Holistic Cosmetic Dentist Dr. Craig Sommer
Dental Treatment Offers Hope Reducing Your Risk Of Heart Disease And Stroke
Heart Disease
What’s the link between gum disease and heart disease? Well several plausible theories exist. One suggests that bacteria from the mouth affect the heart by using the blood stream or circulatory system to hitch a ride. Once these bacteria, that have taken a ride on the body’s public transit system, get to the heart they latch onto the walls of the heart blood vessels.
Here the bacteria often find the heart blood vessels or coronary arteries have fatty layers called plaques. These fatty plaques form for a number of reasons but one of the chief reasons is thought to be inflammation. The bacteria invade the walls of the blood vessels near the fatty plaques. This creates more inflammation, which brings more fat as a healing response causing thickening of the blood vessel walls and restricting blood flow.
The build-up fat in blood vessel walls is called an atheroma. If a piece of the fat breaks loose it will probably get stuck in the smaller blood vessels of the heart causing a massive blockage or increasing the chances of a blood clot forming. If the blood vessel gets blocked oxygen and nutrients do not get to the heart muscle that the vessel feeds. That portion of the heart starts to die and creates a “heart attack”.
The take home message is that keeping your death clean and your gums healthy may well help you stave off a heart attack. It requires excellent home care and regular ingoing dental therapy and supervision.
This information is adapted from the American Academy Of Periodontology’s pubic information area on their website. The Academy is the organization responsible for overseeing the education and training of dentists that desire to specialize in the treatment of gum disease also known as periodontal disease.
Stroke
After describing in the Heart Disease Section, how bacteria migrating throughout the body hitching a ride on the body’s public transit system, it seems reasonable to expect that bacteria can affect other areas beside the heart.
In fact, research is now indicating a connection between the incidence of stroke and mouth infections, including gum disease. The study revealed that stroke victims were much more likely to have an oral or mouth infection at the time of the stroke.
This information is adapted from the American Academy Of Periodontology’s pubic information area on their website.
Immune System Function
It appears that gum disease is also a potential problem for those dealing with organ transplants. At a Chicago meeting in 2006, researchers from the University of Connecticut explained the connection. It appears the survival of the transplanted organ may be compromised by the release of chemical molecules coming from periodontal or gum inflammation.
The chemical molecule, interluekin-6, is present in high concentrations in periodontal gum infections. Researchers are very concerned about the potential negative consequences of long term transplant survival in the face of ongoing gum and oral infections. They expressed a need for more studies to provide conclusive evidence of the gum disease transplant rejection connection.
This information is adapted from the Journal of Periodontology.
Silver Fillings Contain More Mercury Than Any Other Metal
The FDA, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration has set aside a date to conduct an advisory panel December 14-15, 2010. The purpose of the advisory panel will be to discuss scientific issues that will affect the regulation of dental amalgam. The panel meeting attendees will will be directing their attention to the potential risks to groups deemed to be vulnerable. Those falling into the vulnerable classification are pregnant women, fetuses and younger children.
The specific concerns raised for review are the risk assessment methods used to evaluate and classify dental amalgam. Specific concerns were several:
- The bioaccumulative effect of mercury
- The pediatric population exposure to mercury vapor
- The adequacy of the clinical studies on dental amalgam
The National Academy of Sciences recent report entitled “Science and Decisions: Advancing Risk Assessment, NAP 2009, suggests new methods for conducting risk assessments.
Changes to the current classification of mercury containing dental amalgam will be forthcoming after the December meetings.
FDA NOTE TO CORRESPONDENTSFor Immediate Release: June 10, 2010Media Inquiries: Dick Thompson, 301-796-7566, dick.thompson@fda.hhs.govConsumer Inquiries: 888-INFO-FDAFDA Advisory Panel to Review Dental AmalgamAgency to consider risks to vulnerable populationsYour Optimal Dental Health Plan
Dr. Sommer offers consultation on these and other dental health issues as an integral part of his dental practice. The most up-to-date information from the best Anti-Aging resources, as related to dental health issues, is always available.We invite you to ask…
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- About your Optimal Dental Health Plan
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- About how you can have the Smile you have always wanted
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- About how you can ENHANCE YOUR HEALTH AND WELLNESS THROUGH YOUR DENTAL CHOICES AND TREATMENT!
Environmentally sound dentistry.
It's an interesting concept.
You're concerned about the environment you live in, right?
Are you as concerned about the environment
that lives within you?
Cosmetic Dentistry, With A Holistic Emphasis,
In Colorado Springs Since 1992
(719) 632-3591