Oral Health for Total Health: National Oral Health Month

We celebrate good oral hygiene in Canada, and April is dedicated to Oral Health Month. This year’s theme is oral health solutions, and from April 4th to 10th, “Oral Health for Total Health” focuses on why caring for our whole mouth is crucial.

We enjoy bringing you health news, especially oral health news, because we know its importance. For instance, did you know there’s a possible connection between a healthy mouth, teeth, and gums and the prevention of erectile dysfunction?

Keep reading for important stuff that you need to know!

Startling Oral Health News

Current estimates point to 3.5 billion people worldwide affected by oral disease. These are sobering statistics, but it proves why whole mouth health needs our serious attention every day.

The Impact of Oral Diseases

In many countries, oral diseases pose a significant health crisis that causes lifetime pain, sometimes disfigurement, and in the worst-case scenario, death:

• Gum diseases (severe periodontal diseases or gingivitis) affect nearly 10% of the global population and often result in significant tooth loss from dental decay.
• Oral cancers of the lips or mouth occur at high levels throughout Asia and Asian Pacific countries.

Oral cancers, tooth decay, and periodontal disease are the most common oral diseases worldwide, and they can happen to anyone. So it’s essential to recognize the symptoms and act on them right away.

Symptoms of Oral Diseases

Proper oral hygiene should include monitoring the health of your mouth, teeth, and gums at home.

An oral disease often doesn’t strike alone—it can sometimes be a warning sign of other serious health problems.

Look out for these things when you’re cleaning your mouth:

• New and significant pains in your jaw, teeth, or gums
• Ongoing bleeding of your gums
• Missing teeth or loose teeth
• New and recurring bad breath
• Lumps in your mouth, sores, or a patchy, irregular feeling.

It’s vital to schedule quarterly or twice-yearly dental checkups according to your dentist’s recommendation. If you’re between checkups and notice any of the symptoms we mentioned, please see your dentist for further evaluation.

Oral Health Solutions

Let’s be clear—most serious oral health conditions are largely preventable or treatable in the early stages of a disease. You can fight oral disease with these commonsense strategies:

• Twice a day (typically morning and night), brush your teeth and gums for at least two minutes with fluoride toothpaste.
• Floss your teeth and around your gums at least once a day (after every meal is even better).
• Schedule a cleaning and checkup with a dentist’s office twice per year.

These straightforward oral health solutions are easy to do. Making your oral health a daily habit is the most beneficial way to prevent oral disease.

Oral Disease Risk Factors to Avoid

Oral diseases are often caused by very high-sugar diets, tobacco use, and drinking alcohol in excess. Keep this in mind because the same risk factors may contribute to diabetes, many cancers, chronic respiratory disease, and heart disease.

Soon, we’ll discuss the connection between oral health and heart and vascular diseases and how erectile dysfunction (ED) factors into that.

In the meantime, these are risk factors to avoid—and you can make a start today!

Smoking cigarettes and other tobaccos:

A craving to smoke is intense because tobacco is addictive. Quitting for good can include resisting the urge to smoke, and while that’s difficult, most cravings pass within five to 10 minutes. Each time you fight, you’re closer to quitting.

Sugary drinks and snacks:

Try and replace sweet cravings with a serving of healthy fruits. For coffee or tea drinkers, you can replace the need for sugar with nut milk, cinnamon, and vanilla or almond extracts.

Oral Health Connection to Heart Disease

Ongoing medical research has suggested a link between people with oral diseases showing an increased risk of heart disease, heart attacks, and strokes. Why is this?

Researchers are considering two possibilities involving chronic inflammation:

• Bacteria in the mouth (causing oral diseases like gingivitis and periodontitis) can invade the bloodstream, causing inflammation that can clot the blood vessels and increase the risks of heart attack or stroke.
• Instead of the bacteria in our mouths causing inflammation, it’s the body’s immune response working against us, causing damage to the circulation and vascular system that can seriously affect our hearts and brains.

Science is still gathering hard evidence to establish a connection between oral diseases, cardiovascular disease, and strokes.

But one thing is for sure, smoking and excess drinking are known to cause chronic inflammation within the body. Chronic inflammation is often a sign of oral diseases and severe heart conditions—which brings us to how and why excellent oral hygiene can help prevent erectile dysfunction or assist in an ED treatment program.

The Erectile Dysfunction Connection

We specialize in all areas of men’s sexual health and erectile dysfunction, and we know that ED is a common side effect of cardiovascular disease. Sometimes, ED can also be a warning sign, and patients we treat with ED are also diagnosed with cardiovascular issues.

That’s why we’re focusing on the possible connection between oral disease, cardiovascular disease, and treating erectile dysfunction.

Science has shown how chronic inflammation can be a slow and silent killer behind cardiovascular disease, some cancers, diabetes, and other serious health conditions. Then, of course, there’s the cholesterol issue too.

When cholesterol levels get too high in the body, it can clog the arteries with cholesterol-filled plaque. This plaque can affect blood flow to the penis, resulting in ED.

Conclusion

There is а plenty of solid evidence in oral health news to prioritize your oral health and hygiene.

The good news is there are oral health solutions to keep your mouth healthy, and you can start to make changes to a high-sugar diet or tobacco use that will benefit your whole health significantly—including your sexual health.

Keep brushing and flossing every day, and remember to see your dentist!