Friday, December 2, 2011

Do Diabetics' Teeth face More Problems?

By Owen Jones


Diabetes can have different adverse effects on sufferers' health and one of those bad-effects is dental quality. Diabetics have a difficulty dealing with sugars, which frequently leads to a condition known as hyperglycemia, which means that there is too much sugar / glucose in the blood.

The opposite of having too much sugar in your blood is having too little and that is called hypoglycemia.

Both circumstances are regulated in healthy people by insulin and herein lies the diabetic's problem - the body's automatic production of insulin to regulate blood sugar levels. Both circumstances can have grave consequences.

Too much sugar in the blood could lead to complaints with the kidneys, the heart, the eyes and other organs, whereas too little glucose in the blood might result in fits and black-outs.

Tooth and gum disease is frequent as are other health concerns. Reasons that play a part in tooth and gum disease are age, heredity, smoking and oral hygiene, but the diabetic who is often hyperglycemic has a higher probability of developing a dental infection.

The diabetic is more prone to infection of any kind and one of the most prevalent is periodontitis, which affects the teeth, the jaw bones and the gums.

One of the visible symptoms of periodontitis is receding gums, which makes the teeth look strangely large, but also exposes the roots of the teeth to the air and food, causing sensitive teeth.

Therefore, diabetics must ensure that they make a particular effort to visit their dentist at least twice a year. Periodontitis can cause the complete loss of one's teeth.

The extra glucose in the blood provides extra food for germs, so they reproduce far more quickly than normal. This rapid build up of bacteria produces red, swollen gums.

One of the first signs of gum disease is frequent bleeding. If your gums start to bleed whilst you brush your teeth, book an early appointment with your dentist.

Diabetics, along with those who have an impaired immune system, run a much higher risk of developing periodontitis and so losing all their teeth, if it is left untreated.

Diabetics who have periodontitis are not condemned to lose all their teeth, but it does have to be noticed and treated early because there are several ways that a dentist can deal with the infection.

One of the best tactics is to control your blood sugar levels in the first instance. This has to be achieved in conjuction with your doctor, but it will usually include correct dieting, exercise and taking insulin or a surrogate. Not smoking and maintaining your correct weight are also imperative.

Not all diabetics need to take insulin. There is much more understood about diabetes, diet, exercise and their interaction nowadays. Some diabetics can avoid taking insulin and all the side effects that that would usually entail by not eating sugary or starchy food.

The same impact can be had by consuming low-calorie meals frequently during the day instead of two or three large meals and by monitoring your blood-sugar levels.

This is the best means of avoiding the oral difficulties that diabetics can experience.




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