Biscayne Dental Group, Now “Biscayne Wellness Center”

Complete wellness – from your teeth, to your skin, to your whole body health — all under one roof? Makes perfect sense! That’s why Dr. Julio Hernandez expanded his very successful dental practice, Biscayne Dental Group, to initially include skin care. He expanded the practice further by bringing on Dr. John Childress, a physician certified in anti-aging and wellness medicine to treat the entire body, inside and out, creating Biscayne Wellness Center.

Dr. Hernandez graduated from dental school in 1995 and practiced dentistry for 10 years during which time he advanced his knowledge beyond general dentistry and honed his skills mastering dental implants, orthodontics and cosmetic dentistry.

In 2005 he had the opportunity to work with plastic surgeons and other physicians in a group practice and it’s where he realized the many possibilities of aesthetic services. Wanting to give dental patients intelligent answers to their repeated questions about wrinkles and age spots on their skin, Dr. Hernandez began learning more about the skin. Having studied head and neck anatomy extensively in dental school, this wasn’t a far reach but added to that by attending dermatology conferences.

By 2009, Dr. Hernandez was ready to move his dental practice to a new location. At that point, he partnered with an associate from New York who had been in the skin care business for many years. Together they developed the Nu2 Skin Care line and expanded that initial line to include more than 25 products to address all skin types. With all the claims and myths out there, he also wanted to be a source of real information without the hype. That led to establishing the Nu2 Skin Care Spa.

Believing that prevention is a better way to go, Dr. Hernandez expanded the practice further, to treat the entire body, calling it Biscayne Wellness Center.

DAISY: You had a very successful dental practice, why add the facial spa services?

JH: So many patients were afraid of going to the dentist that I wanted to make them feel more relaxed and give them a spa experience. Also, because I loved doing cosmetic dentistry, I wanted to be able to offer my patients the full aesthetic package and give them Botox, fillers, smooth skin and a killer smile. My patients trusted me and hopefully knew me well enough to know that I would only offer them services which I felt actually worked.

DAISY: Why did you see a need to treat the entire body?

JH: I truly believe the healthcare system in this country is fragmented. In dental and medical school, they only teach you generalities and how to fix what is broken. The medical field is highly dependent on treatment with prescription medication to address patient’s symptoms. Just as in dentistry, most treatments are referred to specialists who limit their focus to one thing. I learned in dentistry a long time ago that a dentist has to look beyond the teeth to the muscles, joints and bones to truly give a comprehensive treatment plan. Research has proven over and over again that the health of the mouth affects the health of the entire body. Therefore, it was important to me to expand our services further to really help the entire patient and not just their dental or skin care needs.

DAISY: Wellness is a relatively new area in Western medicine… why do you think the general public in our country doesn’t quite understand about prevention?

JH: Unfortunately we are a quick fix society. We have a headache, we take a pill. This idea that there is a pill for every illness is an idea heavily promoted by drug companies. In addition, with all the information easily accessible today, people will self-diagnose, then self-medicate their conditions. The concept of prevention and true health has been lost. Unless we eat the perfect diet, do the perfect amount of exercise, live in the perfect environment and been given the perfect genes, then none of us are truly perfectly healthy. Prevention should be a daily goal for each of us. From the moment we are born we are bombarded with chemicals, pollutants, irritants, bacteria, fungus, viruses, etc… Prevention is about winning the daily struggle against all these things that will age us and make us sick.

DAISY: What services do you now offer at Biscayne Wellness Center and how does someone begin? What are the preliminary tests you do?

JH: Patients come to us for one of three reasons: Dentistry, Skin Care, or Integrative Medicine. A consultation with each one of our health professionals is the best way to start. We take a different approach than conventional medicine. We are not focused on your symptoms but rather the cause of your symptoms. We are trying to discover how each person’s body functions. This is very unique to each individual. This is a process of self-discovery for each patient. Our bodies are always trying to tell us something. We will teach you how to listen. We start with a very extensive questionnaire that will give us a general picture of you. Preliminary testing could include dental x-rays, range of motion tests, body composition analysis, blood, saliva, urine and fecal analysis and digital skin evaluation.

DAISY:  What about the anti-aging aspect?

JH: Anti-aging or integrative medicine is the study of medicine that focuses on prevention and early detection of age-related diseases. The focus is to determine each patient’s unique physiology in order to optimize their health with diet, supplements, exercise, bio-identical hormone replacement and lifestyle changes including stress management.

DAISY: How are all three areas – teeth, skin, the (internal) body – interconnected and how do they show a person’s health or lack thereof?

JH: We really have to begin looking at our bodies as a whole. Everything works together. Everything is connected through a series of blood vessels, nerves, etc. There has been countless research to prove this. Patients who suffer from gum disease are at a higher risk of heart attack and stroke. Patients that present with chronic dry skin could be experiencing a nutrient deficiency. Patients who experience constipation, headaches and skin rashes could be suffering from a food allergy. Instead of seeing a gastroenterologist for the constipation, a neurologist for the headaches and a dermatologist for skin rashes, we will look at the source of the problem (likely to be a food allergy) and not just treat the symptoms. To complicate a diagnosis further, often we find that two people with the same food allergy will present with very different symptoms. Our process looks beyond the symptoms at the cause and looks to treat it hence improving the whole system.

DAISY: How does whole body health aid in prevention of so many common maladies like depression, hormonal imbalance, stomach problems and headaches – to name a few – that we’ve all come to accept as things we have to endure?

JH: Our busy modern life exposes us to a series of insults that throw off our very delicate balance. The quality of our nutrition has been depleted, our stress levels have risen, we are exposed to more environmental toxins than ever before. Without constant monitoring, our bodies will break down faster. Although we are living longer as a society, we have more diseases than ever before. There is no reason we should not live every day healthy and happy. It is our goal to help our patients learn about themselves and improve their health to its optimum level.

Daisy Olivera

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THE MEDICAL PROFESSIONALS AT BISCAYNE WELLNESS CENTER:
Dr. Rita Dargham, a dentist and graduate of the University of Florida works in the dental office as well. Dr. John Childress received his medical degree from Northeast Ohio Medical University, served as chief resident in emergency medicine at North Shore University Hospital/NYU School of Medicine and has practiced medicine in South Florida since 2006. He now also focuses on preventive and functional medicine. He is a Fellow of the American Academy of Anti-Aging Medicine and has completed advanced fellowship certification by the American Board of Anti-Aging and Regenerative Medicine.

For all services offered at Biscayne Wellness Center, please click here:   www.biscaynewellnesscenter.com

To call for an appointment:  305-572-1600  /  Fax:  305-572-1607

Biscayne Wellness Center    350 NE 24th St., Suite 105 Miami, FL  33137
[*Located on Biscayne Blvd. between 23rd & 24th streets. Metered parking on side streets]

PHOTO: YOBE PHOTOGRAPHY

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