You've probably heard it all before. Brush your teeth after every meal. Floss daily to clean those hard-to-reach sections of your teeth. Don't forget to visit your dental professional regularly. All of these instructions make sense. They not only come from your mom but from your dentist as well. These reminders are meant to help you sustain your oral health. But now it seems that it's not only the dentists, or our moms, who nag us about these. We have our physicians, too. Our doctors nowadays stress the importance of maintaining oral health so that we can keep the rest of our body healthy. According to oral care experts from Dental Irving, numerous studies have been made which suggest that gum diseases are closely linked and associated with other health issues, including heart disease, stroke and diabetes. "Medical researchers and practitioners are now looking at the correlation between the two. They are slowly shifting their focus so they can understand why these connections exist," said a dentist in Irving. What has come up so far, and one that is gaining support from medical researchers worldwide, is that inflammation may link the mouth to the body. Dentists in Irving said that the body's instinctive reaction to fight off infection is through inflammation. That's because inflammation guards us against injury or shields us against irritation. It is often characterized by swelling, redness, heat and pain around the affected area. Although inflammation initially intends to heal the body, over time, chronic inflammation can lead to dysfunction of the infected tissues. When this happens, more severe health complications are bound to happen. According to a dentist in Carrollton, who has practiced periodontics, every time we suffer from a periodontal disease the most likely culprit is an inflammatory disorder. Dental professionals, for many years, believed that gum disease was solely the result of a bacterial infection caused by a build-up of plaque between the teeth and under the gums. "Although plaque accumulation is still a factor in the development and progression of gum disease, researchers now suspect that the more severe symptoms, namely swollen, bleeding gums; recession around the gum line; and loss of the bone that holds the teeth in place may be caused by the chronic inflammatory response to the bacterial infection, rather than the bacteria itself," the dentist said. A Dental Carrollton periodontist, who is especially trained to prevent, diagnose, and treat gum disease, said that the inflammatory response to bacteria in the mouth may be the cause behind the periodontal-systemic health link. "Many of the diseases associated with periodontal disease are also considered to be systemic inflammatory disorders, including cardiovascular disease, diabetes, rheumatoid arthritis, chronic kidney disease and even certain forms of cancer, suggesting that inflammation itself may be the basis for the connection," he explained. He said more research is needed so that the precise biological mechanisms responsible for the relationship between gum disease and other diseases can be pinpointed. According to previous findings that have been conducted, those who suffer from gum disease are at a higher risk for other diseases.
Please Rate this Article 5 out of 54 out of 53 out of 52 out of 51 out of 5
Not yet Rated
