Undoubtedly, poor dental health and serious dental problems are very often linked to other diseases and overall health conditions, both in men and women. This notion is especially true for various infections dental diseases like gum disease and others. Scientists discovered that those people who have gum inflammation or other bacterial dental problems always have certain amounts of bacteria entering their blood and being spread throughout their body. Thus such patients suffer from increased risk for inflammations in other various body organs. This phenomena has been studied these days, and there is a good number of researches resulted in proving the links between inflammatory gum diseases and such health problems as respiratory infections, bladder infections, etc. In addition, there are quite clear connections established between gum disease and elevated risks for heart attack, a stroke, atherosclerosis, type 2 diabetes, and other very serious health conditions which are, unfortunately, quite common in our times.
Recently, new related findings were published saying that there are links between bleeding gums in men and increased risks for erectile dysfunction. A group of Turkish scientists from the Inonu University, Izmir, Turkey, reported about finding solid scientific evidence to the stated fact. According to the report published earlier this month in the Journal of Sexual Medicine, those modern men who were diagnosed with severe gum inflammation, gum disease and bleeding gums have almost twice higher risks for suffering from erectile dysfunction and all related problems in their sexual life. Turkish scientists explain the condition with dental bacteria entering bloodstream of the infected men, causing most of arteries and blood vessels to narrow down and harden. This condition is similar to the one which marks the outbreak of heart disease. However, according to the researchers, it can also be a cause of erectile dysfunction, which is considered in scientific medical circles as one of a key warning signs for possible heart disease and other cardiovascular diseases in men.
For the experiment, the scientists at Inonu University invited a group of men suffering from chronic erectile dysfunction and a group of men who have never had the mentioned condition. It turned out that over 53 per cent of those men who suffered from erectile problems also had bleeding gums and gum disease. At the same time, only 22 per cent of the men from the same group had no infection gum disease, but still were diagnosed with erectile dysfunction. It is supposed that vessel narrowing and hardening interferes with normal blood supply, and blood circulation slows down a little. These effects are sometimes quite considerable, and that is why those men who suffer from inflammatory dental diseases (mainly gum disease) very soon start having problems like erectile dysfunction, as well as have increased risks for heart disease, a stroke, or other cardiovascular problems. Unfortunately, the nature of the discovered links is still not studied properly and fully understood, but further studies are planned to look closer at the problem.
In addition to that, the scientists managed to find out that there are other risks related to the bacteria that goes into the bloodstream. The researchers suggest that the bacteria can start certain reactions in our immune system, creating even more favorable environment for vessel inflammation and narrowing down. This phenomena mainly contributes to increased risks of clogged arteries and suffering from a stroke. Many other experts reacted on the findings of their Turkish colleagues and again pointed to the importance of proper daily dental care and dental disease prevention. ‘Removing food stuck in between your teeth close to gum lines is a really important step to preventing gum disease. Using interdental brushes or flossing is the best way of doing this,’ said Dr Nigel Carter, chief executive of the British Dental Health Foundation. He said that a proper oral care can be a key not only to good dental and overall health, but also an important factor to boost our success in personal life, our self-esteem and abilities to achieve in this life.
