Your oral health says a lot about your overall health. Poor oral health can contribute to a variety of serious health problems including cardiovascular disease, endocarditis, pneumonia, and pregnancy and birth complications.
The good news is that good oral health makes a huge impact on your overall health. It is important to take care of your teeth as part of a healthy lifestyle. Here are some lifestyle choices you can make to improve your oral health.
Healthy Diet
It is no secret that eating a healthy diet will improve your overall health, but did you know it can also improve the state of your teeth?
Bacteria in your mouth love to feed on sugary, and starchy food particles. These bacteria break down the sugars into harmful acids that can eat away, and erode the enamel on your teeth, and cause gum inflammation, and gingivitis.
It is a good idea to limit sugar intake and foods that can stick to your teeth. Be careful of sweet drinks like juice and pop, they can also wear away at your teeth.
Clearbrook Dental will recommend regular brushing at least twice a day, and especially after eating sweets.
Eating healthy foods also encourages strong healthy teeth. Foods that are rich in vitamins, and minerals such as leafy greens, broccoli, almonds, and fresh fruit will help build up enamel, and reduce inflammation in your gums, and other tissue.
Avoid Alcohol and Tobacco
Tobacco can not only stain your teeth yellow, but it can also increase your chances of oral cancer and other health complications. Tobacco also increases bacteria growth in your mouth, which can lead to tooth decay, gum disease and tooth loss.
Alcohol can also dehydrate your mouth, which creates an ideal environment for harmful bacteria to thrive.
Stress
Stress can contribute to many unhealthy lifestyle choices, including increased alcohol use, and drug use, smoking, and poor diet choices.
Stress can also harm your teeth through stress grinding, also called Bruxism. This grinding can often occur at night when people who are stressed clench their teeth. It can wear down teeth surfaces and cause jaw problems such as Temporomandibular Joint Disorder (TMJ).
Stress has also been shown to affect your overall immune system and can reduce your body’s ability to fight off infections, and diseases such as gum disease.
Recreational Drug Use
Recreational drugs can not only affect your overall health, but they can also have an effect on your oral health. Using drugs such as tobacco, ecstasy, meth and amphetamines can lead to the restriction of blood capillaries in your gums. This loosens the attachment between your gums and teeth and can lead to tooth loss.
Other drugs can decrease the amount of saliva your mouth produces, leading to bacteria growth and an increased risk for gum disease and tooth decay.
Good Dental Hygiene and Regular Dental Checkups
Even if you are in excellent health, it is important to take care of your teeth and gums through brushing, flossing, and regular dental checkups.
Normally, with regular dental hygiene, your body can fight off infections and keep the harmful bacteria in your mouth under control. If you don’t practice regular brushing and flossing, these bacteria can grow and reach levels that can lead to tooth decay, and gum disease.
With regular checkups at Dr. Mark Rhody Dentistry, you can keep an eye out for early signs of tooth decay, and kinds of oral cancer, and treat the problems right away. Through regular cleanings, they can also remove harmful plaque that regular brushing and flossing can’t touch.
Regular hygiene, dental checkups, and healthy life choices will make sure you keep your teeth healthy and strong.