How neglecting oral health can harm your overall health
It isn’t widely known that the health of your mouth, teeth and gums can affect your general health – research by the Oral Health Foundation shows that awareness of oral health affecting conditions in other parts of the body is as low as 11%.
We often talk about the gut microbiome, but did you know about the oral microbiome? Like the rest of the body, the mouth is loaded with bacteria, and while most bacteria are harmless, some can cause disease. Your body’s natural defences and good daily oral hygiene, such as brushing and interdental cleaning, usually keep bacteria under control, alongside regular dental check-ups. However, without good oral care, bacteria can lead to diseases like tooth decay and gum disease.
As part of National Smile Month, we encourage you to read on and find out how you can help protect yourself from life-changing conditions by taking good care of your oral health.
A closer look at the oral microbiome
The oral microbiome is the collection of bacteria, viruses, and fungi within your mouth. These particles live in your saliva and on every surface of your mouth. Think of the oral microbiome as a mini-immune system for your mouth. Like the gut microbiome, it houses the organisms that help prevent and heal disease.
Second only to your gut, your mouth is the largest and most diverse microbiome in your body. Over 700 species of bacteria and other microorganisms gather in colonies on your teeth, tongue, hard palate, gums, and practically every crevice in your oral cavity.
All bacteria are crucial to your wellbeing – as long as they’re behaving correctly, and their ecosystem is cared for. However, your oral microbiome can be negatively affected by factors like:
- Smoking
- Poor diet (eating lots of sugary, processed, and acidic foods)
- Antimicrobial products for the mouth, like many alcohol-based mouthwashes
- Poor dental hygiene
To know if your oral microbiome is healthy, ask yourself if you suffer from oral diseases like cavities, bad breath, and gum disease. If you don’t, your oral microbiome is likely in good shape.
The health of your mouth is extremely important, as it is linked to a number of other conditions around the whole body.
Your mouth is the gatekeeper of your gut
We can compare the digestive tract to a river, with the mouth being the source of that river. This means that every time you swallow, you’re swallowing thousands of bacteria – some bad but, most importantly, some good. Contrary to what you’ve been told, the goal isn’t to kill off all the germs in your mouth. In fact, just like the gut microbiome, there are good bacteria in your mouth that aid the health of your teeth and the rest of your body.
Probiotic strains of bacteria are known to perform protective functions in the mouth. For example, some strains release acids that keep the harmful bacteria that cause tooth decay under control. Others protect against strains that cause gum disease and bad breath.
Gum disease – what are the risks?
Studies such as this one show that people with gum disease are almost twice as likely to have coronary artery (heart) disease than people without gum disease. When you have gum disease, it is thought that bacteria from the mouth can get into your bloodstream. The bacteria produce protein, and this builds up as plaques in the arteries that can then break off causing obstruction of the arteries around the heart, leading to a heart attack. These elevated levels of protein can also lead to an increased risk of strokes.
People with gum disease have more bacteria in their mouths and may therefore be more likely to get chest infections. You can read more about this link in this study. This particularly affects frail, elderly people who may die from pneumonia caused by breathing in bacteria from their mouth. Good oral hygiene for this group of people is therefore particularly important.
Pregnant women who have gum disease may be over three times more likely to have a baby that is premature and so has a low birth weight. There is a one-in-four chance that a pregnant woman with gum disease will give birth before 35 weeks. Read more about the research here. It is thought that gum disease may raise the levels of the chemicals that bring on labour; research also suggests that women whose gum disease gets worse during pregnancy have an even higher risk of having a premature baby. Having gum disease treated properly during pregnancy can reduce the risk of a premature birth.
What are the signs of gum disease?
The first sign of gum disease is bleeding gums. As the gum disease advances, you may get an unpleasant taste in your mouth, bad breath, and/or loose teeth. If you notice any of these, tell your dentist immediately.
If you have gum disease, your dental team will usually give your teeth a thorough clean to remove any scale or tartar. They will also show you how to remove the soft plaque yourself, by cleaning all the surfaces of your teeth thoroughly at home. Plaque is a sticky film of bacteria which forms on the teeth every day.
Gum disease is never cured, but as long as you keep up the home care you have been taught, you can slow down its progress and even stop it altogether. You must make sure you remove plaque every day and go for regular check-ups at the dentist, as often as they recommend.
Your mouth – the mirror of health and disease in the whole body
We hear so much about the gut microbiome and how it determines so much of our health and wellbeing, like our mental health and weight. It even contributes to degenerative diseases like dementia. But it’s the oral microbiome that is essential to keeping the gut healthy! To return to the river analogy, the oral microbiome flows beyond the mouth and down the digestive tract, to become the gut microbiome. And it’s there, deep in our digestive system, that microbes become profoundly important to the overall function of our body.
If there’s a problem in your mouth, like gum disease and inflammation-causing bacteria, these bacteria will be dripping down into your gut. Studies show a clear link between oral disease and systemic disease, with oral pathogens having been found in rheumatoid arthritis, inflammatory bowel disease, and even cardiovascular disease.
If you need to have a lot of dental work carried out, or a longer treatment such as root canal work or repair to a broken tooth, it is worth requesting a dental dam. Also known as a rubber dam, a dental dam is a protective sheet with a hole in it. It is placed over the treatment area to isolate it and help prevent the spread of bacteria during procedures.
A dental assistant will aspirate any fluids etc from the mouth during procedures, but the use of a dam is worth considering. An NHS dentist might not provide this because treatment takes longer when a dam is used, but if you undergo private treatment, it can be requested.
You can read more about dental dams here.
By prioritising oral hygiene, we’re quite literally halting disease in its track. When your mouth and oral microbiome are healthy, diverse, and thriving, the rest of your body will thrive, too.
How to maintain a balanced and diverse oral microbiome
While brushing and flossing twice a day is critical, diet is an equally important tool in your defensive armoury.
Here are some guidelines to help you choose oral microbiome-friendly foods:
- Remove processed foods, which are full of preservatives and artificial additives.
- Eat whole foods that haven’t been altered from their original state.
- Ditch sugar in all its forms: high-fructose corn syrup, maple syrup, table sugar, added sugar, refined sugar, honey, etc.
- Ditch the juices, even if they’re 100 percent fruit. They are a concentrated hit of simple carbs.
- Head to the local market and eat seasonal and locally sourced foods.
- Eat a variety of fibre-filled veggies. Some of our favourites are Brussels sprouts and leafy greens.
- Replenish your microbiome with fermented and probiotic foods, such as kefir, yoghurt, miso, sauerkraut.
- Choose veggies like onions and chicory root that contain prebiotic fibre, which is known to specifically feed beneficial bacteria.
- And finally – chew! The action of chewing physically breaks down your food into smaller pieces to increase the surface area; enzymes in your saliva help break down your food even further; the longer food spends in your mouth, the more time it gives the enzymes to work.
In summary, the oral microbiome sets the stage for everything that’s to come. So, the healthier your mouth and oral microbiome are, the healthier your gut, immune system, and entire body will be.
If you have a question about a digestive and gut health issue or would like to know more about a natural supplement protocol, please get in touch.
