How does oral health affect my heart?
There's a lot of studies out there now that confirm that the bacteria that only grow in your mouth get into your bloodstream. They're found many times in studies that show that the bacteria that can originate only in your mouth are found in your bloodstream and when circulating through your body, end up in your heart. If you have some type of defect in your heart, like an ineffective valve, a bad valve, then blood doesn't flush out fully so bacteria that build up in your mouth end up in your blood system and pool in those areas in your heart that are not pumping blood properly. That can lead to a heart valve infection or other problems. So it's really important to stay in regular visits with your dentist to make sure that your gums are healthy and those bacteria are controlled so they don't end up in places you don't want them in your body.
Will oral health impact diabetes management?
That's a really, really important topic because a lot of people these days struggle with that. But at the end of the day, people with diabetes struggle sometimes with healing. That can make them predisposed to having gum infection. That gum infection circulates through your body. The bacteria from that infection circulate through your body and can make it more of a struggle to maintain your overall health because of these uncontrolled bacteria. So yes, definitely stay in contact with your dentist. If you don't have a dentist, come and see me. I'd love to help you with that. And then we will help you find solutions that are right for you to control the bacteria that can make it difficult for you to manage the diabetes even more.
Why is dental care important during pregnancy?
Dental care is really important during pregnancy for a few reasons. The biggest reason is, as we all know, pregnant women have fluctuating hormone levels that relate to the pregnancy. Those hormone levels can lead to a process or a condition called pregnancy-associated gingivitis, which just means that the hormones have led to chronic inflammation in the mouth as long as the hormones are elevated due to the pregnancy. And even during nursing after pregnancy, those hormone levels will stay elevated, which makes you at higher risk for gingivitis. Gingivitis is swollen, infected, bleeding gums that can ultimately lead to bone loss and or cavities if left uncontrolled. So definitely make sure if you think you might be pregnant or if you know you're pregnant, stay in contact with the dentist. Sometimes seeing the dentist every three months instead of six months is really beneficial to ladies during their pregnancy and during the period that they're nursing.
Is there a link between oral health and cancer?
People who have and suffer from chronic inflammation have a lot of inflammatory cells circulating through their body, and people with chronic inflammation are more at risk for various types of cancer. There's a lot of studies that show that C-reactive protein, which is one of the markers that is measured in blood tests for inflammation in the bloodstream. Studies have shown that those inflammatory factors, the C-reactive protein, are at an elevated level if you have unhealthy gums. It could be gingivitis. It could be an active gum infection. We call periodontitis. If that's left unchecked, then your inflammation circulating through your body is also left unchecked, which leaves you at higher risk for cancer-related issues. So definitely see your dentist on a regular basis. Make sure your gums are staying healthy. If you don't have a dentist, if you'd like us to take a look, we'd love to see you. Just give us a call.
Can poor oral health affect the immune system?
This is one of those that I call which came first, the chicken or the egg. It could go both ways, right? Our human body immune system has a limited capacity. So we find that people who are maxed out on their capacity, they reach a limit that their immune system can't manage everything. So we'll see those people suffering with more allergies, more prone to colds or even flu. They stress out or have a nervous breakdown easier. We'll also see those individuals with chronically inflamed gums, right? It's one more thing. Sometimes by the time the dentist sees the patient, we're not sure which one came first. Was it the inflamed gums? And then that was part of the problem that led to the immune system not being able to manage everything. So then you started getting more sick. Or was the fact that your immune system already maxed out so that it didn't have the ability to help manage oral health? We know that it's all connected. It doesn't really matter which one comes first. We wanna take care of ourselves. We wanna eat healthy. We wanna have good home care. We wanna exercise. We wanna do all the things that are gonna make our immune system strong so it has the capacity to manage our overall health. We can't really separate one from the other. And if several systems start going out of whack because our immune system's maxed out, then there's not enough to work on the other side of maintaining health in other departments of your body, if you will. So stay in communication with your doctor or your dentist. If we find, in my office, our policy is that if we identify a gum infection and we treat the infection and we know and all the evidence supports the fact that the patient's doing their homework and doing the best they can and we're still not seeing improvement in their gum health, then I start getting concerned there might be a systemic problem. I refer you to the physician for physical blood work to make sure you don't have other problems going on that are taxing your immune system. So it takes a team approach to maintain our bodies and our health. Don't forget to see your dentist on a regular basis so we can be part of that and help you with that.