Oral Health: Improving Your Oral Health Improves Your Overall Health

The importance of proper oral hygiene is constantly stressed. This is not just because a bright white smile is considered beautiful. The mouth-body connection is a serious issue that shouldn’t be overlooked. Essentially, the condition of your teeth and gums can significantly influence other things in your body. Diabetes, heart diseases, osteoporosis and rheumatoid arthritis, as well as possible lung disease and risk of premature birth, can all be related to your oral health, one way or the other. Keep on reading to find out more.

Cardiovascular problems

Let’s address the elephant in the room first. An increased risk of heart disease, heart attack, and stroke are extremely serious issues that can affect your longevity. So, how is it connected to your oral health? Basically, inflammations in your mouth can lead to inflammation of blood vessels. If your gums are inflamed this can cause serious issues with teeth nerves as well as blood vessels in the mouth. Bacteria and even plaque can travel to your heart and brain or damage your blood vessels. If you suffer from pain that’s consistent with gum/tooth inflammation it’s essential that you see your dentist as soon as possible. More precisely, a professional endodontist who specializes in fixing the issues with teeth pulp can take care of this problem for you. This can prevent heart attack and stroke. Therefore, once you feel the pain and notice mouth inflammations, go see your dentist straight away.

The link with diabetes

Patients with diabetes can suffer tooth loss as a consequence of this particular disease. However, there are various things related to your oral health that you shouldn’t ignore when it comes to diabetes. Poor oral hygiene and condition of your teeth and gums may not be the cause of diabetes. However, regular visits to the dentist can help you discover diabetes in its early stage. Moreover, if you’re diagnosed with diabetes, it’s essential that you take proper care of your teeth. Gum and teeth inflammations can disturb the levels of blood sugar, as well as slow down your body when it comes to insulin absorption. This can be quite a serious issue for people who already suffer from this disease.

Periodontitis and bone weakening

Just like poor oral health does not cause diabetes, periodontitis can’t be blamed for osteoporosis and rheumatoid arthritis either. However, some kind of connection is clearly there. Basically, your teeth are bones. The majority of patients who suffer from bone weakening in other parts of their bodies also suffer from bone loss in teeth. Therefore, taking care of your teeth, as well as regular dentist checkups, can help the patients take preventive measures and effectively fight bone weakening in general.

Safe pregnancy

Because of the unbalanced hormone levels during pregnancy, pregnant ladies have higher risks of gum inflammation. By ignoring this issue during pregnancy, you put your child in danger. Basically, your immune system will try to fight this inflammation, but these body reactions can be dangerous for your baby’s health. In that respect, not only can inflamed gums pose a risk of premature delivery, but they can also prevent proper development and growth of the baby. Since oral health can affect your body like this during pregnancy, it’s essential that you pay extra attention to your dental hygiene and visit the dentist more often. What’s more, the way your body reacts to gum and teeth inflammation can prevent you from staying pregnant in the first place.

Respiratory issues

There are many factors that can cause respiratory issues, periodontitis undoubtedly being one of them. If you breathe in plaque particles and bacteria, they can travel straight to your lungs. This can cause breathing problems and increase the risk of chronic pneumonia as well.

As you can see, it is extremely important to do your best and try to maintain good dental hygiene. Effective oral hygiene as well as regular visits to the dentist won’t just brighten up your smile. Such responsible behavior will also improve your quality of life and help you stay healthy.