Friday, August 7, 2009

How Does Diabetes Affect Your Dental Care?

Did you know that diabetes is a disease that can affect the whole body, including your mouth? Periodic dental care is necessary for people with diabetes because they face a higher than normal risk of oral health problems due to poorly controlled blood sugars. The less controlled your blood sugar is, the more likely dental problems will arise. Here's why: Uncontrolled diabetes impairs white blood cells, which are the body's main defense against bacterial infections that can occur in the mouth.

Another complication of diabetes, besides impairing white blood cells, is that it causes your blood vessels to thicken, which slows the flow of nutrients to (and waste products from) body tissues, including the mouth. When this combination of events happens, the body's ability to fight infections is reduced. Since periodontal disease is a bacterial infection, diabetics may experience more frequent and more severe gum disease.

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