Oral Health for a Lifetime: Meet Soma Integrative Dentistry

GHC Member Spotlight

Oral Health for a Lifetime

Soma Integrative Dentistry looks beyond the teeth to explore the connections among oral health, breathing, sleep, and whole-person wellness.

For many of us, oral health means a cleaning every six months, the occasional filling, and flossing—usually not as often as we should. But there is much more to it.

Integrative dentistry includes routine dental care and looks more broadly at questions such as: Do you grind your teeth? Do you have jaw pain or tooth sensitivity? Do you snore, breathe through your mouth, or have trouble speaking clearly? These can be signs of concerns worth exploring. The mouth is also the entrance to the airway and the pathway for the breath that keeps us alive.

Dr. Priyanka Dand of Soma Integrative Dentistry in Greensboro sees oral health as an integral part of overall health and wellness.

“Soma Integrative Dentistry is a name that reflects who we are and how we care for our patients. Soma comes from the Greek word for ‘body,’ and it captures our belief that the mouth is inseparably connected to the rest of the body: its systems, its breath, and its overall well-being,” Dr. Dand said.

“In neuroscience, the soma is the cell body of a neuron, the center that guides and coordinates its function. That mirrors how we view oral health in our practice: central, not secondary. Optimal health begins with a healthy mouth.”

A Family Practice for All Ages

Dr. Dand and her husband, Dr. Rahen Kakadia, lead the practice together. Both pursued additional study at the Kois Center in Seattle, a continuing education and research center. Their reasons for practicing this way are deeply personal.

“Our daughter, Pehel, struggled with a shallow latch, sleepless nights, and constant crying, and no one could give us answers,” Dr. Kakadia said. “Her providers only treated her symptoms and told us she would grow out of it. We needed someone to truly listen to our experience and get to the root cause of her airway issues. Over time, we began to connect the dots in our own family as well.”

Those experiences shaped the couple’s holistic philosophy, which focuses on understanding the causes of oral health concerns through comprehensive, airway-focused care that considers the mouth’s structure, function, and behavior.

“We integrate advanced diagnostics with personalized treatment plans to nurture wellness from infancy through adulthood. Committed to compassionate, relationship-driven care, we empower patients to become their best selves by optimizing oral health, nasal breathing, tongue function, sleep, and overall well-being,” Dr. Kakadia said.

Dr. Kakadia, who has also served on the faculty of the Harvard School of Dental Medicine, said the practice takes pride in building lifelong relationships with patients. Their continued education reflects a commitment to what he described as “the highest standard of care,” including the use of current dental technology.

Understanding the Airway

Because the airway plays a central role in oral health and overall wellness, the doctors evaluate each patient’s structure, function, and behavior. For children, the practice also offers guided growth and development. Advanced technology helps the team understand what is happening and develop treatment plans focused on sleep, breathing, and long-term health.

“Our care is focused on the mouth-body connection. There is a root cause behind your symptoms, and our goal is to find it and treat it. No Band-Aids here. We address airway health, sleep, jaw and bite alignment, systemic inflammation, and the root cause of any dental concerns to support breathing, oral health, posture, and vitality,” Dr. Dand said.

Collaborating with the Community

Whole-person care can involve many kinds of expertise. “Because we care about your whole health, we collaborate with many specialists in our community, including a craniosacral therapist, a speech-language pathologist, a myofunctional therapist, a certified lactation consultant, a physical therapist, and functional and integrative medical providers,” Dr. Dand explained.

That community-minded approach also drew Dr. Dand and Dr. Kakadia to join the Greensboro Holistic Collective, a network of practitioners across a wide variety of wellness modalities.

Focused on the Root Cause

“The word integrative speaks to our approach of looking beyond surface symptoms, addressing root causes, collaborating with other health professionals, and honoring each patient’s full-body context,” Dr. Dand said. “Together, the name expresses our commitment to caring for the whole person: body, mind, and breath. We aim to offer thoughtful, connected, and truly holistic care.”

She added, “This is why we take a comprehensive, holistic approach and screen both children and adults for airway concerns that might otherwise go unnoticed. We want to be a listening ear for our patients, and their partner in comprehensive oral health care.”