energy output and weakening their structural integrity thus making them vulnerable to stresses, including the pressure from brushing one's teeth. The bacteria just happen to be opportunistic and infect the weakened tissues and yes, can be controlled by swishing coconut oil and brushing, but those will not heal the problem until the excess estrogen is taken care of.

The double edged sword in Peating is that people tend to consume more liquid, and fatigued cells take up the liquid that is present. My own experience with gum bleeding was greatly relieved and nearly eliminated with the use of progesterone. All methods of increasing CO2 concentrations in the body will also aid the gums in recovery.

 

[Poppyseed13]

Another late reply: I have found that folate (methylfolate) and ubiquinol (coq10) are excellent for improving gums.

Cheers,
Poppyseed13