Tuesday, November 15, 2011

Go to the dentist, live forever

Modern dentistry: nothing to fear.
Among more than 100,000 people, those who had their teeth scraped and cleaned (tooth scaling) by a dentist or dental hygienist had a 24 percent lower risk of heart attack and 13 percent lower risk of stroke compared to those who had never had a dental cleaning. The participants were followed for an average of seven years.

Professional tooth scaling appears to reduce inflammation-causing bacterial growth that can lead to heart disease or stroke.

Peridontal disease is also a no-no:
-- Fewer than 21 teeth had a 69 percent increased risk of heart attack compared to those with the most teeth.
-- A higher number of deepened periodontal pockets (infection of the gum around the base of the tooth) had a 53 percent increased risk of heart attack compared to those with the fewest pockets.
-- The least amount of teeth had a 2.5 increased risk of congestive heart failure compared to those with the most teeth.
-- The highest incidence of gum bleeding had a 2.1 increased risk of strokecompared to those with the lowest incidence.
I'm going tomorrow, so I'll probably be around another 100 years.