This one's for you, Pop. TEETH!

This next post is long overdue considering the family I come from.  We're a family of teeth.  Well not literally a family of teeth, but both my parents are in the teeth profession.  My mom is a dental hygienist (like a cleaning lady for your teeth) and my dad will tell you he's a doctor, but really folks, he's a periodontist (which means he deals with people's gums). Growing up with parents in the tooth business has taught me a lot about teeth. 

And I know without doing any research that taking care of your teeth is important for your health.  But for your sakes, I will find some real facts to back this up.

Before I get into the health benefits, I want to mention that taking care of your teeth is also important in social settings. Teeth are one of the first things we notice about other people, especially when considering attractiveness. Not everyone likes teeth that are straight or perfect (sometimes a little crookedness or a chip is cute), but most people wont admit to being fans of dirty teeth (and by dirty I mean when you can visibly see a build-up of plaque and tartar, bad breath, food stuck in their teeth, etc...all signs of an unclean mouth). Nice teeth can also be a sign of financial stability; if you have money, you can afford to take care of and fix your teeth. So teeth not only have a function in our health, but also our social perception and interactions.

The Health and Growth Series: Health Knowledge by Charters, Smiley, and Strang, one of the books that I checked out that is part of the health series for children, has a whole section on "Aids to Good Teeth." In this section they talk about what teeth are made of, toothaches, and taking care of your teeth (and gums).

Charters, Smiley, and Strang (CSS) refer to several causes of irregular teeth.  The most notable being thumb-sucking.  Thumb-sucking has long been known to cause irregular teeth, and it makes sense: if you have your finger in your mouth for the majority of your childhood when your teeth are growing and forming, you are probably going to throw things off a bit.  Not to mention children's hands go in dirty places and then into their mouths, which is just kind of gross. Sure there are psychological reasons behind thumb-sucking, but really if your kid is sucking his or her thumb after age 3, you should probably do something about it. 

Heredity and enlarged adenoids are also mentioned as reasons for irregular teeth, both of which can affect how teeth grow in or the formation of the jaw.  Apparently, enlarged adenoids cause breathing in through the mouth rather than the nose, which can make the mouth narrow "instead of well-developed and roomy."

However, teeth formation aside, one of the most important health-related topics involving teeth has nothing to do with aesthetics, chewing function, or teeth development.  The first section on tooth care in the chapter discuss tooth abscesses, which happens when a cavity or toothache is left untreated, the bacteria causes the cavity to go deeper into the tooth, pus forms, and an abscess (or pus pocket) forms. The bacteria from the abscess may continue to reproduce and from here enters into the blood stream. According to basic biology, blood from one part of our body is recycled through the heart and travels to all of our different body parts.  Back in CSS's day, the resulting bacterial spread from the tooth abscess "may cause trouble in the heart" and even rheumatism, which is a general term for problems affecting the joints and connective tissue.  

Now-a-days it is proven fact that teeth abscesses and subsequent gum disease (or gingivitis, defined by the U.S. National Library of science as inflammation and infection that destroys the tissues that support the teeth, including the gums, the periodontal ligaments, and the tooth sockets (alveolar bone) which is caused by long-term plaque deposits on your teeth) can cause problems in the cardiovascular system.

An article in Expert Review of Cardiovascular Therapy by Ford et al. (2010) entitled Why should a doctor be interested in oral disease? covers the basics of periodontal disease and its relationship with cardiovascular disease. Ford et al. claim that cardiovascular disease is the leading cause of death in western society. Risk prevention is one of the easiest ways to proscribe the development of cardiovascular disease, and taking care of your teeth (economic standing and proper materials provided) is one of the easiest preventative measures to take. The authors cite numerous studies and report that individuals with severe and chronic periodontitis have a significantly increased risk in developing atherosclerosis, myocardial infarction, and stroke.

Two main bacteria responsible for common chronic human infections are mentioned as the potential causes of heart disease in relation to gum disease.  "Chlamydia pneumoniae [is] a ubiquitous respiratory tract pathogen, and Porphyromonas gingivalis [is] a bacterium involved in chronic periodontal disease."  Both pathogens are associated with an increased risk of developing cardiovascular disease and are highly associated with inflammatory cells. However, an epidemiological problem with determining the causation between periodontal disease and cardiovascular disease is that both share the same risk factors such as lifestyle, heredity, and diet.

That being said, monitoring and preventing periodontal disease is an easy process that could potentially lower the risk of cardiovascular disease later in life.

And now for the more silly facts about teeth mentioned in the book:

1. Toothpicks. These sticky little guys are mentioned as causing "mechanical injury" to the teeth. They are to be used "rarely and then with great care." As the Mayo Clinic puts it, toothpicks are for "hors d'oeuvres, not teeth." Also, a fun fact I read on Dentalgentlecare.com: a toothpick is the object most choked on by Americans.

2. Dental visits. CSS says to visit your dentist at least once a year. Now, most professionals would say to go twice a year. Some people should go more, and some could get away with less. But as CSS state, "only a dentist or dental hygienist can remove in a satisfactory way all the tartar which has collected on the teeth above the gums and under the gums."

3. Dentist to people ratio. Back in 1935 there were about 62,4000 dentists in the US. That's about one dentist to every 1,900 people. That number is more or less the same now for most industrialized countries.

5. Floss. It is barely mentioned in the CSS chapter, but it is just as, if not more, important for dental health than regular brushing.  

4. Cost of dentistry. In 1935, the cost of filling a small cavity, as reported by CSS, was about $3. And it only cost about $15 if the cavity was neglected for some time and the root was exposed. Now, having a cavity filled, according to costhelper.com ranges from $50 to $4,500, depending on the type of filling, and what is included in the pre/post checkups and the filling appointment.  If you are lucky to have dental insurance, this shouldn't be a big issue.

But all costs aside, taking care of your teeth by brushing twice a day, flossing, and seeing a dentist more-or-less regularly is a small price to pay for maintain your health.