10 reasons why you should care about gum health

1. At least 80% of American adults have gum inflammation/disease.
2. Bacteria in your mouth travel to other parts of your body through your bloodstream.
3. Gum disease increases pancreatic and kidney cancer risk by 62%
4. Research has found an association between rheumatoid arthritis and gum disease.
5. People with gum disease are twice as likely to die from heart disease.
6. People with gum disease are three times as likely to die from a stroke.
7. If you have diabetes and bleeding gums, your risk of premature death increases by 400-700 percent.
8. Inhaling bacteria from the mouth and throat can lead to pneumonia.
9. Oral microbes can cross a pregnant woman’s placental barrier, exposing the fetus to infection.
10. Smokers with diabetes increase their risk of tooth loss by 20 times.

*Information from the American Academy of Oral Systemic Health