Gum Disease
DO YOUR GUMS BLEED?
If you were washing your hands and they started to bleed would you be concerned? Yes, of course, you would. Healthy gums don't bleed. Why is it that, most people do not react when their gums bleed. Over 47.2% of adults of 30 years old and 70.1% of adults over 65 years old gums bleed while brushing their teeth and flossing around the gums.
Do you think bleeding gums is normal?
Healthy gums DO NOT bleed, it is a sign of gum disease, which is called PERIODONTAL DISEASE.
Yes, if your gums are bleeding you have a disease in your mouth, which can lead to miscarriages, heart attack, stroke, respiratory problems, mental illness, and tooth, gum & bone loss.
Did you know, by kissing you can contract and pass diseases onto your partner.
What is the process of PERIODONTAL DISEASE?
Periodontal disease can be the result of infections and inflammation of the gums and bone that surround the supporting structures of the teeth. Type I Periodontal Disease is called gingivitis. Gingivitis causes you to experience red, swollen and bleeding gums. The buildup of plaque below the gum line leads to inflammation of the gums. This stage is reversible, meaning with proper home care and professional dental hygiene cleanings you can stop and arrest the gingivitis to bring the gums back to a healthy state.
But, if you ignore your gums…..
As the gum tissues become more swollen, they detach from the tooth forming a space, or “pocket,” between the tooth and gums. This causes a snowball effect to occur. The pockets encourage the build-up of plaque accumulation going deeper along with the tooth under the gums. After 24-48 hours, the plaque hardens in tarter. To remove hardened tarter, professional dental cleaning is needed. If left untreated, the inflammatory response to the plaque bacteria may spread to the periodontal ligament and alveolar bone, causing these structures to be destroyed causing Periodontitis. Resulting in losing your jaw bone (alveolar bone) and gums (recession.)
The process of Type I Periodontal Disease: Gingivitis (reversible)
Inflammation in the body, food, bacterial bio-film that is not being treated and removed by brushing and flossing & professional cleanings. They are irritants to the gums. The irritants trigger our body’s first defence system, the white blood cells (WBC.) Gingivitis occurs, causing red, swollen bleeding gums, due to your white blood cells accumulating at the site trying to heal the of infection. The acts of treating and removing the irritants with flossing, brushing, and profession dental cleanings result in healthy happy gums.
The process of Type II Periodontal Disease: Periodontitis (non-reversible)
Body inflammation occurs and/or bacterial biofilm not removed with trigger the white blood cells to continue accumulating at the site. An imbalance of too many WBC will occur, the WBC will rupture, and release an enzyme that can destroy alveolar bone and/or gum tissue. The number one reason for tooth loss is Type II Periodontal Disease. Your teeth are being held into your mouth by the alveolar bone and gum. When the supporting structures are destroyed your teeth become loose and need to be extracted. The good news is, we now can keep our teeth for our entire life span. With the accessibility of a holistic practitioner team, dental education, oral care cleaning aids and professional dental cleanings we can win the fight against gum disease!
Other Risk Factors that can Cause Periodontal Disease
There are several other factors, including other diseases, medications and oral habits, also can contribute to Periodontal Disease.
- Genetics — Researchers believe up to 30% of the population may have a genetic susceptibility to periodontal disease. Having a genetic susceptibility, however, doesn’t mean gum disease is inevitable. Even people who are highly prone to periodontal disease because of their genetic make-up can prevent or control the disease with good oral care.
- Smoking and tobacco use — Smoking increases the risk of periodontal disease. If periodontal disease is present, smoking makes it more severe. The chemicals in the cigarette create a barrier, which prevent oxygen from penetrating into the teeth, gums, and bone, essentially, they begin to suffocate and die. There is a lack of oxygenated blood flowing to teeth, gums and bone. Smokers tend to collect more tartar on their teeth due to stain. Stain roughens the surface of the teeth and the bacteria adheres like velcro, which then can develop into deeper periodontal pockets once they have gum disease. Quitting smoking can play a major role in bringing periodontal disease under control.
A holistic approach to quitting smoking programs are: use of essential oils, acupuncture, homeopathy, yoga, mindfulness meditation, and hypnotherapy
- Misaligned or crowded teeth, braces or implants to bridgework — Anything that makes it more difficult to brush or floss your teeth is likely to enhance plaque and tartar formation above and below the gum line, which increases your chance of developing gum disease. Your hygienist can show you the best ways to clean those hard-to-reach areas. Overcrowded or crooked teeth are a problem, your dentist might recommend orthodontics to straighten out your smile and give you a better chance of preventing gum disease.
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- Grinding or clenching of teeth — The etiology is unknown why people grind or clench their teeth during the day or while sleeping. Many say it's due to daily stress or misalignment of how the top and bottom jaw align. The act of grinding or clenching creates a pull and force onto the teeth, roots, gum ligaments. As the teeth are being pulled forward, backside to side the bacteria is sliding down the walls of the tooth under the gum line. When you stop grinding or clenching the bacterium is now trapped deep under the gum line. The soft plaque hardens into tarter within 24-48 hours. It can’t be removed by flossing and often the plaque is far out of reach for the floss. That is why it’s important to get a regular dental cleaning. For those areas under the gum line where the tarter has to harden and periodontal disease is thriving. The excessive force exerted on the teeth by these habits appears to speed up the breakdown of the periodontal ligament and bone. In many cases, patients can learn to stop this habit simply by recognizing when it is happening and then relaxing. If these efforts don't work, your dentist or periodontist can create a custom guard appliance (a night guard, making sure the material is bisphenol A - BPA free & bio-compatible material, also if you snore, it's recommended to undergo a sleep test, night guards can worsen sleep apnea conditions) that helps reduce the pressure of clenching or grinding on the teeth.
Other Suggestions: Orthodontics, magnesium supplements, yoga, meditation, massage of the TMJ-temporal mandibular joint and acupuncture can also be useful to help alleviate grinding and clenching.
- Stress — Stress can worsen periodontal disease and make it harder to treat. Stress weakens your body's immune system, which makes it harder for your body to fight off infection, including periodontal disease. Stress cause inflammation in your body, which causes inflammation in the mouth, the body mouth connection.
- Fluctuating hormones — Whenever hormones fluctuate in the body, changes can occur in the mouth. Puberty, monthly menstrual, pregnancy can temporarily increase the risk and severity of gum disease, as can menopause.
- Inflammation: When inflammation occurs in the body, whether caused by disease, stress, or immune compromised, will cause inflammation in the mouth.
- Medications — Several types of medications can cause dry mouth, or xerostomia, (use Biotene mouth rinse for dry mouth) including antidepressants, diuretics and high blood-pressure medications. Without the protection of adequate amounts of saliva, plaque is more likely to form. Other medications may cause the gums to enlarge, which in turn makes them more likely to trap plaque. These medications include phenytoin (Dilantin and other brand names), used to control seizures; cyclosporine (Neoral, Sandimmune), used to suppress the immune system; and nifedipine (Adalat, Cardizem and others) and other calcium channel blockers, used to treat angina or heart arrhythmias.
- Diseases —Certain diseases increase susceptibility to periodontal diseases. For example, people with diabetes are more likely to get periodontitis, than people without diabetes and it's likely to be more severe. Other diseases, such as leukemia, inflammatory bowel disease and HIV infection, also can increase the risk.
- Poor nutrition — Nutrition is important for overall good health, including a working immune system, healthy gut and healthy gums and mouth.
- Periodontal Disease Link to Heart Disease, Stroke, Diabetes and Respiratory Disease. Researchers also are learning more about how an infection in your gums can affect your overall health. In recent years, gum disease has been linked to several other health problems. Atherosclerosis and heart disease — Gum disease may increase the risk of clogged arteries and heart disease. Gum disease also is believed to worsen existing heart disease.
- Stroke — Gum disease may increase the risk of the type of stroke that is caused by blocked arteries.
- Diabetes — People with diabetes and periodontal disease may be more likely to have trouble controlling their blood sugar than diabetics with healthy gums.
- Respiratory disease— Gum disease may cause lung infections and worsen existing lung conditions when bacteria from the mouth reach the lungs.
How to Prevent, Arrest and Win the fight Against Gum Disease?
Practicing excellent oral hygiene home care and visiting your dental hygienist every 3, 4, 6 months can help support the prevention of periodontal disease.
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RESOURCES
[1] 1Eke PI, Dye B, Wei L, Thornton-Evans G, Genco R. Prevalence of Periodontitis in Adults in the United States: 2009 and 2010. J Dent Res. Published online 30 August 2012:1–7
[2] http://www.colgateprofessional.com/patient-education/articles/what-is-periodontal-disease
[3] http://www.colgateprofessional.com/patient-education/articles/what-is-periodontal-disease
[4] Effect of coconut oil in plaque related gingivitis — A preliminary report
Faizal C. Peedikayil, Prathima Sreenivasan,1 and Arun Narayanan
[5] Effect of oil pulling on Streptococcus mutans count in plaque and saliva using Dentocult SM Strip mutans test: a randomized, controlled, triple-blind study.
Asokan S1, Rathan J, Muthu MS, Rathna PV, Emmadi P; Raghuraman; Chamundeswari.
[6] A comparative study of antiplaque and antigingivitis effects of herbal mouthrinse containing tea tree oil, clove, and basil with commercially available essential oil mouthrinse
Shaila V. Kothiwale, Vivek Patwardhan,1 Megha Gandhi, Rahul Sohoni,1 and Ajay Kumar