headshot of Dr. Sambataro

DR. EUGENE SAMBATARO, DDS

Biological Dentist

Hello, my name is Dr. Gene Sambataro and I am pleased to welcome you to our website!

I’d like to take a few moments to tell you about us and to share with you why I and my staff think our dental practice is such a special place. I’d also like to share what we hope to accomplish for our patients, the public and other professional health care providers.

Why I Focus on Biological Dentistry

The truth is, I could not passively stand by anymore, waiting for my patients and fellow health care providers to make healthier decisions in their lives. I know that most people are either misinformed about or unaware of the risks of traditional dental practices and the benefits of biological care.

If you knew what I have learned about the dangers of mercury amalgam fillings, fluoride, toxic root canals and gum disease, your decisions about dental health care would be quite easy to make.

For example, there are many physicians that report nearly 80% of all illnesses are related to infections, toxicities and imbalances in the mouth.

I choose to focus on biological dentistry because I believe we are at the beginning of a fundamental shift in the practice of dentistry. A transformation that will shift the focus of dental practices away from the emergency treatment of symptoms towards compassionate, comprehensive and preventative biological care that fully embraces the philosophy of Hippocrates: “‘First do no harm”.

Our Mission

We will assist you in obtaining optimal health and longevity through whole body dentistry, nutritional supplementation, detoxification, mind/body healing, stress reduction and lifestyle enhancement.

We will achieve our mission by:

    • Providing you with a blend of alternative and traditional dental techniques
    • Offering you ongoing education on the links between whole body wellness and oral health
    • Listening to your needs and desires
    • Providing our team with the most current training and specialization skills available in the industry
    • Providing treatment with the most state of the art equipment
    • Employing the best team available to provide you with the best customer service
    • Always focusing on what we can do to support you in your treatment decisions

What You Will Find Special About Our Practice

In a lot of ways, this office is probably different than any other dental practice you have ever been to.

First, I should mention the skilled professionals on our staff. I am exceptionally proud of the people who make up our team because I know each of them will go out of their way to make you feel at home, welcome and comfortable during your visit.

We work hard to provide you with a facility that is welcoming as well as a healthy environment where you can relax and focus on healing.

When it comes to patient care, our office is special because of our continuing commitment to education and training that allows us to give you the very best care available. This training allows us to evaluate and treat the whole body, safely remove toxic materials, and replace them with individually selected biocompatible (life supporting) materials.

Throughout the world there are only a few dentists trained to offer these kinds of services. And, even among these few, not all of them are aware of the extensive safety protocols necessary to protect themselves and their patients from possible toxic side effects of mercury amalgam filling removal.

Nor are they aware that, in some situations, it is safer to leave the toxic mercury amalgam fillings in place than it is to remove them.

Finally, we have a unique goal for our patients. We want our patients to need less care.

When you began reading about the comprehensive care we offer, you might have assumed this meant more frequent and more expensive visits, but the opposite is true. We have developed a program that, if followed over a lifetime, will actually minimize your visits to the dentist.

Today we can even offer a lifetime guarantee on special restorative materials that actually strengthen the teeth, instead of corroding and splitting them the way amalgam fillings will.

Success for us is helping you to attain a high level of wellness and then teaching YOU how to maintain it. Then the only time you have to see us is for confirmation that everything looks fine.

The Choice is Yours

Well, you made it through my whole introduction, so it looks like you’re already committed to educating yourself about the options out there for better care.

I invite you to browse the site and learn more about the gentle, effective treatments biological dentistry has to offer. When you’re ready to make a commitment to your health, take action by calling our Patient Care Coordinator at 410-964-3118

Thank you again for your interest in our practice. I hope you’ll see in us the compassion and excellence you are looking for from a health care provider and I’ll be honored to help you achieve your health goals when you come to see us.

Eugene A. Sambataro, DDS, Dental Physician
Founder and Director of the Julian Center for Comprehensive Dentistry
Co-Director, Julian Center for Optimal Health and Healing

headshot of Dr. Eberts

DR. GENE EBERTS, PH.D.

Health Coach

Why I’m Involved with a Dentist

There are many reasons why a dental office could use the services of a psychologist.

The most obvious connection between dentistry and psychology would be treating dental anxiety and managing pain. However, it may surprise you to learn that there is a strong relationship between oral health and mental health.

Here are just a few scientific findings:

  • Mercury amalgam fillings can cause anxiety, depression, and excessive anger
  • Flouride exposure can result in abnormal behavior and depression
  • Flouride has been linked with an increased occurrence of ADHD
  • Poor oral health can decrease your quality of life and worsen your mental health issues
  • Wisdom tooth discomfort can lead to mental imbalances
  • Poor oral health can contribute to depression and low mood
  • Bacteria that create gum disease and tooth decay can trigger the body’s stress response and lead to a rise in stress hormones and inflammation
  • Taking care of your oral health can play a role in keeping your brain healthy and warding off cognitive decline
  • Tooth loss is a risk factor for cognitive impairment and dementia
  • A scientific review of related studies found a strong link between gum disease and mood disorders like stress, distress, anxiety, depression, and loneliness
  • People with periodontal disease have a 37% increased risk of developing anxiety, serious mental illness, and depression

These findings demonstrate that dentistry and psychology are intimately linked.

In addition, there are dental patients with special needs such as those with high anxiety, dependency, depression, or prior negative dental experiences. Such patients could benefit from counseling with a health coach. Although a dentist cannot treat these problems, they are in a prime position to refer these patients to someone that can.

When We Met

In September of 1992, Dr. Sambataro & I offered a public seminar on Health Enhancement: Achieving and Maintaining Physical and Mental Well-Being.

Although the tools and techniques we use have evolved since then, we both maintain the same passion for health enhancement and healing.

Over the past three decades, we have both become convinced that the medical and dental healthcare system is broken…and we need your help to fix it.

My Path to Becomming a Psychologist

After several tours in Vietnam, I attended community college in California, studying to be an electrical engineer. I planned to go to UC Berkeley and build a better computer. Three events occurred that would radically change the direction of my life.

First, I witnessed two separate TV broadcasts showing Buddhist monks protesting the Vietnam war. They burned themselves alive without any expression of pain. I was mystified and wanted to learn about this amazing power of the mind.

Second, I started practicing Transcendental Meditation. I had no idea how stressed I was until after my first week of meditation when I felt a deep peace for the first time in my life.

Third, I started a course in psychology, and I was hooked. I decided to focus on my true passion: Learning about the mind and working with people, not machines. I have devoted myself to mastering the most effortless ways of changing human behavior and emotions.

The Most Exciting Changes In the Evolving Mental Health Landscape

We are finally opening the “black box” of the brain and discovering that the “mind” is distributed throughout the body. Your heart has a mind of its own; it is called the heart brain.

Your heart sends more information to the brain than the brain sends to the heart. The heart also sends information to every cell and organ in your body, biochemically through hormones and neurotransmitters, biophysically through pressure waves, and energetically through electromagnetic field interactions.

It turns out that your heart is the command center of awesome intelligence and intuitive knowledge.

The most exciting discovery is that your heart rhythms change with your emotional states. The darker emotions, such as anger, fear, and anxiety, create diminished and irregular heart rate variability (HRV). Positive emotions create higher and more coherent HRV. This variability between heartbeats is a strong indicator of health: The higher your HRV, the healthier you are. You can learn how to increase your HRV through biofeedback and other methods.

Can the Mind Reall Heal the Body?

I have searched for over 50 years for scientific evidence to answer this question. I can share with you that the evidence is overwhelming.

The medical establishment itself has been providing the evidence for the past 67 years; it’s called the placebo response. In an attempt to scientifically prove that a drug or medical procedure works, experiments include a control group that receives a sham procedure or an inert drug.

Multiple decades of research have shown that between one-third to two-thirds of these control groups will show the same or even greater results than the treatment group. Placebos are amazing; they seem to have positive effects on almost every known physical, mental, and emotional symptom. An interesting study also showed that, between 1990 and 2013, placebo responses increased considerably.

What causes these physical, mental, and emotional changes is still a mystery. It was once believed that only suggestible people who did not have a “real” disease responded to a placebo. But this is simply not true. We have no way of identifying who will or will not respond to a placebo, and this is not just the result of errors in self-reporting. Real physical and mental changes are occurring that can be measured and observed in real diseases.

There are at least two issues that are involved in the placebo response. One is the finding that, even when the patient is told they are getting a placebo and there is no active ingredient, they still get better. So, it seems that the nurturing care and concern of a healthcare provider, or healer, is intimately involved in the outcome. We have known this to be true in psychotherapy for quite some time; the relationship between the therapist and the client is the major factor involved in positive therapeutic change.

The other issue has to do with the innate, natural self-repair mechanisms of the mind and body. What’s fascinating is the discovery that these self-repair mechanisms only turn on when the mind and body are relaxed. When you are stressed, these mechanisms are turned off. So, to maximize the mental, physical, or emotional placebo response, you need to find a caring healer who can help you banish the stress response.

 

Gene Eberts, Ph.D.,
Health Coach
Director, Health Enhancement & Healing
Founder, Victory Center for Health and Healing
Clinical Director, Julian Center for Optimal Health and Healing

FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS

How do I choose the right dentist?

When it comes to choosing the right dentist for you, there are a few things you should check for. Here are some tips for choosing the right dentist:

    1. Check their qualifications
    2. For your convenience, choose a dentist that can help with the whole family’s needs.
    3. Make sure you feel comfortable both with your dentist and with their dental team.
What questions should I ask my dentist?

When searching for a new dentist, it’s a good idea to interview them so you’ll be sure they meet your expectations. Questions you should ask include:

    • How long have you been practicing?
    • Where did you study?
    • Do you hold any advanced certifications?
    • What professional associations are you a member of?
    • Have you received any awards or honors?
    • Can you show me patients’ reviews along with before and after photos?