Could the health of your teeth and gums affect your heart? It seems like it couldn’t be possible, but more and more doctors are convinced that there is a relationship between poor dental hygiene and heart disease. It is suggested that inflamed, bleeding gums allow bacteria in the mouth to enter the bloodstream and cause problems in the heart. Once in the blood, the bacteria attach themselves to fatty plaques that are responsible for Coronary Heart Disease (CHD). These plaques are the ones that will clot together, hasten atherosclerosis (hardening of the arteries), and cause heart attacks or strokes. So proper flossing and brushing of your teeth may have an added purpose – that of protecting your heart.
Healthy gums are firm, light pink, and very elastic. If you have reddened or inflamed gum tissue, or bleeding gums after brushing or after you eat hard foods, or your gums are sensitive to the touch, or bad breath especially when you first get up in the morning – seek professional-dental help. Gum disease if left to go to long will develop toxins which spread the infection and begin to dissolve the gum and bone tissue causing the teeth to loosen and eventually to fall out.
It is believed that anaerobic bacteria are the culprits in destroying gums and the underlying bone. If the infection is not stopped before the bacteria travel into the blood system, then the heart may become infected. These bacteria have been found clumped together in the fatty plaque found in heart arteries.
This can be explained by the third stage of atherosclerosis which is an inflammatory response of the immune system. The body’s own defensive system reacts against the invading bacteria. The arteries constrict complicating blood flow and increasing the risk of blood clots which may lead to a heart attack. So it seems possible that invading bacteria could encourage CHD.
Other heart illnesses such as infective endocarditis (a serious infection of the lining of the heart) can occur. The symptoms of this disease are: always tired, constant or near constant headaches, a mild fever that can last for months, night sweats and cold chills, and possibly dark lines may develop under the fingernails.
