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Protecting your teeth is much more than ensuring a good-looking smile. Your oral health, particularly your immune system, impacts your overall health. So, maintaining good oral hygiene habits and visiting the dentist in East Nashville regularly plays a big role in protecting your body. 

Let’s explore how good oral health affects your immune system and what steps you can take to promote better dental hygiene for optimal wellness.

The Overseen Link Between Mouth and Immune System

Our mouths are dwelling places for a diverse community of bacteria—some beneficial and others highly harmful. Poor oral hygiene allows these dangerous bacteria to grow unchecked, causing inflammation and infection. 

Furthermore, this oral inflammation is not limited to the mouth; it can spread throughout the body and impact your immune system, causing a variety of chronic conditions like diabetes, heart disease, and stroke. 

When the immune system detects an infection, whether in the mouth or elsewhere, it sends white blood cells to the affected area to combat the invasive bacteria. However, if persistent oral problems like gum disease keep the immune system active, it can cause a continuous inflammatory response that eventually weakens it. 

Over time, this can be very disadvantageous for your overall health. 

The Consequences of Poor Oral Hygiene in Your Immune System

Besides gum inflammation and gingivitis, bad oral hygiene can impact your health in several ways. 

For instance, tooth decay is more likely if you do not brush and floss your teeth daily. In the process, oral bacteria create acids that harm teeth. It has also been discovered that these bacteria cause inflammation all over the body. 

The bacteria from untreated dental infections can enter the bloodstream, leading to conditions such as bacteremia. This can affect major organs, contributing to cardiovascular diseases and even sepsis in severe cases. 

Research has shown poor oral health may contribute to autoimmune conditions like rheumatoid arthritis, too. When exposed to chronic infections originating in the mouth, the body’s immune system can mistakenly attack its own tissues. Moreover, oral bacteria swallowed regularly can disrupt the gut microbiome, which is crucial to immune function. 

An imbalance in gut bacteria may contribute to inflammatory bowel diseases and reduced immunity. 

Maintaining proper oral hygiene is even more crucial if you already have a medical condition that weakens your immune system, like diabetes or HIV/AIDS. This is because gum disease can lead to major complications like bone loss and tooth loss, which are more likely to occur in people with compromised immune systems. 

Tips for Protecting Your Oral—and Overall—Health 

So, maintaining good oral hygiene is key to a robust immune system. Some tips for achieving a healthy mouth include: 

• Floss every day and brush your teeth twice a day. This will help remove plaque, a sticky layer of saliva, bacteria, and food particles that can accumulate on your teeth and cause infection.
• Schedule routine cleanings and examinations with your dentist. This allows us to identify any infection early on and remove it before it can cause significant damage.
• Make sure to inform us of any underlying medical conditions that impair your immunity. We will take extra precautions to protect your oral health.

Protect Your Health with a Dentist in East Nashville  

There is ample evidence linking the immune system and dental health, but not many people are aware of it. Oral bacteria and inflammation can cause numerous systemic diseases, such as diabetes, respiratory infections, and cardiovascular disease.  

For this reason, maintaining dental health is crucial to general health and well-being. Here at Greenwood Local Dentistry, we want you to enjoy a healthy body and life. If you’re due for a dental check-up, request an appointment today!