The confidence you feel when your smile’s appearance is flawless is only one reason why excellent dental health should be a priority. Other reasons include avoiding issues like severe toothaches, destructive cavities, progressive gum disease, and in many cases, increased risks of chronic systemic health conditions. Known as oral-systemic health, the connection between your smile and the rest of your body is a significant one, especially since it can provide a pathway for dental diseases to affect other systems in your body.
How Dental Diseases Work
To understand the oral-systemic connection, you first have to understand the nature of common dental diseases. Most begin with the excessive accumulation of oral bacteria (the building blocks of plaque and tartar), which constantly attack your teeth and gums as they metabolize nutrients from your food and beverages. Some bacteria release toxins that irritate your gum tissues, or produce molecules that incite unchecked tissue inflammation. In the case of gum disease, for instance, inflammation is the driving force behind the destruction of the gums and jawbone structure that support your teeth.
How They Affect Your Systemic Health
Your mouth is a pathway into the rest of your body, and when you experience dental disease, it can affect other areas of your body. Following the example of gum disease, the molecule that oral bacteria produce interferes with your immune system’s ability to shut down inflammation. Since your body can’t control it, the tissue swelling can wreak havoc with your cardiovascular system, respiratory system, and more if gum disease is allowed to remain untreated. Because of the oral-systemic connection, patients who exhibit severe gum disease are often at higher risks of experiencing heart disease, rheumatoid arthritis, type 2 diabetes, and other chronic inflammatory conditions.
Keep Your Smile and Your Body’s Systems Healthy
Keeping your smile healthy and disease-free not only improves your confidence, but also your overall wellbeing. To learn more, schedule a consultation with your dentist by calling Syosset Dental in Syosset, NY today at 516-433-2211 or 516-921-1678.
