Your mouth can tell you a lot about your body's health. The mouth shows signs of tooth decay, gum disease, and other oral health problems. You can also show signs of another illness if you omit certain foods from your diet and unhealthy habits, such as smoking and products similar to tobacco and alcohol. In a healthy mouth, the tissues are pink, firm and moist.
If you have a healthy mouth, your breath will smell pleasant or neutral. Most of us think that brushing our teeth is about developing a brighter smile, but it turns out that good oral hygiene (and regular checkups) can help prevent everything from headaches to heart disease. In fact, it could even save your life, says Dr. Rick Glassman, dental health expert from Chatelaine, co-director of the dentistry department at California Health's & Longevity Institute.
Unfortunately, Canadians are getting a failing grade in oral health. A recent national smile survey revealed that only 4 percent of people brush and floss their teeth. Dentists say we should brush our teeth and tongue at least twice a day, as well as floss once a day to reach the third of the surface of each tooth that a brush can reach. Best of all, your mouth can hold the answers you need to look and feel better, this is what I could be trying to tell you.
Like other areas of the body, the mouth is full of bacteria, most of which are harmless. However, the mouth is the point of entry to the digestive and respiratory tracts, and some of these bacteria can cause illness. Other conditions that may be related to oral health include eating disorders, rheumatoid arthritis, certain types of cancer, and an immune system disorder that causes dry mouth (Sjogren's syndrome). One of the rarest and most serious problems is oral cancer, or oral cancer, which can appear on the tongue, lips, gums, palate or mouth or anywhere else.
There is growing evidence to suggest that taking a quick look at your mouth can reveal a lot about your overall health. Some experts suggest that controlling inflammation in the mouth may reduce other inflammation-related health problems, such as arthritis, including wrinkles and aging. However, while a clean, well-groomed mouth can promote good health, it can also hide serious health problems. While it's normal to have dry mouth from time to time when you're stressed, decreased saliva production is part of the body's response to fight or flight, frequent dry mouth is likely a sign of an underlying problem.
