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We have known for a long time that good dental hygiene results in more healthy people. It seems to make sense that people who are able to eat good foods are more likely to have good functioning teeth and as a result would be healthier. However, two recent studies indicate that good oral hygiene may keep us from developing certain chronic diseases as well.
When I first read this I said to myself, "No way, this can't be true." However, the researchers did mention that people with bacterial infections have higher glucose levels in their blood stream. In fact, diabetics glucose levels will oftentimes go very high even with insulin therapy during a bacterial infection. People with periodontal disease are constantly shedding bacteria from their mouth into their blood stream. This chronic low level of infection might explain why people with severe periodontal disease are more likely to have high glucose levels in their blood stream. Other researchers at University of Buffalo Dental School used data from this same study. They found that persons with chronic lung conditions had more gum detachment than those with no lung disease, after correction for age, gender, race, ethnicity, education, income, frequency of dental visits, smoking and alcohol consumption. Gum detachment is a sign of periodontal disease. The more detachment, the more severe the periodontal disease. This makes a lot of sense as well. Many people when they sleep will aspirate (inhale) saliva into their lungs. Periodontal disease allows more bacteria to grow in the mouth of a patient and therefore make it more likely that they will aspirate bacteria into their lungs. The moral of this story is that we should all take good care of our teeth. It not only prevents cavities and tooth loss but may also prevent lung infections and diabetes. For more power go to the press release from the University of Buffalo. Take Care and Think Microbiologically! Go To Page: 1 |
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