Can Dental Problems Cause Other Health Problems?
Oral health is much more than merely the health of your mouth, teeth, and gums. Your mouth is the primary gateway to your body, and maintaining poor health can have adverse consequences for the entire body. Toothaches, bleeding gums, and bad breath indicate poor oral health. The bacteria from your mouth can spread to your bloodstream, causing infections and inflammation throughout your body.
You must practice good oral hygiene and visit your dentist every six months to prevent severe risks to the overall health of your body. This article provides details on health issues that might arise from poor health besides recommending how to protect your oral health appropriately.
Health Issues Because of Bad Oral Health
Cardiovascular Disease
If you maintain improper dental hygiene and fall prey to an infection like gingivitis, the condition gradually progresses to periodontal disease because you allow plaque and tartar to accumulate on your teeth. The bacteria from periodontal disease gets into your bloodstream, causing your arteries to harden. Therefore periodontal disease can lead to cardiovascular issues by making you prone to the condition called atherosclerosis. Atherosclerosis leads to blood flow problems and heart blockages, leading to the likelihood of a heart attack. You might also develop endocarditis, a fatal condition occurring when the lining of your heart becomes infected.
Fortunately, gum disease in any stage is entirely preventable by maintaining proper dental hygiene and scheduling regular visits to your dentist for exams and cleanings.
Pregnancy Complications
Dentists advise pregnant women not to neglect oral health and pay particular attention to their oral hygiene. Hormonal changes in the body during pregnancy make pregnant women prone to pregnancy gingivitis and other oral health issues. Oral health infections in pregnant women can affect their pregnancy, causing premature childbirth or even low birth weight in infants. In addition, pregnancy gingivitis puts the mother and the baby at risk of experiencing severe health issues.
Respiratory Infections
Your respiratory system also suffers because of poor oral health. For example, if you need treatment for a tooth infection, you had better get it from your dentist before the condition aggravates and you begin breathing the bacteria in your mouth into the lungs traveling through the bloodstream. When the bacteria reach the lungs, they can cause respiratory infections, pneumonia, COPD, and acute bronchitis.
Rheumatoid Arthritis
The National rheumatoid arthritis Society states that people with gum disease are likely to have rheumatoid arthritis. Gum disease and rheumatoid arthritis have inflammation in common, and the oral bacteria from gingivitis can increase inflammation throughout the body. As a result, gingivitis makes the risk of developing rheumatoid arthritis, which is a painful and debilitating inflammatory condition, higher.
Cancer
Poor oral health and lifestyle habits like smoking or using tobacco in any form can result in growth and mouth cancers. Unfortunately, other cancers are associated with gum disease. The risk of pancreatic cancer, kidney cancer, and blood cancer becomes higher among people with poor oral health.
Erectile Dysfunction
Men are at higher risks of developing erectile dysfunction if they maintain poor oral hygiene. Chronic periodontal disease is associated with erectile dysfunction. An infection called CPD occurs with gum recession, causing the bacteria to spread to the bone surrounding the teeth. The bacteria from infected gums get into the bloodstream to cause inflammation of the blood vessels. The inflammation blocks blood flow to the genitals, making erections challenging or impossible to achieve.
As can be seen, dental problems cause various other health problems that need treatment from different dental professionals. Therefore you must keep your dental health in check by visiting the dental clinic near me for regular evaluations of your dental hygiene.
How to Protect Your Oral Health?
Protecting your oral health isn’t as challenging as you imagine. Dentists provide all services needed to prevent oral health issues from magnifying into overall health problems. However, if you have any dental problem, you must have it treated right away, even from an emergency dental clinic, and ensure it doesn’t progress or aggravate.
Besides the above, you must brush your teeth and gums two times per day with fluoride toothpaste, floss your teeth at least once, limit sugary foods and beverages, avoid tobacco products and smoking, and finally take supplements for boosting your dental health. You must also include six-monthly dental appointments with your dentist for exams and cleanings to ensure you don’t fall prey to any overall health issues because of improper dental hygiene.
If you are due for your dental health checkup, please schedule an appointment with King and Weston Dental to ensure your dental health is in optimal condition.