Healthy Smiles Dental Care

Excellent dentists for any who suffer from anxiety in the dental chair! I have been coming to this office for four years and both dentists are very good working with me and my anxiety. I recently got work done on three teeth and Dr. Virk explained everything to me and listened to my needs and addressed them. I am not an easy patient, so I greatly appreciate the extra support and care. I wish I knew the name of the dental hygienist because she was awesome, too.

I have been seeing Dr. Vakshoori since March of 2001 when I was expecting my 1^st kid. I had not seen a dentist since my teenage years. She is the best! And so is Dr. Virk! I really like their holistic approach. I have a medical condition and currently on strong medication and it can have bad side effects on bones and everything else. They recommended I look into green juices to improve my overall health — both teeth and body and I did so and happy that I can get nutrition in a fun way. They have taken such good care of me and their staff is very very nice and friendly. Alyssa always has an open friendly face and is fun to talk to. Cyrus is also very friendly and professional about payments and appointments. I always have a pleasant time when I come to see them. I am sooo fortunate to have found them, and it was because of a referral from friend at work.

I am sorry to have to write what I’m going to have to say, but I almost feel that it is my civic responsibility to pass this information along to any would-​be new patients of the Healthy Smiles Dental group. I checked them out in late December for what I thought was a quasi-​urgent dental situation (not dire). I was having some bleeding near a back molar, about which I’d been wondering for several months if I might need a filling. First point: 1) when I called to see about getting a next day appt, I will say that the front office staff was very helpful and professional on the phone and managed to get me in the following day (Dec. 23). However, I did make a mental note of the «grilling» I received, before I even described my dental problem, as to the type of dental coverage I have, how well do they usually pay, etc, etc. Answer was yes, I do have dental insurance, but I believe your office will be «out of network» and I’ll pay any portion not covered. No, my dental insurance is not linked to an employer, this is privately-​paid coverage. Here, however is the bigger and more serious problem: The main dentist, Dr. «V.», did see me right away and seemed professional and cordial. However, upon examining my mouth and my complaint, she determined she didn’t either a) want to help me or b) didn’t know what to do about me (folks, when you hear the rest of this you’ll be scratching your head like I was!) She recommended that I see one of two specialist dentists, both of whom live very far away in other parts of the Bay Area and that in the meantime, I acquire a water-​pik. Then, on my way out, the dentist did say «no charge» and I was on my way, with the understanding that they could not serve me or even agree to be my regular dentist. Ok, thanks for seeing me for free (???) Because of the holidays, I let another 3 weeks pass before I went back to my regular dentist (also a «biologic, holistically» oriented dentist, who I will now stick with) who diagnosed a very bad cavity, bordering on root damage and got me taken care of quickly. She did, by the way, need to order a set of digital teeth xrays to confirm diagnosis, but she also could visibly see the extent of damage without that. So, moral of this story? Healthy Smiles Dental Care, which appears to be fixated on the «financial» side of things over patient care, also committed what appears to border on negligence by missing my fairly far advanced state of tooth decay, and then «turfed» me to another dentist! If I had time or inclination, I might report this practice to the Dental Board. Sorry to have such a negative review, but I feel (I am an RN, by the way and I DO care about patients) I need to share the experience with others who might be investigating this place for themselves.

At 4 ½, my daughter’s dentist expressed some concern about her teeth, so I STARTED to use a fluoride toothpaste by Toms of Maine and cut sugar, did milk just at meal times, did our best to add broths and organ meats to our diets. When we came back just after she turned 5, suddenly, there were 7 teeth he said needed fillings. So I asked for recommendations at my local WAPF board and someone suggested Dr Arta Vakhshoori at Healthy Smiles Dental. She saw my daughter right away and gave her assessment and a plan for remineralizing her teeth. Because she knew we had just seen our original dentist, Dr. V said they would not charge or bill for this appointment (since insurance wouldn’t cover it) and that, if we wanted to officially become patients there, we could do that for her next scheduled check-​up. Dr. V said my 5yo daughter would be seen by the pediatric dentist. So we came back in 6 months, after a decent attempt following the dietary guidelines.
At our recent 6 month check up with the Pediatric Dentist at Healthy Smiles (Dr. V was there, too, but more as a dietary support), her teeth are actually doing better.
So far, I’m very happy with Healthy Smiles and we actually drive from Hayward for her dentist appointments. Everyone we have dealt with has been friendly and very helpful, even showing flexibility with having our appointment run a little into lunch time, since they understand wanting my daughter to miss as little school as possible and knowing we have a drive of nearly an hour to get there.

Dr. V is an awesome holistic dentist! After my previous dentist retired, I looked for a good holistic dentist that wants to ensure patients reach optimal health without expensive dangerous surgery. She did a great job helping me to improve my gum and tooth health and is very patient and caring toward her patients. The front desk gentleman, Cyrus likewise is very professional and pleasant to deal with regarding appointments and payments.

These people are just using the holistic label as a way to confuse and scam people. Yes maybe they do some good but they don’t practice in a moral way.
*****After they had wrongfully charged my insurance and also taken over $ 200 from me (wrongfully, it should have been completely covered by my insurance), they still had the audacity to ask me for $ 46 more!*****
Read on for details:
These people are willing to scam anyone if they can, even a self-​supported, low-​income college student like myself (I told them it was my first time paying for dental expenses). This review is from an appt. in June 2012.
I drove over 2 hours from Merced area to go here because I wanted a metal filling safely replaced, I assumed with porcelain (found out once I drove all of the way there that they just use some sort of weird white material that is not permanent-​).
As a student I still have very good insurance from my mom. I asked them over and over before I went to confirm with me that the procedure would be completely covered by my insurance since I have hardly any money. It seemed to be a hassle but the guy at the front desk finally said yes it would be completely covered, if anything I should have to pay only an insignificant amount.
They saw I had good insurance and ended up charging my insurance twice for the same simple sealant that I got in addition to the filling replacement (which is supposed to be illegal, but way to much hassle to correct). I did not realize that happened until my mom got a copy of the bill in the mail a while later and called Healthy Smiles on my behalf, furious. Luckily she got them to drop an additional $ 46 charge that basically came from nowhere (except their greed)
Other complaints:
–They told me my bill would be paid by my insurance up until they had numbed up my face so numb I couldn’t even talk. I told them to barely numb it and they ended up injecting me 3 different times– had they never done it before??? So only after I was all numbed up and somewhat dazed sitting back in the dentist chair THEN they brought me a bill to sign that said that I owed them over $ 200. What a horrible scheme.
–Dr. Patwa seemed super rushed like she just wanted me out of there already, she said some good stuff about being healthy that I already knew. she said it a million miles a hour so if I did not have previous holistic knowledge I would’ve been SUPER confused.
–SHE COULDN’T EVEN TELL THAT I HAD GUM IMPLANTS. I have gum recession, very unusual for my age which is why I’ve been seeking holistic stuff. Anyone who has ever seen a gum implant can recognize them– it looks like a frankenstein job in your mouth!
–She was not careful in the area where I had the gum surgery and still have recession, I noticed after I left that she had taken off some of my gum! Not something I want to lose any of at this point. Rushed and uncaring.

i have been to many dentists over the years and when i found dr. V and tried her services i was quite pleased. she is a friend. and i am quite wary of going to a friend for professional work. sometimes this will get you ignored, not with dr. V. she keeps on top of what she needs to with my care and with new innovative information in her field. my kids have a pediatric dentist, and when they outgrow her they will definitely want to see dr. V. she is gentle and thorough. i recommend her to people all the time.

I wish I could rate this place less than one star. I started going here because I was interested in their holistic approach to dentistry. I was very pleased the first time because I have pretty bad teeth and they made me feel less anxious about needing some work done but little did I know what a hassle it would be.
Not only did the guy at the front desk, Cyrus, cancel my appt because I didn’t respond to a reminder call, then blame me for showing up and making it known what a hassle it would be on him to call the dentist to show up to my appt that I never canceled, he also had told me that my visit (that was supposed to be a free check up) was going to be $ 30. He also let me know that since i wasn’t going to be paying it that day that it may end up being a little more after he sent it to insurance and just wanted me to know so I wouldn’t be surprised if it came back a little over that price.
After I found out it wasn’t a free visit I said I would reschedule (I had just paid my bills and didn’t factor in this visit since I assumed it would be covered), but he told me I had to stay because the dentist was already coming in to accommodate me so I waited 45 mins and had my appt and left. A few weeks later I got a message saying my bill wasn’t actually $ 30 but was actually $ 150. That isn’t a little more… that’s a lot more. So I had called back to let him know I still hadn’t received the invoice in the mail (and I still haven’t, it’s been 3 months now) and so he said he would send it again even though that I must have lost it or thrown it away. I called back and to this day, no one has responded to my calls. I have left messages and nothing is being returned.
I was very interested to see what I was actually charged for since my print out from the day of my appt showed the amount due was only $ 30 based off of my insurance. FInally, I found my insurance invoice at my parents house and found out the reason it was so much more was because the procedure wasn’t even covered under my insurance plan, which was one of the questions I asked when they offered me the procedure. I would think that would be something you would let your client know right away once you found out it wasn’t covered. But no, I found out 2 months later when i noticed none of that procedure was covered on my bill. So not only was I being blamed for showing up to an appt I never canceled and for not ever receiving my invoice, I also got stuck with a bill that, granted, wasn’t very high, but for a full time student working more than one job just to get by…$ 150 is a lot of money.
Long story short:
They are not very upfront people nor are they trustworthy.
I was really hoping this would be a great new place for me to go to, but obviously they are not interested in how they treat their clients.

I love these guys! I scheduled my first visit in 2010, after at least 15 years of not seeing a dentist. To say I was apprehensive about going was an understatement. But Dr. V was very kind and explained everything to me as she was doing it. Cyrus (front desk) also took a lot of time to explain what I should be looking for in an insurance plan to get the most coverage for whatever I needed to have done. Bottom line: Dr. V is my new forever dentist. I love the conservative, natural, organic approach that she and her staff have. Plus, they’re all so nice :)

Prices are 3 times the price of other holistic dentists in the area.
What’s included in a service is vague, including the pricing ‘tiers.‘
I took my daughter in twice to have a check up and filling. After the filling was complete, the dentist had the audacity to tell me she had to do ‘alot of build up,’ (on a small tooth ~ I had seen the xray of the tooth) That it would cost $ 925 dollars. I said that was incredible, it was $ 25 shy of the cap I had put in a few months ago. She insisted she had to do alot of build up.
The office manager said he’d see if he could do better and reduced the price to $ 460. Still more than twice as much for any filling I’ve had recently done ‘holistically’ on my larger teeth.
After we expressed our upset, they did return our check and we paid what we thought fair, but the whole experience is unsettling.
I do not agree with the cheap, toxic materials still allowed in this country by ADA, like silver analgram, fluoride treatments etc., and know I can’t count on the ADA for the complete truth about products, services, etc., but I intend to not shortchange anyone for quality services nor do I intend to be shortchanged, so I read books like, ‘Tooth Truth’ by Frank J. Jerome D.D.S., and info from Dr. Hardy Limeback, DDS, PhD, head of Dept. of Preventative Dentistry of the University of Toronto and president of the Canadian Association for Dental Research, who stated «fluoride comes as a waste product from smokestack scrubbers, it is contaminated with ‘lead, arsenic, and radium, all of them carcinogenic.’ Further fluoridated cities have 2 times the hip fractures then elsewhere and fluoride is ‘altering the basic architecture of human bones.’ or Dr. Hal Huggins, DDS the American Dentist who spoke out early on dental toxicity and was harrassed for that, but has never stopped speaking the truth.(
)
I use guidelines for pricing from insurance companies, knowing I need to adjust higher for holistic materials, but not as ridiculous as mentioned above.

This dentist is awesome! They dont use mercury fillings or fluoride! Which is in itself the reason to go here. But they are also very friendly and caring. They don’t just work on teeth, they practice that your teeth can show signs of different health problems and that healthy teeth are part of your all around health. They also gave me and my daughter colloidal silver to swish before working on our teeth (natural way to prevent bacteria/​infection). They have the machine tool thing that can tell if you have a cavity without xray, which is great for my 4 year old, fast and not intrusive! The main reason I went here was for the safe mercury removal. I got two amalgam fillings removed and they use the «rubber dam» and they have a ventilation system by your mouth while they do it and also give you oxygen, very safe! I would highly recommend this dentist, don’t go anywhere else!

I went to Healthy Smiles because of their holistic approach and high tech methods. They don’t use amalgam, they don’t recommend fluoride, they use digital x-​rays which is incredibly less radiation, they have safe amalgam (mercury) removal, they use a laser to detect cavities which is very accurate and they have high quality tooth materials.
I had 8 amalgam mercury fillings removed here over a course of 2 months. I am very happy with my new white fillings and none of them have pain (although had some sensitivity for first couple months) or any issues. They are the cheapest holistic dentists in the san jose area but could be a little cheaper, but hey they do quality work and you get what you pay for. They do what they can to work with your insurance or to get you a good deal.
If your looking for high quality and holistic safe dentistry don’t hesitate to go here, especially if your insurance covers them.

Since 7 yrs of my living in Bay Area, I have moved places and in turn changed Dentists. My best experience so far without doubt is with Healthy Smiles, I have been there 2 times in the past year and always had a pleasant experience.
I found them to be very true to their profession, as unlike many other Dentist’s in the market, they don’t try to push and oversell to make those extra dollars. Before performing any procedure, they have always educated me on the intricate details behind the process.
My best experience was when they saved my tooth ! I had a big cavity on my wisdom tooth, which almost ate my entire tooth. Kudos to the Doctor who performed a great filling, considering the level of difficulty involved.

I have switched dentists too many times in the Bay Area. I even drove 40 minutes to the city for a while thinking that the dentist I had there was the best. I have been to cheap dentists and more expensive ones, as well as low tech to high tech ones. This is the place which I have found to be best in the area. They do not just look at your teeth, but your entire body health which I am convinced could also be a reflection of your oral health. I have asked questions and done lots of research on the materials and technologies they use; well I had the free student time before. And from Waterlase Technologies, to Diagnodent, Digital X-​Ray, and composite filling materials, they have got it best. You have to remember you get what you pay for. I have found out that some of those cheaper dentists use cheaper material which over time, they lose their effectiveness and you have to go to dentist again to either refill or do an entire whatever procedure. These guys’s work is rock solid and final, though I have always been a little picky on bite adjustments. So far, this is the only dental office that has completely satisfied my oral health needs, and I am in the stage which I just go for cleaning every six months and that is all for the past 4 years. They have found all my hidden cavities and did appropriate fillings and I do not have to worry about another bad tooth coming up. They also gave me good preventive advise which rarely any dentist does, and this helped me to keep my teeth healthy for the past 4 years.
I have found out paying an extra $ 10 — $ 15 to these guys is worth more than having to go to dentist so frequently. So, do the math. One time paying a little more saves you from paying for the cost of a full procedure in other frequent visits. So actually you end up saving a lot of money and not needing to go to dentist for problems after a while.

I had a horrible experience as well. When I first went to the office I thought Dr. Vakamashoori was going to be the one doing my dental work. When I arrived for my filling appointment, I was introduced to a different dentist who was going to be doing the work. I thought this was very unprofessional. They should have introduced her the day I arrived. FIrst strike against them. Second, I was not numbed properly while they removed my amalgam fillings and I had horrible pain in my tooth after they extracted out the filling. I have had lots of dental work in the past and never had such a horrible experience before.
After that I started having eczema break outs, which I never had before as they used a different composite filling material, which when I researched it, found it was just as toxic as mercury. I questioned them about it and they said once it’s bonded that it should not release any material, well they were wrong.
I returned for my follow up visit still having pain and they suggested doing a deep cleaning of my gums for an extra fee, which I turned down. I ended up having pain in my gum where they removed the filling for like several months and I returned to the dentist I had should have stayed with in the first place and he had to place dressings in one tooth, because he said they didn’t clean it out properly. After using ozone and dressings a couple of times, the pain finally left.
However, I am left with ezcema that flairs up on my hand after drinking anything hot. So be warned, that the stuff their using is not natural, and just because they say they’re holistic, think again. It’s all toxic. Not to mention the dentists are not skilled enough.