Diabetes & Oral Health – Tappan, NY
How Managing Diabetes Benefits Your Oral Health
When you think about diabetes, chances are, you reflect on the effects it has on your blood sugar. However, what many people don’t realize is that diabetes can have a major impact on your oral health in Tappan, too. In fact, because this condition changes the way the body responds to inflammation and oral bacteria, it can accelerate the development of conditions like gum disease, even if you believe you’re doing a good job maintaining your oral hygiene at home.
How Diabetes Changes the Oral Environment
Because diabetes changes how your body handles inflammation and fights oral bacteria, it can have a dangerous impact on your oral health. This can lead to harmful side effects like an increased risk of oral infections, gum inflammation, and even slower healing from injuries and oral infections. Furthermore, because diabetes can also reduce the flow of saliva and increase its sugar levels, this can provide ideal conditions for oral bacteria to thrive, accelerating gum disease and putting your smile at risk for gum recession and permanent tooth loss.
Why Gum Disease Is More Severe in Patients with Diabetes
Although gum disease is caused by oral bacteria, your body’s ability to fight it is determined by your inflammatory response. Often, in healthy adults, early stages of gum disease can be easily reversed by improving oral hygiene at home. Unfortunately, however, with diabetic patients, side effects of gum disease can become much more severe, much faster. Symptoms like inflammation can be more serious and last longer, and the blood vessels may take longer to recover, too. This can accelerate the progression of gum disease and bone loss, making it more difficult to control and treat.
The Two-Way Relationship Between Diabetes and Gum Disease
While it would certainly be easier if it weren’t the case, unfortunately, diabetes and gum disease have a dangerous, two-way relationship. For example, not only does having diabetes increase the odds of developing severe gum disease, one of the main side effects of this periodontal problem is an increase in systemic inflammation. In diabetic patients, inflammation can make it harder to control the blood sugar, creating a vicious cycle where the gum disease gets worse and leads to insulin resistance. Ultimately, both conditions must be treated together to ensure success.
Early Warning Signs Diabetic Patients Should Not Ignore
Unfortunately, it can be difficult to detect gum disease on your own, because the symptoms are usually painless and can be easily overlooked. However, if you are diabetic, it is especially important to closely monitor the condition of your smile for early indications of oral health issues like gum disease, including:
- Bleeding gums, or blood on your toothbrush or dental floss during your regular oral hygiene routine.
- Receding gums.
- Persistent bad breath or a foul taste in the mouth that does not go away with regular oral hygiene practices like brushing and flossing.
- Redness, swelling, or tenderness in the gums.
- Dry mouth.
While these symptoms may all seem like minor issues, the truth is that they can be much more harmful than you realize, especially if you are diabetic. Thus, should you notice any one or more, don’t wait to seek help- contact your dentist as soon as possible!