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Gum disease (periodontitis) is the leading cause of adult tooth loss — and it’s preventable. Our prevention-focused, non-surgical soft tissue therapy stops infection before it steals your smile.
Everyone wants to keep their teeth. If there’s one goal of a healthy mouth, it’s to ensure you keep your teeth strong and gums healthy. So why do so many people today lose their teeth? Gum disease (periodontitis) is the leading cause of adult tooth loss. It’s also preventable.
It’s important to understand what causes gum disease, so that we can address those issues and treat it effectively.
How can you tell if you have a periodontal infection? Common gum disease signs often include:
Tooth mobility or loose teeth
You shouldn’t delay a gum disease examination. The first step is to find the cause of the gum disease. The next step is to treat it effectively.
Good oral hygiene can reverse the earliest form of gum disease: gingivitis. Through daily brushing and flossing, you can lift away soft plaque biofilm to prevent it from calcifying in place. But once it has hardened into tartar, only a dental professional can clean away the build-up.
You shouldn’t delay a gum disease examination. The first step is to find the cause of the gum disease. The next step is to treat it effectively.
Good oral hygiene can reverse the earliest form of gum disease: gingivitis. Through daily brushing and flossing, you can lift away soft plaque biofilm to prevent it from calcifying in place. But once it has hardened into tartar, only a dental professional can clean away the build-up.
By plaque build-up accumulating on your teeth between brushing and flossing sessions. Either oral hygiene isn’t adequate, or problems like crowded teeth make areas difficult to clean.
Some people find that gum disease runs in their family. Although bacteria can be spread by kissing or sharing eating utensils, there may be some indication that certain people are more genetically predisposition to suffering from periodontitis than others are. Certain scientists believe oral biofilm may even pass from a mother through the placenta to her developing child.
If your mother or father lost their teeth at a young age and had to get dentures, it’s best to take proactive steps to diagnose your own gum disease as early as possible (and prevent tooth loss altogether!
Active gum disease (bleeding and receding gums) is closely linked with numerous health conditions. The presence of periodontitis often means your body’s immune system is struggling to manage underlying medical challenges. By eliminating the oral infection, you can improve your changes of treating, preventing, and managing conditions like:
Numerous studies have shown that oral plaque biofilm can spread from the mouth through the cardiovascular system.
Inflmmation of the blood vessel walls (including the heart and arteries around the brain can be related to cardiovascular disease. Gum disease may be your first signs your risk of conditions like stroke and heart attack.
Can dental problems cause heart problems? Although the two are closely linked, it’s believed that gum disease increases the risk of cardiovascular disease rather than acting as the primary cause. Consequently, individuals with heart issues may find improved overall health by treating their active periodontitis.
Leaving an oral infection untreated can significantly increase the risk of suffering from a cardiovascular attack.
Curing gum disease depends on when you catch it, and whether you find
Although the infection can be halted, it is not reversible. The key is to clean the infected areas to prevent additional disease and tissue detachment. That’s why early screenings, checkups, and routine scale and cleans are ideal.
Scheduling a preventative care appointment every six months is one of the best ways to prevent gum disease from developing.
But if it’s been years since you’ve had your teeth cleaned, or you haven’t flossed like you should, gum disease may pop up without you realising until it’s too late.
At this point, a more therapeutic and deeper cleaning is necessary to get your smile back on track.
When gum disease goes untreated, severely affected teeth may not be salvageable and have to be extracted. This prevents the spread of infection to adjacent teeth and halts problems like bone loss.
A periodontal cleaning combined with laser treatment to remove tartar build-up and treat infected gum tissues. Deep cleanings are recommended when several pockets of infection or a moderate amount of calcified build-up are present throughout the mouth.
In some cases, a locally placed antibiotic may be needed to reverse more severe infection at specific points throughout your mouth. Good oral hygiene helps prevent harmful bacteria build-up through daily flossing and an electric toothbrush.
For advanced gum disease, surgeries such as bone grafting, crown lengthening, or soft tissue grafts are the only ways to preserve the tissue supporting your teeth. When severely affected, teeth may need to be extracted to prevent spread of infection.
If you smoke, you may not experience the same symptoms as a person who does not use tobacco products. In many cases, smoking can inhibit the symptoms of inflammation and bleeding, masking the most common warning signs of gum disease.
Yes. Without healthy tissue attachment, there is nothing to help hold the teeth into place. Do your gums grow back? No. If severe gum loss is a concern, therapies such as soft tissue grafting can help to re-cover the areas affected by recession.
At Helix Dentistry, we work with you to build a life-long plan to build healthy gums and a life without chronic disease. Your diet can play a big role in the cause of gum disease. Bacteria in your mouth are swallowed into your gut and digestive system. From here they form a population of microbes that live in your body called the gut microbiome.
Your gut microbiome is crucial for communicating with your immune system. Inflammation in the mouth, such as bleeding gums, can be the first sign of an imbalanced gut microbiome.
Changing your nutritional and supplement habits can help to address some causes of gum disease.
Decrease sugar and processed carbohydrates consumption in your diet. These provide harmful oral biofilm more “fuel” to feed on. Instead, snack on crispy produce, cheese, and whole grains.
Eating a diet rich in fresh dietary fibre to feed healthy bacteria such as fruits and vegetables
Include fermented probiotic foods to re-populate the probiotic oral microbiome that provide a protective function for your gums.
Eat plenty of foods rich in fat-soluble vitamins A, D and K2.
Cook foods rich in collagen. Collagen, found in the fatty animal cuts breaks down to the amino acids that make up your gums and other connective tissues in the body.
At Helix Dentistry, we want your smile to last a lifetime. Don’t let bleeding or infected gums interfere with your overall health and quality of life! Contact us today to schedule your first exam and clean with us.
Welcome to the Helix Dentistry Blog, where we share the latest updates, tips, and expert insights on cutting-edge dental treatments and oral health care. Stay informed and keep your smile healthy!
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