Is Your Mouth Keeping You Sick? Root Canals, Cavitations & Airway Health
Your mouth may be one of the biggest hidden drains on your health. Gum disease, root canals, cavitations (dead zones left where teeth were pulled), mercury, oral fungus, and a narrow airway can all keep your immune system busy and your body short on oxygen. If you've plateaued at 50% better, Dr. Michelle Jorgensen says it's a sign something hasn't been found yet. Often, it's in your mouth.
I heard a doctor say that if someone with multiple autoimmune diseases gets 50% better, they should consider themselves lucky. I don't think that's good enough. And you shouldn't settle for it either.
Key takeaways
- There are 3 main mouth infections: gum disease, root canals, and cavitations.
- Cavitations often form at old wisdom tooth sites and can harbor bacteria, viruses, parasites, and fungus.
- You need a cone beam CT (CBCT) scan, read by someone trained to find cavitations.
- Daily tongue scraping with a copper scraper helps keep yeast in check.
- A narrow jaw can block your airway at night, which may show up as ADHD symptoms, grinding, anxiety, or sleep apnea.
Meet Dr. Michelle Jorgensen
Dr. Michelle Jorgensen is a biological dentist at Total Care Dental in Utah and the voice behind Living Well with Dr. Michelle.
She was once where you might be. Four young kids, a busy practice, and suddenly she couldn't eat without pain, couldn't remember names, and couldn't hold her dental instruments. She put her practice up for sale.
Then someone asked if she'd been tested for mercury. She had no silver fillings, but she'd been drilling them out for a decade with no protection. Her mercury levels were off the charts. That changed everything about how she practices.
🎧 Listen to the full episode: How Your Mouth Could Be Keeping You Sick
My story: the root canal that smelled like rotting flesh
I had no "mouth issues" until COVID. Then something flipped in my immune system. My root canal started to smell and taste like rotting flesh. My neck went weak, I had twitches and tremors, and my brain fog was terrifying.
When I had that root canal and the cavitations on my left side removed, my neck weakness started fading almost instantly. It was like a drain on my immune system had been turned off.
But I left the cavitations on my right side. I hovered at 90 to 95% better, sometimes dipping to 80%. When I finally had those cleared, I broke through that plateau too.
How can your mouth make you sick?
I think of your body like a bathtub. Infections and toxins are faucets pouring in. Your body is the drain. When too many faucets are on, the tub overflows and damages the whole house.
Your mouth can be one of the biggest faucets. And it can run quietly for years until something like COVID, Epstein-Barr, or Lyme pushes your body past what it can handle.
Dr. Michelle says research suggests a large share of chronic disease is caused or worsened by something going on in the mouth. That's why she wishes she were doctor number two on people's lists, not doctor number nine.
Your teeth are a circuit board
Dr. Michelle describes four "circuit boards" in the body: feet, hands, ears, and teeth. Every tooth is connected to an organ system. Search "tooth meridian chart" to see which is which.
She shared a patient who was literally orange. He had four root canals across his front teeth, which she links to the liver. After they were removed, his yellow skin went away.
What is a cavitation in your jaw?
A cavitation is a dead zone in the jawbone where a tooth was removed but the ligament was left behind.
Here's how it happens. After a tooth is pulled, your body doesn't "realize" it's gone for about 10 days. It fills the hole with gum tissue first. By the time it's ready to make bone, there's no room, so the dead ligament gets trapped inside the jaw.
There's no blood flow there, so your immune cells can't reach it. Dr. Michelle has biopsied strep bacteria, viruses (including Epstein-Barr and HPV), spirochetes, and even parasites out of these spaces. They're always inflamed, which keeps your immune system on high alert.
They're especially common at wisdom tooth sites, because surgeons avoid poking near the nerves and sinuses.
What about root canals and gum disease?
- Gum disease: about 80% of adults have some form, and it travels through the bloodstream.
- Root canals: the nerve, blood vessels, and lymphatics are removed. That leaves a dead tooth your immune system can't reach or clean.
Dr. Michelle sees mouth infections tied to autoimmune disease, heart disease, stroke, lung and kidney problems, diabetes, fertility struggles, and low birth weight. One patient's cholesterol dropped 90 points within a week of removing two infected root canals.
She also links wisdom tooth sites to the endocrine system: thyroid, adrenals, and fertility. If your thyroid labs look "fine" but you feel awful, check your wisdom tooth areas.
Your mouth is one faucet. What are the others? 👉 Take the free Root Causes Quiz to find where your body is struggling most.
Is there mold in your mouth?
Yes, there can be fungus (mold) in the mouth, especially after lots of antibiotics. Bacteria and fungus keep each other in balance. Kill off the bacteria and the fungus takes over.
Alcohol mouthwashes and antimicrobial toothpastes can do the same thing.
Why scrape your tongue with copper?
Dr. Michelle had geographic tongue (patchy, sore spots) for years. Two weeks of tongue scraping and it was gone.
Your tongue is like a shag carpet where yeast burrows in. Brush it, then scrape it daily. Use copper, because it's naturally antimicrobial. Plastic scrapers can regrow what you just scraped off.
Are you cleaning your house when you should check your mouth?
So many people with CIRS spend thousands getting their home squeaky clean, only to be told to clean more. Meanwhile, they may be walking around with a suitcase of infection in their jaw.
I have a friend who spent tens of thousands on Lyme treatment. His turning point was clearing his root canals and cavitations. He now thinks the infections in his mouth were mimicking Lyme.
How do you find the right dentist?
- Ask: "Do you take cone beam CT scans?" Full-head scans are best.
- Ask: "Do you know how to look for cavitations on that scan?"
- Ask: "Do you remove mercury fillings safely?"
- Search directories: Dr. Michelle's directory at livingwellwithdrmichelle.com, plus IAOMT and IABDM.
Can a small jaw cause sleep apnea or ADHD symptoms?
Dr. Michelle uses a garage analogy. Your mouth is the garage. Your tongue, teeth, soft palate, and uvula all need to fit inside. Your airway is the driveway.
When the jaw is too narrow (often from poor nutrition during growth), things spill into the driveway, especially when you lie down. During deep sleep your muscles relax, everything falls back, and your body has to pop out of deep sleep to breathe. That's why so many people clench and grind.
What that can look like:
- In kids: ADHD-like symptoms, bedwetting, poor memory. "An ADHD brain is a tired brain."
- In adults: sleep apnea, waking up anxious, falling asleep at the wheel
Quick home check: look in the mirror and open wide. If you can't see the back of your throat, the tissue may be stretched and in the way.
Is CPAP the only option?
Dr. Michelle's take: CPAP pushes more air past a plugged drain. It may help, but it doesn't fix the blockage. Options she uses include palate expansion (even in adults), laser treatments to tighten tissue and shrink tonsils, tongue-tie releases, and tongue retraining.
And think about this: if you've slept poorly your whole life, your nervous system, immune system, and mitochondria have been starved of oxygen for decades.
Frequently asked questions
Can cavitations cause health problems?
They can. Cavitations are inflamed areas of dead bone that the immune system can't reach. They may harbor bacteria, viruses, or fungus and keep your immune system on alert.
How do you find a cavitation?
A cone beam CT (CBCT) scan, read by a dentist trained to spot cavitations. They usually don't show up on regular dental X-rays.
What is the best tongue scraper?
Dr. Michelle recommends copper, because it's naturally antimicrobial. Scrape daily after brushing your tongue.
Can adults fix sleep apnea without CPAP?
Many can improve with airway-focused dental care, like palate expansion, laser tissue treatments, and tongue retraining. Talk to an airway-trained dentist.
Where do you start?
Your mouth is foundational, but it's one piece. Healing works best when you turn off the biggest faucets first, in the right order.
That's exactly what the Order of Healing™ maps out: 8 steps, from mindset and mitochondria all the way up to the brain. Because you're not broken. You're out of order.
👉 Download the free Order of Healing™ Guide and find your starting point.
🎧 Listen to the full episode on the Gutsy Health Podcast.
Follow Dr. Michelle at Living Well with Dr. Michelle (website, Instagram, and YouTube). Her office is Total Care Dental in Utah.
This post is for education only and isn't medical or dental advice. Talk with a qualified provider before making changes to your care.
