Exercising For Your Oral Health

The benefits of exercise are all over the news, internet, and other media. Exercise is important. The truth is exercise takes energy and determination and not all of us have in equal amounts. Some of us don’t have it at all. Let’s talk about some of the benefits of exercise. Physical activity helps your body run better. It helps keep a host of diseases either under control or at bay including diabetes, heart disease, and depression. It also helps you maintain a healthy weight. But did you know that exercise is also helpful for your oral health?

The Importance of Exercise

Let’s face it, many of us are just too lazy, tired, or lack the ambition to exercise. However, a study measuring the effects of exercise on oral health found that individuals who maintained a healthy weight by exercising were 40 percent less likely to develop periodontal disease. The link between periodontal disease and your general health has been determined in study after study. Periodontal disease is an inflammatory disease that affects your gum tissue. It develops from the irritation caused by untreated bacterial plaque. When plaque remains on your teeth and along your gum line it hardens into tartar, builds up under your gum line, and causes decay and tooth loss. The harmful bacteria in the plaque and tartar can travel throughout your body causing a host of inflammatory diseases including high blood pressure, heart disease, dementia, impotence in men, and more.

While regular exercise is great for increasing your self-esteem, releasing stress, improving your mental clarity, and even improving digestion, the reason it is important for your oral health is because it reduces inflammation which can be caused by the same oral pathogenic bacteria that causes periodontal disease. Exercise also helps your body utilize vitamins and minerals essential to your dental health.

ABOUT YOUR GARY, IN DENTIST:

As a native of northwest Indiana, Nicholas Cain, DDS, is dedicated to providing excellent general, preventive, and family dentistry services to the community that raised him. To schedule your appointment, call Healthy Smiles today at 219-938-2637.