Soon cardiologists may routinely examine patients’ mouths just as dentists ask about heart health.  This is the outcome of recommendations made jointly by leaders in both periodontal dentistry and cardiology in a consensus paper on the relationship between heart disease and gum disease.  These professionals believe that managing one disease may reduce your risk of the other. 

Cardiovascular disease, the leading cause of death in North America, may be linked to progressive gum disease, also a chronic inflammatory disease, which affects a large percentage of adults.  Untreated, gum disease will eventually destroy supporting jawbone and ligaments, and it’s the major cause of adult tooth loss.  In addition to cardiovascular diseases, it may affect conditions such as arthritis, osteoporosis, complications of pregnancy, respiratory diseases, cancers, and diabetes which is considered an epidemic.

Diabetes raises more fascinating questions about how oral and overall bodily processes may interact with one another.  Diabetics are more likely to have gum disease than most people, and gum disease makes it more difficult to control their blood-sugar levels.  Gum disease can lead to tooth loss which some research suggests may lead to hearing loss, which is about twice as prevalent among diabetics as the general population.

Not all the answers are in, but time is on your side.  Research can lead to solutions…and most forms of gum disease progress slowly.  With regular checkups, and good home care, dentistry can help maintain your oral health-and overall health.

Now is a great time to get your entire family thinking of ways they can contribute to improving our environment.  It’s easy and rewarding to build an eco-friendly plan for you and your family.  These ideas can give you some basic ideas you can implement right now and help your kids learn their actions can make a difference now and into the future. 

*Leave the water turned off while you brush your teeth.  This simple step can save up to four gallons of water a minute.  That means that a family of four can save up to 200 gallons of water a week by implementing this simple step.

*Turn off lights when you leave rooms and ensure everything is turned off when you leave for the day.

*Make it a house rule that televisions, computers, DVD players, and game consoles be unplugged before you go to bed, because these days the off button for these items is not really off but a type of standby.  This means they’ll be using energy even when they are turned off unless they are unplugged.  This can add up to a savings of over $200 annually simply by ensuring you unplug these electronic devices.

*Set up a permanent recycling bin in your home or garage and use it everyday.  It takes 90% less energy to recycle an aluminum can than to make new ones, so think of all the benefits that recycling has.

*Walk, ride your bike, or carpool in order to conserve gas and save money.

*Bring your own bags to the grocery store so that you do not have to waste plastic or paper bags.

*Start composting by using red wiggler worms.  Worms speed up decomposition by eating and digesting organic matter like leftover foods and vegetables, lawn waste, leaves, and even paper.  You can get starter worms and bins online and don’t need a large space to start the process.

*Buy locally grown fruits and vegetables in your town’s farmers market.  Make buying local fresh foods a priority-it’s healthier for you and the planet.