Problems You Can Get From Poor Oral Hygiene

In one of our last blogs, Why Are My Teeth Hurting? we left you with a cliffhanger: “Don’t forget that poor oral health can always lead to other problems in your body!” You’ve probably been wondering what exactly that means. After all, how does poor oral health really affect any other part of your body? Before you get too invested in how each part of your body is connected, we’re able to lay down the information you need to really be able to see how poor oral hygiene is able to affect different parts of your body. From our dentist at Lifetime Smiles to you, we’ve presented the effects of what can happen when you don’t brush your teeth, visit a dentist, or floss once a day, and the detrimental issues they cause to your body. If you haven’t visited a dentist in – well you don’t even know how long – then it’s time you call up a leading dentist in the Austin area.

Three Issues In Your Body Related To Oral Hygiene

You may not know, but your mouth is hooked up to many different areas of your body. If you take the time to notice what you eat and the way it makes you feel, you’ll probably realize that sometimes if you eat too much dairy your stomach hurts or you feel gassy. If you eat too much sugar and have acne, then you’ll notice that you’ll break out. In addition, your mouth is hooked up to your nose, which is in your head and is linked to the brain. As we begin to help you form a map of how exactly your mouth is connected to each important area of your body, you can see below three issues that can occur if proper oral hygiene is not taken into consideration.

Heart Disease

Everything in your body is connected to your heart in some manner. Your mouth is no exception. If you have poor oral hygiene, then your heart could be at risk because of the inflammation of your gums or periodontal disease you might have festering in your mouth. When you have infections, inflammation, or oral diseases, the bacteria will get into your bloodstream and make its way toward your heart. Once it arrives at your heart, your arteries will begin to harden and plaque will develop limiting the blood flow through the body.

Dementia

Dementia is a disease of the mind and can be very sad to watch in someone you love. Dementia can become even more of a scary possibility if you don’t practice proper oral hygiene. Gingivitis is an oral disease and when you don’t take the proper precautions against it, the bacteria can infiltrate into your brain through the nerves and bloodstream in your body. This portal of uncared for oral disease can even lead to Alzheimer’s.

Respiratory Problems

Like the above body issues, respiratory problems stem from gum disease that is liable to make its way down your breathing passage and into your lungs. Diseases like pneumonia can occur when you ignore the bacteria from oral disease and you breathe it in causing the infection to transfer into your lungs. Respiratory problems increase over time if you allow the oral disease to fester.

If you’re nervous that you might have poor oral hygiene, then take the time to speak to a dentist to ask all of the questions you need to know so to avoid any body related complications due to improper oral hygiene.