LIVING
smile counsel
t
he state of your teeth and gums can have a major impact
on anyone’s overall health, and there are established links
between diabetes and the health of the mouth. According
to dentist Richard Guyver, “Not only does diabetes increase
the risk of mouth inflammation, but inflammation in the mouth
increases the risk of getting type 2 diabetes, or make it harder to control your
blood sugar if you already have it.”
People with diabetes may have an increased risk of dry
mouth, tooth decay, oral thrush, and gum disease. Says Guyver,
“Diabetics are twice as likely to have gum disease as those
Dentist Richard Guyver
without diabetes. Any worsening of gum disease in someone
with diabetes can be an indicator that kidney failure may follow.”
Be in no doubt, most people have low-grade infections in their
gum shields mouths all the time, which is often spotted as blood on a toothbrush
Research has shown that inflammation in the mouth (i.e. gum or when spitting out. What is less obvious is that by-products of
disease) can increase susceptibility to diabetes, can disrupt these infections are released into the blood and can damage the
glycaemic control and even affect the body’s production of pancreas, so your ability to produce insulin is reduced. This can
insulin. If you’re already diagnosed with diabetes, it is suggested trigger type 2 diabetes or make both type 1 and type 2 diabetes
that by controlling inflammation in the mouth you can reduce harder to control if you already have it.
your dependency on your medication as well as lessen the
impact of the condition on the rest of the body. diabetes and dentistry
Inflammation can result from any crack in a tooth which goes
beyond the gum, tooth decay, or from badly-made fillings
or crowns that don’t fit properly or gum disease. As well
as low-grade gum infections, teeth can have low-grade
infections too. Often these are completely symptom
free, sometimes they only give mild symptoms such as
a small lump that comes and goes on the gum, often with
no pain. Any inflammation is exacerbated by dry mouth
(as saliva carries immune components which help the
body destroy bacteria) and smoking.
Guyver has developed the diabetes-dental matrix, a system
that allows dentists to assess the aspects of the mouth
that influence diabetes, and the aspects of diabetes that
influence the mouth. This means he can see how one impacts on
the other, and offer solutions to help improve both.
Diabetes and Dentistry offers free information both to the general
public and to dentists.
www.diabetesanddentistry.co.uk