Most people understand the impacts poor oral health can have on your teeth and mouth, such as tooth decay, gum disease and bad breath. But, can bad teeth cause health problems in other areas of your body? Oral health issues, such as gum disease, could increase your risk of other health issues, such as heart disease or stroke. However, implementing strategies to improve your oral health may result in better overall health as well.
Oral Health Impacts Your Entire Body
Bacteria can build up on your teeth, making your gums prone to infection. When you have an infection, your immune system goes to work to attack it, causing your gums to become inflamed. Unless you get the infection under control, the inflammation continues.
As time goes on, inflammation ― as well as the chemicals it releases ― begins eating away at your gums and the bone structure holding your teeth in place. Severe gum disease, also called periodontitis, is the result. Inflammation can also lead to issues in the rest of your body.
Extensive research shows the link between bad teeth and heart disease. For example, periodontal disease will potentially cause a 19 percent increase in cardiovascular disease risk, and this relative risk increase reaches 44 percent among adults over the age of 65.
Diabetes and oral health are also related. Individuals with Type 2 diabetes who have severe periodontal disease have a 3.2 times higher risk of mortality compared with people who have mild or no periodontitis. Bad oral health can cause other health conditions as well, including developing coronary heart disease.
Dental Health and Heart Health
Your oral health can have an impact on the health of your heart. Government agencies and researchers continue investigating the potential relationship between cardiovascular disease and periodontal disease and the underlying link between tooth decay and heart disease.
Bacteria in tooth-decay-causing dental plaque can lead to a blood clot in the arteries, which can pose a threat to your heart eventually. A potentially life-threatening blood clot can get released into your bloodstream, inducing a heart attack. The plaque formation on gums results in chronic gum inflammation and causes blood vessel inflammation.
Some studies found bacteria in the mouth involved in periodontal disease development can move into the blood, causing a C-reactive protein elevation, which is a marker for blood vessel inflammation. These changes can increase your heart health condition risk in the following ways.
1. Cardiovascular Disease
Inflammation is a common issue in both heart disease and dental disease. Atherosclerosis ― or hardening of the arteries ― has a strong element of inflammation. Much of the plaque progression built up in the arteries is an inflammatory process.
There’s also an inflammation element with gum disease: gingivitis. This is an initial stage at the beginning of gum disease, when bacteria take over the mouth and the gums become inflamed.
Symptoms of Cardiovascular Disease
While each cardiovascular disease type generally produces different symptoms, many have similar warning signs. Here is a list of some of the symptoms you could experience.
- Lightheadedness or dizziness: These episodes could be harmless, but if they’re ongoing, it could indicate something serious, such as cardiovascular disease.
- Extreme fatigue: You may find yourself exhausted after performing a particular activity that used to be simple for you.
- A new, abnormal heartbeat: Your irregular heartbeat, also called cardiac dysrhythmia, may be too fast or too slow.
- A fast heart rate: Your heart beats faster than average, at over 100 times a minute, in a condition known as tachycardia.
- Changes in sleep patterns: You may experience poor sleep or sleep-breathing issues.
- Chest discomfort: You may experience pain during activity that gets better with rest.
- Nausea: You may also have a loss of appetite.
- Confusion or restlessness: Your thinking may become impaired, and there’s a slight association between hypertension and restless legs syndrome.
- A cough: You may have a respiratory infection that becomes worse.
Reducing Your Risk of Cardiovascular Disease
Improving your oral health can help protect you from developing heart disease and keep your smile clean and healthy throughout your life.
There may be an association between oral health and stroke. Individuals with gum disease could be twice as likely to suffer a stroke as individuals with healthy gums, according to research. The higher the gum disease level, the worse the risk. In the study, the findings showed the risk of stroke increased in conjunction with the severity of the gum disease — it was 1.9 times higher in people with mild gum disease, 2.1 times higher in people with moderate gum disease and 2.2 times higher in people with severe gum disease.
An initial sign of periodontal disease is bleeding gums. Bleeding forms an opening, potentially allowing bacteria called Streptococcus mutans to enter the bloodstream. Once these bacteria are there, they can spread to other areas like the brain and heart. Another problem area when it comes to stroke is a decaying tooth. Left untreated, the decay could get into the tooth’s pulp and blood vessels, also creating an opening for bacteria.
Symptoms of Stroke
If you think you’re having a stroke, watch for these symptoms and when they begin, as the length of time they’ve been present can impact treatment options.
- Difficulty understanding and speaking:Communication problems are common with stroke.
- Numbness or paralysis of the arm, face or leg: The numbness is generally a sensation issue, and paralysis can be on one or both sides.
- A headache: During a stroke, the flow of blood to one area of your brain gets cut off.
- Eye problems: Difficulty seeing in one or both eyes.
- Trouble walking: Muscle weakness after a stroke can make it difficult to walk.
Reducing Your Risk of Stroke
Not all people carry Streptococcus mutans bacteria in their mouth. Even those who do aren’t necessarily going to suffer a stroke — not with proper teeth and gums care. Good oral hygiene may help keep your mouth healthy, significantly reducing your risk.
Some individuals have a high risk of developing heart valve disease or bacterial endocarditis, which is an infection of the heart’s inner lining. Endocarditis typically occurs when you have germs in other areas of your body, like your mouth, that travel through your blood, attaching themselves to damaged parts of your body.
For instance, individuals need to ensure they’re practicing good oral hygiene each day, since poor oral hygiene is a risk factor for an individual’s developing infective endocarditis-related bacteremiaafter they brush their teeth or have a tooth extraction.
One study published in the Journal of American Dental Association showed a link between generalized bleeding after study participants brushed their teeth and an increased risk of developing this infection.
Symptoms of Endocarditis
The symptoms of endocarditis will vary from person to person. Here are the signs someone has developed a heart infection from their teeth.
- Fatigue: You may feel tired a lot.
- Flu-like symptoms: You experience chills and fever.
- Night sweats: You sweat profusely at night.
- Aching muscles and joints: You have inflammation and swelling causing aching in your joints and muscles.
- A heart murmur: You may have developed a heart murmur, or an existing one got worse.
- Swelling: You may experience swelling in your legs, feet or abdomen.
- Chest pain: You have pain in your chest when breathing.
- Shortness of breath: You become winded easily.
Reducing Your Risk of Endocarditis
Typically, bacteria live on the skin, in the respiratory system, in the intestines, in the urinary tract and the mouth. If you don’t brush and floss enough, your gums will begin to bleed, giving bacteria an easy path to enter your bloodstream.
Practicing good oral hygiene may reduce your risk. Also, brushing your teeth twice daily, flossing and rinsing with an antiseptic mouth rinse once a day can help. Good dental and oral health are essential for individuals at risk for endocarditis.
4. High Blood Pressure
Poor oral health can interfere with blood pressure control in individuals with a hypertension diagnosis. Periodontal disease appears to interfere with hypertension treatment and worsen blood pressure.
Findings from a study by the American Heart Association underscore how essential good oral health is for controlling blood pressure and how it may prevent the adverse cardiovascular effects untreated hypertension can cause.
The study’s findings are based on a review of the dental and medical exam records of 3,600 individuals with high blood pressure. Those with healthier gums responded better to medications for lowering blood pressure and had lower blood pressure than those with gum disease. According to this research, individuals with periodontal disease specifically were 20 percent less likely to get to healthy ranges of blood pressure compared with those in good oral health.
Symptoms of High Blood Pressure
If you have extremely high blood pressure, you may experience the following issues.
- Vision problems: Hypertension can cause eye disease.
- A severe headache: You have pressure in your cranium.
- Confusion or fatigue: Your thinking is impaired, and you’re tired a lot.
- Difficulty breathing: You have problems breathing.
- Chest pain: You have pain in your chest.
- Pounding in your neck, ears or chest: A signal that your blood pressure may be up.
- Blood in the urine: Can go on for days.
- Irregular heartbeat: High blood pressure can affect the heart’s electrical system.
Controlling High Blood Pressure
Those with high blood pressure who take medicine could be more likely to benefit from treatment if their oral health is good.
Individuals with high blood pressure and the doctors caring for them should know good oral health could be just as essential in keeping the condition under control as various lifestyle interventions for controlling blood pressure, such as weight control, regular exercise and a low-salt diet.
Dental Health and Diabetes
There’s a link between periodontal disease and diabetes. Studies found increased gum disease prevalence among individuals with diabetes, placing severe gum disease on the list for health issues linked with diabetes, like stroke, heart disease and kidney disease.
Can diabetes cause gum disease? Evidence supports the claim there’s a two-way relationship between periodontitis and diabetes. It seems diabetes increases the risk of periodontitis, and periodontal inflammation affects glycemic control negatively.
Among other diabetes-related complications, there’s a strong link between diabetes and teeth and gum problems. Individuals with poor control of blood sugar get gum disease more severely and more often, and they also lose more teeth than individuals with good blood sugar control. Those who control their diabetes well have no higher risk of periodontal disease than individuals without diabetes. Kids with insulin-dependent diabetes mellitus are also at risk for gum issues. The best way to protect against periodontal disease is good diabetic control.
Blood vessel thickening is a diabetes complication that could increase your risk of gum disease. Diabetes causes this thickening, slowing the removal of harmful wastes and flow of nutrients. It could weaken the resistance of bone and gum tissue to infection.
Symptoms of Diabetes
The symptoms of diabetes affect every area of your body.
- Diabetes and gums: If you have diabetes, you have a higher risk of periodontal disease.
- High blood sugar: Your doctor will inform you of this after they perform a blood test.
- Excessive thirst and urination: Your kidneys are working overtime to filter and absorb excess sugar.
- Fatigue: You tire more easily with diabetes.
- Weight loss: Excessive urination can cause dehydration, which can lead to weight loss.
- Loss of consciousness: If your blood sugar becomes too low from your diabetes medications, you could lose consciousness.
If left untreated, diabetes can even take a toll on your mouth, and you may experience the following issues.
- Have less saliva: This causes your mouth to feel dry, and certain medications can cause dry mouth as well.
- Have a higher risk of cavities: Saliva protects your teeth.
- Have gingivitis: Your gums can bleed and become inflamed.
- Become susceptible to mouth infections: One example is thrush.
- Experience delayed wound healing: Wounds progress more quickly and heal more slowly.
- Earlier-than-normal teeth eruption: This phenomenon can occur in children who have diabetes.
Reducing Your Risk for Diabetes
Good oral health is essential for individuals with diabetes to control their blood glucose level and prevent diabetes teeth and gum problems. Therefore, you need to take care of your gums and teeth and see a dentist at least once every six months.
Dental Health and Osteoporosis
Research shows an association between bone loss in the jaw and osteoporosis. Your jaw bone anchors and supports your teeth. If your jawbone becomes less dense, there may be a need for tooth extraction, or it can cause tooth loss — common in older adults.
Your jawbone is an integral part of your face. It allows you to speak and chew properly and provides structure to your facial features. Losing bone density in teeth can impact various other aspects of both your oral and overall health. Jaw atrophy can stem from causes including gum disease, tooth loss and certain medications.
If you don’t treat it, it can lead to osteoporosis of the jawbone, resulting in problems with your remaining teeth, distortion or collapse of facial features and a whole range of other complications.
Bone Loss in Jaw Symptoms
There are many dental concerns potentially indicating low bone density.
- Receding gums: Your gums detach from your teeth.
- Loose teeth: Bacteria in your immune system break down the connective tissue and bone holding your teeth in place.
- Loose or ill-fitting dentures: Bone loss in the jaw can cause your dentures to not fit properly.
You’ll need to have the dentist examine your mouth immediately if you develop any of these symptoms.
Protecting Your Teeth and Jaw
One particular screening tool dentists use for osteoporosis is dental X-rays. Researchers found these to be extremely effective in distinguishing individuals with osteoporosis from those with normal bone density.
You can help protect your teeth and jaw by getting enough calcium in your diet each day, adding vitamin D to your diet, exercising and quitting smoking.
Antiresorptive agents, or medications that strengthen your bones, have been linked with osteonecrosis of the jaw. This condition is the death of your bone tissue resulting from a lack of blood supply. It may cause severe jawbone damage. While the chances of developing osteonecrosis of your jaw are minimal, if you’re taking an antiresorptive agent to treat osteoporosis, you may need to postpone or avoid dental treatment.
However, you’ll want to consult with a dentist about this, since untreated dental disease can become more severe and may even involve the bone and associated tissues, causing you to require even more invasive treatment.
How Can You Protect Your Oral Health?
Healthy gums and teeth make it simple for you to eat properly and enjoy your food. Several complications can affect your oral health, but taking good care of your teeth and gums should help keep them strong as you age.
Prevent Tooth Decay and Periodontitis
Some ways to avoid tooth decay and periodontitis are:
- Brush and floss your teeth twice a day.
- Repair any cavities right away.
- Use toothpaste with fluoride.
- Treat periodontitis immediately.
- Eat a well-balanced diet.
- Stop smoking if you do, since it will increase your risk of gum disease.
- Schedule dental checkups and cleaning appointments at least twice a year.
Combining good oral hygiene at home with regular dental checkups and cleanings can make an excellent preventive maintenance plan for keeping a healthy mouth and avoiding the many health problems caused by bad teeth.
Let Us Help Improve Your Oral Health
Over the years, Green Hills Family & Cosmetic Dentistry has helped hundreds of patients maintain a healthy, beautiful smile. Choosing Green Hills Family & Cosmetic Dentistry and Dr. Forgosh as your regular dental practice will be the start of a valuable long-term relationship for the health of your smile. Although Dr. Forgosh is a general dentist, he specializes in solving complex dental problems.
Contact Green Hills Family & Cosmetic Dentistry if you have questions about your oral health or to schedule your appointment to come in and see Dr. Forgosh for a thorough exam and teeth cleaning.