Gum Disease: Unlocking Oral Health

“Let’s start at the very beginning / A very good place to start” sang Maria to the Von Trapp Children.

If you’re one of the 90% of adults living in the western world, what you’re about to read here is critical to your health. 

You might call this… “the very beginning”.

Not just the health of your mouth; this is vital information for the health of your ENTIRE BODY so paying attention for the next few minutes will make a difference.

What is the one word you never want your dentist to say you have?

“Periodontitis” (per-e-o-don-TIE-tis), also called gingivitis, and gum disease.

It should be given a more frightening name as to me the condition holds more terror than a midnight visit from Count Dracula himself.

Any medical dictionary will tell you poor oral hygiene will cause a serious gum infection, destroy your bone and damage the soft tissue that supports your teeth.

Well….maybe.  What they’re implying is that you’re not brushing and flossing properly.

The first sign tends to be increased tooth sensitivity, but you may also notice a tooth looks longer than normal or feel a notch where the gum meets the tooth (the area known as the gum line).

Long term periodontitis can cause your teeth to fall out.  Sadly that’s not where it ends as periodontitis is closely linked with many more serious conditions such as oral cancers and heart disease.

Any student of life will tell you it’s easier to prevent a condition than remedy one.

Statistics show that 47% of people in the USA have mild to severe periodontitis, this percentage rising to 70% in those over 65 years old.  

As well as having periodontitis, one third of adults around the world now suffer needlessly from tooth decay. 

Your friendly neighbourhood dentist will gladly sing the praises of you brushing and flossing twice a day and making regular dental appointments. 

They’ll swear blind that this routine will help you prevent gum disease or become the unwitting host of tooth decay.

But, hold on to your toothbrushes, because there’s a twist.

While you’re busy scrubbing, flossing and gargling mouthwash like it’s a morning ritual, the reality might be a little less glamorous. 

Turns out, if you’re not a brushing virtuoso, you might just be relocating plaque around your mouth like a game of dental shuffleboard.

The brushing technique you’ve been executing with pride since you were a kid could be a sabotage operation right under your nose.

Proper brushing removes the biofilm from your teeth and out of your mouth. 

For years we have promoted the Blotting Brushes which did a fantastic job in this regard and we hope to find a new manufacturer soon.

Removing this sticky plaque has to be done daily as well as properly and the traditional brushing with toothpaste is more of anaesthetic than a cleanser.  

If the grand promises of brushing and flossing held up as well as we’re told, people simply wouldn’t develop periodontitis.

Let me introduce you to a video that tackles the whole periodontitis affair head-on.

The video lays out the harsh truth about what happens when gum disease picks on you. It’s like a wake-up call for your whole mouth.

The title doesn’t make you jump for joy but the information outlines the severe damage caused by gum disease if left to decay. 

Most people do nothing about it until it’s almost too late which is why gum disease is the most common poor health condition that humans suffer. 

Sorry if that sounds dull but this film clip, albeit just under an hour, is anything but boring and will change your whole approach to keeping your mouth clean and healthy.

One woman in the clip ignored her periodontitis because she didn’t have dental insurance.  Her subsequent health problems ended up costing $2 million over 2 years.

Dr David Verity stressed that people should never undergo surgery when they have periodontal disease….(spoiler alert) because it could kill them.  

Yet in the USA some 50% of people who go into hospital for whatever surgery they need already have periodontitis.

Click this link: Functional Oral Health Summit: Say Ahh!

Although I’m not promoting Root canal’s or the germ theory I find this documentary very encouraging because it shows more and more doctors and dentists see the oral cavity as the entrance point for systemic health and do something about it.

Your mouth can become the dirtiest part of your body, causing morbidity and mortality, usually through chronic inflammation. But it doesn’t have to.

AND, we must not blame the bacteria! 

This is what Pasteur did and he was proven wrong.

On the contrary if a bacteria of a certain kind takes over parts of your body then this is not the bacteria’s fault. 

Most bacteria are only opportunistic critters which take what is on offer. To really rid your body of gum disease you must change the environment for these bacteria so they don’t stand a chance to do their destructive work. 

This means checking your lifestyle choices, your diet, your dental treatments, dental materials and your oral hygiene regime.

To your shiny white gnashers and a healthy body

Dr Elmar Jung