50% of the world’s population has periodontitis, a polymicrobial infectious disease that damages soft tissue and destroys the bone holding the teeth in place. Smoking, drinking alcohol and poor oral hygiene are some of the risk factors that can lead to periodontitis. The disease can also be chronic in nature. On its own, this condition is already reason enough to worry about our oral health, but what if it could also be a risk factor for Alzheimer’s disease?
A recent study by the researchers Sim K. Singhrao and Ingar Olsen suggests a link between this oral disease and cognitive decline conditions such as Alzheimer’s. Alzheimer’s is the most common form of dementia and the leading cause of cognitive and behavioral decline worldwide. The anaerobic bacteria that cause periodontitis can affect how the brain works, potentially causing depressive disorders such as dementia.
What does the research say?
Several experts have studied this subject in depth, with interesting conclusions. Paganini-Hill in particular notes that behavioral factors related to oral hygiene were significant in the onset of dementia, finding that people who did not brush their teeth daily had a 22 to 65% higher risk of developing dementia than people who brushed three times a day.
Other studies of twins found a higher likelihood of Alzheimer’s in those who lost their teeth around the age of 35. Singhrao and Olsen also cite Stein in their study, who links periodontitis to cognitive deficit and proposes periodontal disease as a risk factor for developing cognitive conditions later in life.
Regular monitoring and good oral hygiene throughout life may reduce the incidence of unwanted disorders such as Alzheimer’s.
Mice were the key to Singhrao and Olsen’s attempt to demonstrate this link. They allowed the researchers to discover that live P. gingivalis (one of the bacteria behind the gum problems mentioned above) is a potent initiator of peripheral and intracerebral inflammatory signaling, with direct and early implications for memory. Maintaining oral microbiome symbiosis and preventing periodontal disease with regular monitoring and good oral hygiene throughout life may reduce the incidence of unwanted disorders such as Alzheimer’s.
Prevention is in your hands
Fortunately, improving our oral health is possible thanks to advanced dentistry. It also calls, of course, for a change in personal oral hygiene habits. Come and see us at Clínica Dental Peydro (C/ San Vicente 139, Valencia) and find out how we can help. Because looking after our mouth is also looking after our mind.
*You can read the full article at this link: https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC6352933/
