Thoughts

Caring for Your Health Holistically: The Importance of Healthy Teeth and Gums

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Do you hate going to the dentist? Do you avoid it until you absolutely have to go? If so, you are not alone. Statistics show that only 52.3% of US residents visit the dentist regularly. 15.5% have indicated that they only visit the dentist once a year. And 21.3% have not visited the dentist for a couple of years. 

Unfortunately, not regularly visiting the dentist does not only have a negative impact on your oral hygiene, but it can also impact your overall physical, mental, and emotional health and well-being. When considering the effect of avoiding the dentist, such as the ones at Peak Family Dental Care in Cottonwood, AZ, it’s easy to assume that oral hygiene only affects your mouth, teeth, and gums.

However, there is substantial evidence to the contrary. Thus, let’s look at some of the evidence that shows how an inadequate dental health regime hurts your overall health and highlights the need for a holistic health care management regime.

Diabetes Type II

According to Kate Lowenstein, in her article titled, “Dental Health and Overall Health,” the connection between gum disease, periodontitis, and diabetes type II was made in 2008 by Researchers at Columbia University’s Mailman School of Public Health. They confirmed the following hypothesis: 

Higher levels of gum disease translate into an increased risk of developing diabetes. Mainly, poor oral hygiene increases the inflammatory molecules throughout your body, and this, in turn, leads to your body’s ability to process insulin properly.

Furthermore, if you already have been diagnosed with diabetes type I or II, then you must visit the dentist regularly. 

Why? 

Simply stated, your body already has a compromised ability to maintain a healthy blood glucose level. Adding periodontitis into the mix will make both your oral hygiene and diabetes more challenging to manage. While the consequences of poorly controlled diabetes are not part of the scope of this article, they include severe effects like neuropathy in your feet.

Osteoporosis

The word osteoporosis means “porous bone”. And, it is a disease that reduces bone density in your body. Essentially, your body’s bones become more fragile and porous; thereby, increasing the risk of fractures. Osteoporosis is often only diagnosed after the first fracture as it is a silent disease. 

It also negatively affects the bones in your jaw and your teeth; thus, increasing the risk of your jawbone and teeth disintegrating and falling out. Periodontitis and Gum disease without the addition of Osteoporosis, increase the risk of tooth loss. Thus, add osteoporosis and gum disease together, and there is a very good chance of losing your teeth. Therefore, it is vital to prioritise oral hygiene to reduce the consequences of osteoporosis.

Final thoughts

Teeth are an integral part of the human body. And, if they are looked after properly, they will remain healthy for a long time. On the other hand, if you start losing your teeth, it can have a disastrous impact on your overall health and well-being.

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