If you are suffering from gum disease, do not put off coming in to see a dentist. Gum disease has been linked to heart disease. This is due to the fact that the bacteria that cause gum disease can get into the bloodstream and travel throughout the body.
The cardiovascular system is especially vulnerable to this, and heart attacks and gum disease has been proven to be a direct cause of heart attacks and strokes in a number of people.
The number of bacteria in one human mouth can easily total more than the number of people alive on the earth. Even in a plaque-free mouth, as many as 1,000 to 100,000 bacteria live on each individual tooth surface.
Mind you, this is in a plaque free mouth. If plaque is present, there are as many as 100 million to 1 billion bacteria growing on every tooth. This staggers our comprehension, but it is a statistical fact.
Some bacteria are good for your body. Others, however, are extremely harmful. The kind of bacteria that cause gum disease not only permanently damage gum tissue, but they also can damage your jaw bone and the connective tissues that hold your teeth to your jaw.
Once this tissue is weakened, the likelihood of tooth loss intensifies. Even worse, the bacteria that cause gum disease can travel through the blood and strike internal organs. Heart attacks and strokes are two of the severe consequences of untreated gum disease.
The statistics are quite alarming. Research conducted over a ten-year period determined that patients with gum disease are three times as likely to suffer a heart attack as are patients without Periodontitis.
Researchers are still exploring the details of the causal relationship between Periodontitis and heart disease.
Evidence to date strongly suggests that infectious bacteria enter the bloodstream through tears in gum tissue. Once these bacteria reach the liver, the liver produces a protein that clogs the arteries. Other research indicates that gum disease bacteria can directly attack the heart by creating blockages in the arteries.
This theory is strongly supported by the fact that oral bacteria have been found in the arteries of people who previously experienced arterial blockage and a subsequent heart attack.
People with a heart valve ailment need to really be proactive in seeking out dental treatment for gum disease. Conditions such as mitral valve prolapse, rheumatic heart disease, congenital defects, and heart murmurs are particularly vulnerable to oral bacteria.
In addition to the risk of heart attacks, a rare and occasionally fatal disease known as endocarditis can be brought on by S.Sanguis the bacteria found in plaque and wreck havoc on heart tissues and valve muscles.
If you have any type of heart valve ailment, it is strongly recommended you talk to your dentist about it before having any type of dental treatment. It may be necessary for your dentist to prescribe antibiotics as a precautionary measure against oral bacteria that could otherwise be dislodged into the bloodstream and travel directly to the heart. Lose These Four Bad dental habits and Save Your Teeth
Much of the damage that is done to the human mouth is done as the result of bad dental habits that people do without thinking. All of these habits are learned behaviors and are so common in our society that the constant sight of other people doing them creates a strong, unconscious visual motivator to do likewise.
The good news is, none of these actions are addictive beyond the psychological level, and all can be overcome by conscious awareness and a decision to do something else.
