A Dentists Insight To Your Overall Health

Imagine having an infection as large as the palm of your hand on your leg, arm or on the side of your face. If you are like most people, the thought is disgusting and scary, and you would certainly want to be treated by a doctor. You would want the condition cured, and you would want to know the source was in order to avoid a repeat infection. You certainly would not dismiss the condition.

What if this condition was persistent inside of your mouth? The idea sounds disgusting and unlikely, but if you have ever had inflamed gums, you have had a comparable infection inside of your very own mouth, and for some reason most people just do not take such oral health situations seriously; they do not see the dentist for treatment, nor do they have concern for their health. However, conditions such as these are either indicative of existing health problems or they stand to cause health problems, so pay attention to your mouth, and see the dentist as soon as you notice the problem.

Dentists who see these kinds of persistent issues in a patient’s mouth are quick to run blood tests to check for disease such as insulin resistance, diabetes, and related issues. Suspicious dental conditions are quickly becoming one of the main connections to the diagnosis of glucose related disease, and when caught early; insulin resistance, the condition that leads to diabetes, can be reversed.

The reciprocal situation is also true. Poor mouth health and gum disease left untreated can cause health problems. When gums are infected, the simple act of brushing your teeth is enough to aggravate the infection and push it into your blood stream. The infection will then travel through your body via the bloodstream, land in other organs, and cause further infection. The bacteria, the chemicals affiliated with them, and the body’s reaction to both, are linked to pre-mature birth, heart disease, stroke, and osteoporosis. Be clear that gum disease is not a symptom of these serious and deadly health issues; gum disease is a cause of them.

The evidence is becoming clearer, more supported, and surely more convincing that you could be saving your own life, or, in the case of the effects of gum disease on gestation, the life of your child by keeping in sync with your regularly scheduled preventative dental care appointments and, by being proactive about any suspicious conditions such as inflamed, painful gums, mouth sores, or even chronic dry mouth or bad breath.

The idea that there is a disconnect between the mouth and the rest of the body is mythical. The mouth is quite literally a portal to your overall health.