Good oral health is important for everyone, and if you are living with diabetes, it is even more so. Uncontrolled high blood sugar impairs the body’s immune system and the ability to fight infections, which makes you more susceptible to infection of the gums, tongue, teeth, and palate.
If your blood sugar is high, so is the sugar in your saliva. This can lead to the accumulation of more plaque than in a person without diabetes, and the high sugar attracts bacteria to the area. This makes you more susceptible to cavities, tooth decay, gum disease, and if untreated, tooth loss. Dry mouth is also more common when you have diabetes, which can accelerate tooth and gum disease, and make infections of the mouth harder to heal.
Oral health and diabetes management go hand-in-hand. The more uncontrolled your diabetes, the more difficult it is to maintain good oral health. If you have poor oral health, it can be harder to keep your blood sugar under control. If your oral health is poor, it leads to gum inflammation. Any inflammation in the body can lead to higher blood sugar levels. The inflammation caused by bacteria in the mouth also impairs the body’s ability to use insulin (your own or injected insulin), which leads to increased blood sugar.
Seeing your dentist regularly can help prevent issues with your oral health, your diabetes, and overall health. It is recommended that you have a dental exam and cleaning every 6 months unless your dental provider recommends more frequent visits.
To promote your oral health, and in so doing, your blood sugar control:
- Inform your dentist if you have diabetes and the status of your diabetes control.
- Provide your dentist with your primary care provider’s contact information.
- Give your dentist an updated medication (and insulin) list.
- Keep your blood sugar as controlled as possible.
- Brush teeth after each meal (minimum of twice daily).
- Remove and clean dentures daily.
- Floss a minimum of once daily.
- Report swollen, red, bleeding gums, loose teeth or mouth pain to your dentist right away.
- Quit smoking. People who have diabetes and smoke have a 20% higher risk of periodontal disease.
References:
Diabetes and Oral Health | Diabetes | CDC
Diabetes and Gum Disease | ADA
All Blogs are written by Professionals in the fields of Nutrition, Human Development and Diabetes.