The Health of Your Mouth and Your Overall Health Part I

Many of us in dentistry have known that there is a link between the health of your mouth and the health of the rest of your body for quite some time.  It’s nice to see that the medical world has finally decided to validate what they had pooh-poohed for years.Quite often when a person’s mouth is showing signs of oral disease we often encourage them to visit their MD for an exam and a blood panel work up as well.  Patients often seem surprised that we in the dental community are able to notice that a change in their overall health may be happening based on the health of their gums and teeth.

Has your MD really ever examined your mouth looking for signs of health or disease?  Did you know that when you see a Traditional Chinese Medicine (TCM) Doctor that they automatically check your mouth?   Unfortunately, looking in the mouth is typically a “last resort” approach to treating chronic illnesses in Western Medicine.Many people feel that they have to be advocates for their own health and dental care these days.  It seems that we value insurance so much, yet we don’t feel the care we get is really helping us with our overall health.  With the “take a pill solution” comes even further issues with side effects that cause a need to “take another pill” to combat the side effects that the first pill taken to mask the initial issue. 

It’s a vicious cycle where the pharmaceutical companies’ wallets are the only thing getting healthy!Take a look in your own mouth sometime and make notice to a few things.  Use a flashlight if you really want to see what’s in there.  Some key things to look at and make note of are:

The color and texture of your gums.

They should be lighter pink in color and should touch the teeth nicely.  Any red or inflamed issues mean that the bacteria in your mouth are able to get into the bloodstream and may be contributing to a breakdown in your overall health as well as your oral health.

The color and texture of your tongue.

The sides of the tongue should be smooth and not scalloped, and the top should be pink as well.  Scalloped edges of the tongue could indicate many things from fluid retention to clenching.  The color and consistency of the coating on your tongue is an indication of balanced or imbalanced health.  Many people forget to really take care of their tongue in regards to their daily routine. 

The same plaque that builds up on your teeth also wreaks havoc on your tongue and is a major contributor of bad breath.  I know for me that my mouth really isn’t clean until I’ve brushed my tongue so far back that I gag a bit.  A dark red or burning tongue could indicate that acids are coming up from your stomach and irritating the tongue.

  Talk to your MD and DDS/Hygienist about this one.  Acids also contribute to tooth wear and sensitivity as well.Tongue diagnosis can be a subtle art. To try it yourself, observe the variations of your tongue and compare it to that of friends or family members.  After you have looked at a few tongues, you will see that they differ widely, and with a little study can tell you a lot about the overall health of a person.These are a few of the basics to start with; this can be an overwhelmingly long post so I’m going to break it up in parts.  Next time we’ll get a bit deeper into health and disease symptoms in the mouth.  Feel free to comment with any questions you may have.  I don’t have nearly all the answers, but I do have a wealth of knowledge around me.  I look forward to your comments good and bad. 

Thanks for reading;

we’ll finish this one up soon!