This is What Your Teeth Can Reveal about Your Overall Health

Last Updated on January 7, 2021

#3 – Poor Diet

Coffee, tea, sauces (like marinara,) energy drinks, and dark berries leave their mark on your teeth. So does chocolate, candy, and dark soda. Thus, ugly stains show up!

“But there are things you can do,” said Rankin. “Drink coffee and soda through a straw ― so it stays away from the teeth. Also, rinsing and brushing right after you eat helps immensely.”

We all know that sugar can cause cavities. But according to Rankin, if patients actually brushed and flossed every time they ate candy, the risk of a dental issue would be much smaller.

#4 – Alcohol Abuse

Alcohol abuse can cause good oral hygiene habits to fall by the wayside and dentists can smell alcohol on a patient’s breath, according to Rankin. A 2015 study in the Journal of Periodontology also found some insight into the drinking and oral health connection.

Brazilian researchers discovered that gum disease, or periodontitis, increased with drinking frequency. The study also showed that overall poor oral hygiene is a common trait among people who excessively drink.

The researchers also found that study participants without gum disease had higher levels of plaque than non-drinkers, possibly due to the way alcohol slows down the production of saliva and dries out the mouth.

#5 – Heart disease or diabetes

“Among people that are unaware of whether they have diabetes or not, poor gum status has been shown to be associated with diabetes,” said Papapanou. “This is a pretty critical situation in which a dentist can help to identify undiagnosed diabetes.”

The relationship between periodontitis and diabetes is not yet totally understood, however, researchers know it is a two-way street: Diabetes increases the risk of gum disease, and gum inflammation negatively impacts the body’s ability to regulate blood sugar, according to a study published in Diabetologia.

And it could be inflammation of the gum that is causing the association between gum disease, diabetes, and periodontitis, according to the American Academy of Periodontology. Furthermore, people with diabetes are three times more likely to experience this most severe type of gum disease.