DIABETES
The impact of periodontal disease on insulin resistance and blood sugar control potentially exacerbates diabetic complications. As this year’s resources detail: “severe gum disease is now considered to be the sixth issue with diabetes.
It makes controlling diabetes harder and diabetes will make gum disease worse”
Severe gum disease has a strong association with diabetes and heart disease. Bacteria from gum disease can spread through the bloodstream, leading to arterial and blood vessel issues. Managing diabetes becomes more challenging when gum disease is present, and in turn, diabetes worsens gum disease.
There is consistent evidence that periodontitis increases the risk of developing Type II diabetes worsens glycaemic control and complications of diabetes. The biological mechanisms work both ways. Uncontrolled diabetes causes periodontal disease to worsen. Poor periodontal care and management contributes to making diabetes harder to manage.
There are almost 1.2 million Australians were living with Type II diabetes.
Type II diabetes influences periodontitis by causing a hyper inflammatory response, which impairs bone remodelling.
Periodontitis contributes to systemic inflammation which can contribute to insulin resistance.
The inflammation of the gums can lead to pancreatic cell dysfunction and apoptosis (programmed cell death) as well as the development of insulin resistance.
Diabetes drives a reaction on macrophages & T cells (immune cells), endothelium (part of the gum) and gum blood vessels, leading to hyper inflammation. This causes periodontal tissue destruction by impairing wound healing, and bone loss.
The well-established link between diabetes and periodontitis now places periodontitis as the 6th complication of Type II diabetes!
If you’d like to book an appointment with the dentist at Seymour Dental then call us in Dulwich Hill, Sydney on (02) 9564 2397 or
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Mind, Body, Mouth, it’s all connected. Dental Health Week 2023 - Lung