How poor oral health can affect your overall health?
The Connection between Mouth and Body.
Your mouth is a window into the health of your body. It can show signs of nutritional deficiencies or general infection. Systemic diseases, those that affect the entire body, may first become apparent because of mouth lesions or other oral problems.
Healthy mouth can help you maintain a Healthy body
When you think about your health, the first thing that probably comes to mind is your weight, blood pressure and cholesterol. After all, we’ve all been taught that you are what you eat and to keep an eye on the numbers that comprise out healthy identity.
But did you know that your oral health can play a huge role in your overall health? The mouth is teeming with bacteria. Not only does brushing & flossing prevent bad breath, tooth decay and gum disease, but it can also help ward off or prevent other medical issues.
To understand how your oral health impacts your overall health, you need to understand what’s going on inside your mouth. Bacteria that builds up plaque on your teeth can make your gums more prone to infections like gingivitis and periodontitis, a severe gum disease.
Those diseases not only cause your mouth to become inflamed by causing your immune system to attack, but they can introduce that same bacteria to the rest of your body.
- Diabetes : the inflammation that starts in your mouth seems to weaken the body's ability to control blood sugar.
- Heart Disease : infection & inflammation caused by oral bacteria can lead to heart disease & stroke.
- Lung Conditions : periodontal disease may increase the risk of respiratory infections.
- Pregnancy : premature delivery and low birth weight have been linked to periodontitis.
Factors or conditions that can affect your Oral Health
reduces body's resistance power which increases the risk for many infections including gum diseases. A sudden increase in cavities or tooth abscesses can be a sign of uncontrolled diabetes. Assuming you're not eating too much sugar, but your body maybe having difficulty processing glucose, this sugar that accumulates in saliva can lead to uncontrolled growth of cavity-causing bacteria. Vigilant brushing and flossing helps in controlling bacterial growth.
If you notice your teeth are showing signs of erosion, gastroesophageal reflux disease (GERD) maybe the cause. A chronic condition, where stomach acid leaks into the oesophagus, some of it reaches the mouth and may wear away tooth enamel, this erosion usually occurs to teeth closest to the tongue. Unfortunately, enamel erosion is irreversible. However, GERD can be treated by certain changes like smaller, more frequent meals, a well balanced diet and avoiding certain foods.
During pregnancy, the hormonal levels keep fluctuating. This raises the risk for several oral health problems. This changing hormonal levels can make gum disease worse or lead to severe gum disease called periodontitis. Periodontitis is an infection of the tissues that hold your teeth in place. It's usually caused by not brushing or flossing properly, causing plaque - a sticky film of bacteria - to build up on the teeth and harden.
Women who have morning sickness that causes vomiting during pregnancy. The stomach acid that comes up during vomiting can erode tooth enamel. Heartburn or acid reflux is also another common pregnancy discomfort, causing enamel erosion. Regular dental visits during pregnancy are important to help protect your teeth.
Hypertension or high blood pressure, sometimes arterial hypertension, is a chronic medical condition in which the blood pressure in the arteries is elevated. This requires the heart to work harder than the normal to circulate blood through the blood vessels. Gingival bleeding or bleeding gums is one of the common clinical features seen in such patients. Medications for high blood pressure can also affect your gums and cause dry mouth, which can lead to tooth decay.
You know smoking is bad for your health, so it should be no surprise that chewing tobacco and its products are also harmful to your oral health. Tobacco products not only cause bad breath, but it's impacts on oral health also include, gum disease, stained teeth and tongue, dulled sense of taste & smell, slow healing after a tooth extraction or surgery, oral cancer and also difficulties in correcting cosmetic dental problems.
Children are highly susceptible to dental cavities and tooth decay, especially those who bottle feed. It is seen in infants and toddlers hence educating the parents or new mothers is important to prevent nursing bottle caries/ decay. To avoid baby bottle/ nursing bottle tooth decay, you should :
only bottle feed during meal times.
wean your child off a bottle by the time they're one year old.
avoid feeding in sleeping position.
fill the bottle with water if you must give them a bottle at bedtime.
always clean their gums and teeth after feeding, begin brushing with a soft baby toothbrush once teeth start to come in.
visit a pediatric dentist regularly for your child.
The bottom line about dental and oral health
Coming to the conclusion, your oral health has an impact on more than just your teeth. Poor oral and dental health also contribute to issues with your self-esteem, speech, nutrition, and overall quality of life. Many dental & oral problems develop without any symptoms. Seeing a dentist regularly for a check-up is the best way to treat and/or prevent a problem before it becomes worse. Ultimately, your long-term outcome depends on your efforts, remember post-treatment care is equally important. You cannot always prevent every cavity, but you can reduce your risk of severe gum disease and tooth loss by staying on top of your daily oral care.