The Effects of Oral Health on Overall Health

Oral health is essential in enhancing our general health. As a matter of fact, how healthy your teeth and mouth is determines your health in general. For instance, a person with cavities and gum diseases is likely to acquire chronic diseases. These can include diseases such as diabetes, pneumonia, bronchitis, among others. In addition, cavities come with pain and this can also be another major cause of health problems.

Let’s look at the other few possible effects of oral health on a person’s overall health.

The Connection between Oral Health and Overall Health

Just as in the rest of our body, our mouth also has bacteria. Even though they might be partially harmless, they can be dreadful if not well controlled. In this case, these bacteria can multiply to an extent where they can cause various oral infections. These can include problems such as tooth decay and gum diseases. For that matter, it is only oral care such as brushing and flossing regularly that can protect your health. Our mouth usually depends on saliva to wash away food particles and neutralize mouth acids. As explained by various orthodontists, http://www.kuncioorthodontics.com/, this helps a lot in reducing chances of getting microbial invasion that lead to diseases. In an event where we consume medications, we risk such diseases if we do not take a good oral care. Studies have it that medications such as antihistamines, painkillers, diuretics, and antidepressants can reduce saliva flow thus we are not able to naturally control the health of our mouth. Cleaning our mouth is, therefore, essential to avoid such complications.

Conditions That May Link To Oral Health

There are numerous diseases that can be contributed by a poor oral hygiene/health.

This includes:

Endocarditis

In this case, the inner lining of a heart, endocardium, gets highly affected by Endocarditis. In case of poor oral health, Endocarditis occurs as a result of oral germs that spread into the bloodstream. In the process, they get attached to the damaged areas of the heart hence causing complications.

Cardiovascular Diseases

Various medical researchers have proven that poor oral health can vastly lead to heart diseases. This includes diseases such as stroke and clogged arteries amongst others. This is mostly experienced due to the inflammation and infections caused by bacteria in the mouth.

Pregnancy and Birth

Poor oral care results in periodontal infections in the mouth. The end result of this in women is normally multiple complications such as premature birth and low birth weight.

HIV/AIDS

Mucosal lesions are among the oral health problems that are currently common. Unlike the other oral problems, this is mostly found among the HIV/AIDS patients. A close oral contact with the patients can lead to high risks of attracting mucosal lesion.

Protecting Your Oral Health

There is only one way to protect your oral health. This is by ensuring that you practice a good oral hygiene and on a regular basis.

Oral hygiene can be met in numerous ways such as:

• Brushing not less than twice a day with toothpaste.
• Flossing regularly
• Eating healthy diet
• Avoid using tobacco
• Ensuring that you replace your tooth brushing a four months time for effectiveness

In summary, taking good care of your mouth improves your health in general. If you can consider prioritizing good oral and dental hygiene, you will stay clear of numerous chronic diseases.