People who have poor oral health are more likely to experience cardiovascular problems like strokes or heart attacks than people with good oral health. This was a surprising observation made by Dr. Robert H. Shmerling in a blog published by Harvard Medical School’s Harvard Health Publishing. While there is no definitive reason why or how oral health is correlated to heart health, there are several theories explaining the phenomena. 

How Are Oral Health and Heart Health Connected?

Diseases that affect a person’s gums like gingivitis and periodontitis are caused by bacteria. These bacteria can travel to other parts of the body, possibly causing damage to blood vessels like inflammation. Damage like this can lead to blood clots, which is one of the first signs someone may be at risk for a stroke or heart attack. 

Oral bacteria remains have been found in blood vessels located far from the mouth within people who have experienced heart complications. This would support the traveling oral bacteria theory. But it is still only a theory, especially considering antibiotic treatments for oral diseases have not been proven to reduce risks to heart complications. 

Personal Health Can Affect Oral and Heart Health

If bacteria is not the cause, another theory suggests a person’s own immune response to gum diseases that might set off blood vessel damage to occur in other places within the body, including their heart and even their brain. 

Another theory is that there is no direct connection between gum diseases and heart diseases, but instead the two are being affected by something else entirely. For example, that third factor could be smoking, which can affect both oral and heart health. A study published in 2018 found that there was a small correlation between tooth loss and heart disease. But that connection disappeared when researchers realized that those two health issues were predominantly happening to smokers in their study. This means the oral and health problems were most likely caused by smoking rather than a direct connection between the teeth and heart. 

Lacking healthcare or not taking care of overall personal health would also be factors for someone experiencing both gum and heart diseases. 

Connection But Not Causation Between Oral Health and Heart Health

While there is no definitive study stating gum disease can cause heart disease or vice versa, the connection between the two has still been repeatedly observed in recent years. The observation from multiple studies remains: people with poor oral health also have higher rates of cardiovascular problems. 

Other studies have also linked periodontal disease and rheumatoid arthritis, as well as a bacteria called microbiota to the risk of pancreatic cancer. But like gum disease and heart disease, these are connections and not causations.

Take Care of Your Oral Health with Academy Dental Care

Connection or no connection, it would probably be in your best interest to maintain your oral health with a healthy regimen of brushing, flossing and dental visits. 

If you want to see a trusted professional in Albuquerque, schedule an appointment with Academy Dental Care today.