#3 CAUSE OF DECAY AND GUM DISEASE

Since the Mouth is the Window to your Health let’s discuss the #1 and #2 diseases in the world and what causes them.  Both diseases are basically caused by bacteria and they can lead to an infection.  Decay is caused by dental plaque containing certain bacteria lying on the teeth (Streptococcus mutans and Streptococcus sobrinus, and lactobacilli) and maturing to become cariogenic (decay causing).  These bacteria in the plaque produce acid in the presence of fermentable carbohydrates such as sucrose, fructose, and glucose the acid eats away at the tooth to create a cavity.  Left untreated this cavity can become infected and cause an infection or abscess and eventually tooth loss.

Gum disease is caused by a different group of bacteria-Treponema denticola and Porphyromonas gingivalis.  These bacteria also live in the plaque surrounding the teeth but are usually under the gum.  They can form infections and bone loss and tooth loss if they are also fed fermentable carbohydrates.  We all have these bacteria living in our mouth but once they are fed the sugars and fermentable carbohydrates then they overtake the healthy bacteria and before long you have an infection.

Unfortunately, most people do not know that they have a cavity or a gum infection until a lot of damage has already occurred.  I have this discussion with my patients every day and the number one comment is that- “well nothing is bothering me”.  Since it doesn’t hurt the tendency is to do nothing about it.  If you wait too long then the only choice is to extract the tooth or teeth.  The message here is DON’T WAIT TILL IT HURTS.  BE PROACTIVE.  BRUSH, FLOSS AND GO SEE YOUR DENTISTI!

Since most of the time it doesn’t hurt then how do you know if you have decay or gum disease?  Once the cavity gets deep enough it usually becomes sensitive to hot and cold-GO IMMEDIATELY TO YOUR DENTIST.  One of the early signs that you may have gum disease is that you notice the gums bleed when you brush or floss your teeth.  Blood is an early warning sign that you have a possible infection.  GO NOW!

I would also highly recommend that you go to your dentist at least every 6 months to help prevent decay and gum disease.  By scraping off the plaque that has formed on your teeth you are removing the bacteria and the place where they hide.  Also the dentist will check other things such as gum pocket depth and take x-rays etc. that will show if the disease process is active or getting worse.  You can’t do this yourself!

By preventing, detecting and finding problems in the early stages you will save thousands of dollars and lots of grief over a lifetime.  Similar to changing the oil in your car.  If you change your oil every 3,000 miles you seldom have problems.  If you never change it then your engine blows up and it costs a new engine.  Remember the old saying “An ounce of prevention is worth a pound of cure”?  It’s true and I highly recommend it. The next question is what can you do to prevent decay and gum disease at home?  The causes of both decay and gum disease break down to 3 options

1. Genetics- you can’t do much about this one but supposedly it only causes about 10% of the problems
2. Diet-This is a very big cause-when you eat the wrong things (processed carbohydrates and sugars) you feed the bad bugs in your mouth and they take over and cause problems. I strongly recommend you look into the PALEO diet.  It does not feed the bad bugs and it is great for overall health.
3. Poor oral hygiene-You have been told your entire life to brush after every meal and to floss. If you do this then you disturb/breakdown the bad bacteria hiding in the plaque and that makes it much harder for them to do their damage.  I strongly recommend that you get a Sonic toothbrush as it does 31,000 brush strokes per minute and brush for 2 minutes.  Then floss every night after dinner.  IT AIN’T THAT HARD.

Summary-DON’T FEED THE BAD BUGS AND PROPERLY REMOVE ALL YOU CAN!  BRUSH, FLOSS AND GO SEE YOUR DENTIST.