Gum Disease and Heart Attacks

          Good dental hygiene means much more than a winning smile and fresh breath.  It could save your life.

          Your mouth is a dark, wet, and warm place.  That makes it a perfect breeding ground for bacteria.  If left to fester, these bacteria can invade your gum tissue, make it into your bloodstream and cause inflammation.  So if you?ve been lax about keeping your teeth and gums clean, you could be inviting cardiovascular disaster ? including a heart attack or stroke.

          Science has recently found a direct connection between gum disease and inflammation of the arteries, blood clots, hemorrhages, strokes and heart attacks.  Add to this that over half of all American men have some form of gum disease and you have the ingredients for an epidemic.

          Despite this connection, conventional medicine has completely ignored oral health in their heart recommendations.  What?s more, many of their recommendations and medications for heart patients actually make your gum problems worse.

          Yet gum disease is completely preventable.  I?ll show you an easy, inexpensive, safe and effective way to keep your mouth in good shape and reduce your risk of blood clots, heart disease, and stroke.

The Tooth-Heart Connection

          A major study by the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs found that men with severe periodontal bone loss had 150% greater risk of heart disease.¹ The third National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey, meanwhile, found that those with severe periodontal disease were nine times more likely to have had a heart attack.² An even larger study, the Arteriosclerosis Risk in Communities study, reports that patients with gum disease have a 1.5 fold increased rate of heart disease.³

Weapons of Heart Destruction in Your Mouth

The problem begins with plaque.  Plaque is that sticky mucous and bacteria membrane that coats your teeth when you wake up in the morning or a few hours after a meal.  It is the first step towards gum disease.  With plaque come bacteria, and with bacteria, infection.

          This infection destroys the fibers and bone that hold your teeth and gums in place.  The ensuing gum separation provides more space for plaque and bacteria to accumulate.  As these pockets deepen, more bacteria build up.  Over time this destroys your gum tissue and bone.  Eventually your teeth loosen and migrate out of alignment.  Not a pretty picture for your smile.  Yet the more serious risk is to your cardiovascular health.

          Just as bacteria can enter your bloodstream through a cut, they can sneak in through diseased gums.  These bacteria cause inflammation.  Inflammation attracts white blood cells and platelets.  They clump along the arterial walls.  Blood clots can result.

          Microscopic pockets can also exist at the site of old extractions of root canals.  Undetected bacteria can grow and mutate here for years.  The resulting endotoxins can cause serious infections.  A new test can identify these early on.  The test, called Cavitat, is an ultrasound imaging device.  It scans your jawbone to identify these pockets.⁴

The Inflammation Association

          Chronic infection activates your white blood cells.  This can cause arterial lesions and encourages plaque to adhere to the walls of your arteries.  This causes thickening of the wall of the artery, which is the same as a narrowing of the artery.  The result is reduced blood flow to your heart and brain, increasing your risk of heart attack and stroke.  A study by New York Presbyterian Hospital has confirmed this.⁵

          I have mentioned before that elevated C-reactive protein levels indicate a high risk for heart disease.  A groundbreaking study conducted in 1997 by the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill also linked high C-reactive protein (CRP) levels with patients who had gum disease.⁶

          A recent University at Buffalo study compared CRP levels in people with periodontal disease to 65 healthy patients.  Normally 25% of the population exhibit elevated CRP.  This percentage jumped to 38% for the group with periodontal disease.⁷ Further studies show that C-reactive protein levels drop when the gum disease is treated.

          University of Michigan researchers have found periodontal bacteria in the fatty deposits found in the linings of the blood vessels of patients with periodontal as well as cardiovascular disease.⁸

          Another study conducted by the University at Buffalo reveals a further connection.  People with diseased gums had significantly higher levels of bacterial inflammatory components in their bloodstream.⁹

Another Side Effect of Heart Drugs

          Some pharmaceuticals increase your risk of gum disease.  Diuretics reduce your production of saliva, which increases plaque buildup.  Calcium channel blockers such as Procardia and Cardizem can enlarge your gums.  This makes it more difficult for you to clean your teeth and gums effectively.  Ironically, these are the very drugs that you may be taking to treat your heart disease!

          The ?statin? cholesterol drugs are the worst in this regard.  They block the best treatment for gum disease:  Coenzyme Q10.  If you are taking one of these drugs, talk to you doctor about alternatives. 

Your Antioxidant Answer

          Many of the antioxidants that I routinely recommended for your heart also help your gums.

?        Vitamin C ? once again, vitamin C proves to be the workhorse antioxidant.  Periodontists recommend it to reduce the inflammation associated with gingivitis.  It also repairs the connective tissues of your gums.  I use 500 mg twice a day.

?        Coenzyme Q10 ? This powerful antioxidant is capable of reversing gum disease and many cases of heart disease simultaneously.  For preventing gum disease I use 60mg once a day.  To reverse gum disease, I increase it to 100mg twice a day.  I?ve seen it help repair visibly damaged gum tissue.

?        Folic Acid ? regenerates gum tissue.  Studies show that an oral rinse containing folic acid can be very effective in treating gum disease.  Some dentists have started carrying these rinses.  You may have to locate a holistic-minded dentist in your area.

?        Vitamin E ? repairs damaged gum tissue.  The standard 400 IU per day available in a multivitamin will suffice.

?        Zinc ? protects and heals gum tissues.  For men, I recommend a total daily dose of 30mg for gum disease.  That?s twice the government?s ?daily value.?

From Health Confidential for Men, by Al Sears, MD