Oral Hygiene is Essential for Maintaining Overall Health
But where’s the proof of this?
Many articles and references I have read recently state that -
Good oral hygiene and regular dental check-ups are essential for maintaining overall health as you age. Poor dental health has been linked to an increased risk of various conditions, including heart disease, stroke, and respiratory infections.
But are there any reliable sources that support this? What are the proofs and basis of this:
The provided sources offer substantial evidence supporting the claim that poor dental health has been linked to an increased risk of various conditions.. Here are the key points from the sources:
- Source states: “Several reviews of older adults in hospitals and community settings show that improving oral care reduces the risk of morbidity and mortality from aspiration pneumonia by as much as 67%.
Around one in ten deaths in residents aged 65 years and older living in nursing homes, are considered to be preventable by improving oral hygiene practices.”
This directly links poor oral hygiene in older adults to an increased risk of aspiration pneumonia, a potentially fatal respiratory infection.
2. Source also mentions: “There is high quality evidence to support an association between cardiovascular disease and oral health, specifically the relationship between chronic periodontitis and atherosclerosis.
Studies show that periodontal therapy is associated with reductions in surrogate markers of atherosclerotic cardiovascular disease.”
This establishes a connection between poor oral health (periodontitis) and an increased risk of cardiovascular diseases like heart disease and stroke.
3. Source states: “Since the compliance with the recommended annual dental check-ups and good home oral hygiene behaviours (brushing twice and floss/clean dentures daily) is reported to be lower among older residents, increasing awareness about the importance of oral health and oral health problems and their association with systemic diseases could be an effective strategy to improve compliance with the recommended preventive behaviours.”
This reinforces the importance of regular dental check-ups and good oral hygiene practices (brushing, flossing) for older adults to prevent systemic diseases.
4. Source also mentions: “Studies report that people who are better informed about the risks and consequences of poor oral health are more likely to engage in positive health behaviours. Therefore, health care providers should be motivated to play a proactive role to provide oral health education and motivation to the older patients to perform self-care oral hygiene, as these are effective to reduce the risks of oral diseases.”
This further emphasizes the need for oral health education and self-care practices to reduce the risks of oral diseases, which can lead to other health conditions in older adults.
So, the provided sources present strong evidence from multiple studies and reviews that highlight the importance of good oral hygiene, regular dental check-ups, and oral health education for older adults to maintain overall health and reduce the risk of various conditions, including respiratory infections, cardiovascular diseases, and other systemic diseases.
Note: If you keep your teeth in perfect condition, and also in a glass of water at night, please disregard the above!
References:
Oral health and healthy ageing: a scoping review | BMC Geriatrics | Full Text (biomedcentral.com)
Good oral health a positive part of the ageing process | FDI (fdiworlddental.org)
Oral health for healthy ageing — The Lancet Healthy Longevity
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