Here is How High Blood Glucose Level Can Prove Damaging For Teeth
Posted on 5/9/2022 by Alexandra Garcia DDS MS |
 About 10.5% of Americans suffer from diabetes, according to the CDC's National Diabetes Statistics Report. This translates to about 34.2 million people of different age groups. Blood sugar is likely to slowly damage the nerve, heart, kidneys, and eyes. However, you may not know that it can still impact your gums and teeth in a similar way. A connection exists between diabetes and an individual's oral health. People who have uncontrolled blood sugar may not be able to maintain their oral health.
Oral Impact of High Blood Glucose Levels
When you have high blood glucose levels, they begin to take a toll on your oral health. This condition can cause problems in the gums, tongue, jaw, and even inside the cheeks. Patients suffering from type 1 and 2-diabetes tend to suffer from dry mouth, perhaps due to higher levels of blood sugar. Additionally, certain medications may also trigger the condition of dry mouth. When you have a dry mouth, it means insufficient saliva amount. Hence, your teeth may suffer tooth decay because the bacteria and food particles aren't been flashed out or washed away naturally by saliva.
The ability of the body to fight bacteria in the mouth weakens in people with diabetes because these individuals have a weakened immune system. Therefore, the risk of having gum disease tends to be higher in persons with diabetes. Uncontrolled bacteria formation in the mouth contributes to plaque, a culprit for gum disease. The plaque sneaks beneath the gum line where it thrives in form of hardened tartar. If you ignore this plaque, it leads to swollen and tender, bleeding gums. People who floss and brush regularly can control the impact and progression of gum disease, especially when it's at its early stages.
Moreover, people with diabetes are likely to have their gum disease progress to gingivitis within just days because it takes a longer time to control and cure infections in these people. Inflamed, swollen, red, or bleeding gums show urgency for gum disease treatment. If left untreated, gingivitis worsens to become periodontitis, where the gums retract from the teeth, leading to pockets of bacteria as well as plaque. The infection can also quickly get deeper past the gum line to reach the bone where it breaks it down, leading to tooth loss. To learn more about high blood glucose levels and how they impact your oral health, contact our dental team.
|
|
