About the author -- Carol Vander Stoep
Carol Vander Stoep brings a combination of experience, concern and passion to this book. Over her thirty-year career in dental hygiene she has looked into the mouths of thousands of people and observed the startling range of what can result from poor lifestyle choices and the neglect of oral care.
While acquiring extensive clinical experience, Carol came to realize that the place of oral hygiene within dentistry and the place of dentistry within preventive medicine hinders public and professional awareness of the role oral care should play in our daily lives and how medical providers approach patient care. A BS degree from Baylor University provided the foundation of knowledge, enhanced by extensive research and study with leaders in a wide variety of fields in the professional medical community. Applying the science in her clinical practice helps refine simple techniques that work for her clients and help her hone her verbal motivational skills.
As Carol’s concerns grew, her awareness of the system and respect for the importance of professional discipline convinced her to carry her message beyond the confines of her place in a dental office. That realization led her to bring together the perspectives, the stories, and the knowledge she has acquired to prepare this book.
Carol is a Director of the Academy of Minimally Invasive Biomimetic Dentistry (AMIBD) and a founding member of The American Academy of Oral Systemic Medicine (AAOSH). She finds time to kayak and travel while continuing her professional work as a hygienist and speaker to professional audiences and the general public.