What’s the connection between oral health and heart disease? To make sense of it, consider this scenario: You sneeze, and then suddenly you hear a door slam shut. The first time this happens, you’ll probably chalk it up to coincidence. But if it keeps happening, you might wonder: did your sneeze cause the door to close?
But before jumping to conclusions, consider other explanations. Maybe a strong wind is both slamming the door and bringing in pollen that makes you sneeze. Or perhaps a cat is involved, shutting the door while also triggering your allergies. The point is that two events might happen at the same time without one causing the other. They might share a common cause, or they might not be related at all.
This idea applies to oral health and heart disease: they often show up together, and while one might not directly cause the other, they could be linked by shared factors like inflammation or bacteria.
What Do We Mean By “Heart Disease”?
When we talk about “heart disease,” we’re talking about a cluster of conditions that affect the function of the heart and blood vessels. These conditions are more properly known as cardiovascular diseases. And we do need to talk about them: The World Health Organization maintains that cardiovascular disease is the leading cause of death worldwide.
There are many types of cardiovascular diseases. Some are easy to treat. Others less so.
The Connection Between Oral Health and Heart Disease
Evidence exists linking poor oral health—particularly gum disease—to heart disease. In fact, studies suggest that poor oral health leads to a variety of negative health outcomes, even Alzheimer’s disease. From this standpoint, one of the riskiest oral health conditions to have is periodontitis. Periodontitis is a severe gum disease where bacteria destroy gum and bone tissue. These bacteria can enter the bloodstream and may contribute to other health problems throughout the body.
There are a few theories as to why periodontitis might cause heart disease in particular. One theory is that the bacteria involved travel through the bloodstream, clogging arteries and causing a heart attack or stroke. Another theory is that gingival bacteria in the bloodstream set off an inflammation response, which negatively affects heart health.
But oral health disorders don’t necessarily cause cardiovascular conditions. Instead, what’s going on is that both periodontitis and cardiovascular diseases of different types share common risk factors, such as:
- Diabetes
- High blood pressure
- High cholesterol
- Obesity
- Tobacco use
This means you might develop both periodontitis and heart disease around the same time because of a shared factor. Think back to our sneezing-the-door-shut analogy. One may not cause the other; they could just happen together. More research is needed to find out if poor oral health directly causes heart disease.
Can Good Oral Health Prevent Heart Disease?
Regardless of the exact nature of the relationship between oral health and heart disease, you’ll want to make sure your teeth and gum issues are healthy. Periodontal conditions can be particularly miserable. Early warning symptoms of gum disease include:
- Bleeding gums
- Foul breath
- Loose or drifting teeth
- Pus
- Receding gums
- Sore or swollen gums
Now, is there anything you can do to prevent gum disease? According to the American Heart Association, you can take these steps to improve oral health and potentially head off future periodontal disease issues:
- Avoid processed foods
- Brush twice a day
- Cease tobacco use
- Floss once a day
Additionally, you can do the following to preempt heart-related health concerns:
- Eat more fruits and vegetables
- Get regular exercise
- Reduce the salt in your diet
- Reduce your alcohol intake
Considering the connection between periodontitis and cardiovascular disease, we suggest following both sets of recommendations.
How Do You Treat Gum Disease?
If you’ve experienced serious negative developments in your oral health, it’s worth contacting a dentist for help. At Bent Tree Dental, we can help you treat conditions such as gum recession, gingivitis, and other periodontal issues that research suggests may lead to cardiovascular disease down the road.
Our treatment techniques include:
- Laser dentistry: The gums are cleaned with a focused light source, which leaves healthy gum tissue intact while attacking bacteria and plaque.
- Pocket depth reduction: The gums are folded back to clean bacteria, tartar, and plaque from tooth roots. After cleaning, they’re repositioned to reduce pocket depth.
- PST™: Gum tissue is shifted into a more accessible position, reshaping it. This treatment is less invasive than other methods.
- Soft tissue graft: Gum tissue is taken from the roof of the mouth or another donor source and placed over areas of gum recession.
- Tissue regeneration: A bone graft is performed following pocket depth reduction to help regrow bone lost to gum disease.
You don’t have to continue suffering from painful, embarrassing, or concerning periodontal issues. We have a variety of ways to return you to good oral health.
Concerned About Your Oral Health? Contact Us in Dallas Today!
If you have oral health concerns, our team at Bent Tree Dental is here to help. We understand that dental and periodontal conditions can dramatically reduce your quality of life. And those conditions can be all the more distressing if you’re also battling cardiovascular disease.
Contact us to schedule your visit. We’re here to help you smile with confidence and maybe even support your heart health along the way.
