Whether you believe it or not, your oral health is linked to your overall health. Now, you might think this is obvious because everything that enters the body enters through the mouth. But, what we also mean is that the condition of your oral health can be related to major health issues related to your heart and other major organs in your body. This is why our dentist, Dr. Michael Gardner, strongly encourages you to take good care of your teeth, gums, and smile as much as possible.
One dental issue that has been linked to health issues is gum disease. This is a serious and dangerous disease that develops when you fail to remove plaque from your smile regularly. This dental disease has been found to have a relationship with heart disease, stroke, and even the delivery of pre-term, low weight babies for women.
There are other ways diseases involving the body relate to the oral health, especially because they involve symptoms of swollen gums, dry mouth, mouth ulcers, and excessive oral tissue problems. These diseases include diabetes, leukemia, oral cancer, pancreatic cancer, heart disease, and kidney disease. Fortunately, if you keep up with your regular dental checkups, your dentist can detect these issues at the early stages.
In addition to keeping up on your routine dental checkups, there are other things you can do to lessen the blow from your oral health. This includes brushing twice a day, flossing once a day, having a healthy diet, and avoiding tobacco use.
Do you have questions about how to help your overall and oral health in Ontario, California? If so, please contact Euclid Family Dentistry at 909-983-9639 today and talk to a member of our dental team. We are here to help you in any way we can, and we look forward to your phone call!