Why does Grove City Dental focus on 100% Healthy mouth?

The mouth-body connection: Healthy smiles support healthy bodies

When you’ve got the daily dental hygiene basics down, you’ve got a great foundation for a beautiful, healthy smile. Maintaining a million-dollar smile is not just about looking great and helping to prevent bad breath and cavities. Growing scientific evidence shows that neglecting your smile could lead to serious health issues as well.

5 reasons you need to take care of your smile

1. Protect against heart disease

According to the American Heart Association, dental infections are linked to heart disease — the leading cause of death in North America. What you may not know is that gum disease is caused by plaque buildup and affects an alarming 75 percent of adults. How does that affect your heart health? When bacteria from infected gums dislodges, it can enter the bloodstream, attach to blood vessels and increase clot formations. These clots decrease the blood flow to the heart and can increase your chances of a heart attack.

2. Lower your risk for diabetes

If we neglect proper dental care, bacteria that enters the bloodstream can activate our immune cells. These activated cells produce inflammatory biological signals that have a destructive effect throughout the entire body. In the pancreas, the cells responsible for insulin production can be damaged or destroyed. Once this

happens, you could face serious consequences, including Type 2 diabetes — even in otherwise healthy individuals with no other risk factors for diabetes. Unfortunately, having diabetes makes it more difficult to keep your mouth healthy.  You are fighting dry mouth which lowers your body’s natural defense system against bacteria.  This makes your more susceptible to cavities, gingivitis and periodontal disease.

3. Reduce the threat of respiratory disease

Scientists have found that bacteria growing in the oral cavity can be secreted into the lungs and cause respiratory diseases such as pneumonia, especially in people with periodontal disease. This discovery leads researchers to believe that these respiratory bacteria can travel from the oral cavity into the lungs to cause infection. Further damage to the tissue and working function of the lungs can be prevented by eliminating oral bacteria through proper dental care. But already damaged tissue cannot be restored.

4. Protect against osteoporosis

Researchers at the University of Buffalo reported that people diagnosed with periodontal disease may be at a higher risk of underlying osteoporosis. The study, published in the Journal of Periodontology, is the first large-scale assessment of the relationship between bone metabolism and oral health. The results indicate a very strong relationship between the advanced form of gum disease — a cause of bone loss, gum-attachment loss, tooth loss — and osteoporosis.

5. Support a healthy social life!

The old saying is true: You never get a second chance to make a first impression. Picture yourself meeting someone for the first time.  They approach you smiling (studies show that an attractive smile is one of the first things people notice about you) but then they open their mouth to speak and you are blown away!  Not by their speaking skills but by their bad breath.  Bad breath goes hand in hand with gingivitis (gum disease) and periodontal disease.  We all want a healthy smile, yet dental disease, a sign of oral neglect, is the most prevalent disease Americans suffer from. And it doesn’t discriminate. While the risks grow as we age, people from all ages are afflicted. And the most ironic part? Dental disease is entirely preventable by following a good dental hygiene program! 

Make an appointment with our dental team at Grove City Dental so we can make sure you achieve a 100% Healthy Mouth!

614-801-1000