Confession: when I was a kid, I ate a lot of candy. I mean a LOT. The chewier and gooier the better. And although I brushed my teeth, I probably brushed them all wrong. Between that fact and the fact that fluoride was not yet used (okay, I’m dating myself here), it’s obvious what happened next. Each year, my parents made a huge contribution to my dentist’s Caribbean vacation, his kid’s college fund, his golf club membership, etc. Each year I’d end up with at least ten cavities. I think I tipped the scale, er, the drill, one year with FOURTEEN.

Lucky for kids today, there’s a lot more dental awareness than back then. But that doesn’t mean as adults we can forget about our teeth, even though we may not be getting as many cavities as we once did. And it doesn’t mean, either, that if you have a pretty smile, there’s not something ugly and sinister going on beneath the surface.

There’s increasing evidence that oral health and hygiene is connected with chronic disease throughout the body. Dental professionals all agree that infections in the mouth can travel throughout the body and cause other chronic inflammatory conditions like diabetes, cardiovascular disease, and may even contribute to Alzheimer’s disease.

Fact: a 2007 study showed that periodontal disease increased the risk of heart disease in men by one third and doubled it in women, even after controlling for smoking. To read more about a 2010 Scottish study that shows an association between poor oral hygiene and higher levels of cardiovascular disease and low grade inflammation, click here.

Dental Do’s:

Brush after every meal BUT wait at least 30 minutes. Dentist Dr. Kenton Ross, spokesperson for the Academy of General Dentistry, recommends that if you eat foods high in acid (like soft drinks, sport drinks, white wine, citrus fruits, pickles, yogurt, and anything containing phosphoric and citric acid), you should not brush immediately after eating. Why? The acids in foods can weaken your enamel, and brushing too soon will further damage the enamel and hence, the teeth. Waiting gives the protective enamel a chance to re-harden.

Ross says, ”Since it may be difficult to know if a meal contains foods high in acid, I recommend
waiting to brush after any meal to minimize irreversible damage to your enamel. One can, however, rinse thoroughly with water or unsweetened tea to dilute the acids and raise the pH above the levels that cause damage to enamel.”

Drink quickly. I’m not saying you should gulp it down, but constantly sipping on soft drinks for hours at a time can constantly bathe your teeth in harmful sugar and acid.

Says Dr. Ross, “I often see ‘sippers’ who work in restaurants and have easy access to sugary drinks.
These people often develop a mouth full of cavities in just a few months from constantly sipping on soft drinks for hours at a time. It is important to finish a soft drink quickly to limit the amount of time the acid and sugar are in contact with your teeth. Stick with water or unsweetened tea for prolonged sipping.”

Floss.I don’t want to sound like your mother, but you should be flossing every single day. Gum disease is caused by bacteria that form a sticky plaque on your teeth. And brushing alone is not enough to remove that stubborn plaque. Here’s what happens when plaque remains on your teeth: it hardens and forms tartar. Gingivitis, a mild form of gum disease, follows. Your gums get red and swollen and may bleed easily.

Fact: Periodontal disease, a chronic bacterial infection of the gums, is the leading cause of tooth loss in
adults. It destroys the bone and tissues that hold the teeth in place. While some of us are genetically prone to it, the condition can be aggravated by smoking, taking certain medications and stress, among other factors.

Gum Disease as an Early Warning System

Gum disease can be an early-warning system – and can influence your health in many ways.

• Pre-term labor. In observational studies, the rates of preterm births were higher for women with severe gum disease than for women with milder or no gum disease. If you’re pregnant, make sure you continue to visit your dentist!
• Diabetes. Blood sugar levels for diabetics who have uncontrolled gum disease are much harder to control than for other diabetics. And the reverse holds true here, too: those with uncontrolled diabetes have a three to four-time greater risk of developing periodontal disease. Read more about the association between diabetes and periodontal disease here.

Other Oral Hygiene Checks

Make sure you give the dentist a chance to look inside and check for things other than just cavities:

• Sores or fungus in the mouth might be early indications of HIV. 
• Osteoporosis could show up in a routine dental x-ray way before you feel its effects on parts of your body, like your hips or spine. 
• Tooth erosion could be a symptom of acid reflux disease. 
• White spots on your gums could be a symptom of oral cancer, a serious dental problem that affects about 24,000 people a year and kills 8,000. Many dentists have machines in their office that can detect oral cancer.
• Fiery red gums and wounds that won’t heal might be a sign of leukemia.

For the 40 percent (yes, the numbers are that high!) of patients who don’t get regular check-ups, here’s a fact you can’t ignore: your mouth is linked to the rest of your body. Take care of it … and your body will thank you.

Sheryl Kraft is Health & Wellness Editor at EndlessBeauty.com