With Good Friday around the corner, this piece is intended as a general reminder of the importance of oral health as a part of one’s overall well-being. The mouth is a mini ecosystem, with important interactions between your own body and a host of bacteria. The majority of these bacteria are not only harmless, but play a role in your breakdown of foodstuffs and normal digestion. However, this balance of power can go sideways if one does not maintain proper oral health through normal preventive care (e.g., brushing, etc.) or tending to a dental emergency like an abscess (infection).
Aside from the normal processes described above, there is an ever-growing list of diseases and conditions have been shown to have some connection with oral health. This list includes but is not limited to: cardiovascular disease, premature birth, osteoporosis, diabetes, and even neurodegenerative diseases such as Alzheimer’s. One might think, how are all of these conditions connected to the health of my mouth? The answer is believed to be linked to the process of inflammation, which is your body’s own response to imbalance. Specifically, chronic inflammation is known to affect long-term health in a negative way. Think of it like a lot of wear and tear on your body.
As mentioned above, this post is really meant as a gentle nudge to keep up your daily oral health habits. It won’t just keep your visits to dentists and oral surgeons to only what is necessary, it may even help you live a longer (and likely happier) life.
Please give Dr. McGann’s office a call with any question and/or concern about wisdom teeth, dental implants, or corrective jaw surgery.
