Periodontal Gum Disease and Smoking

Periodontal Gum Disease and Smoking
Smokers should know the dangers of tobacco use. Researches
also have found that the following problems occur more
often in people who use tobacco products: Bad breath, oral
cancer, stained teeth, tooth loss, loss of taste, bone
loss, gum recession, mouth soars and facial wrinkling. The
research also indicates that there is less success with
periodontal treatments and dental implants.

There are also other medical problems associated with
smoking including lung disease, cancer, heart disease and
low-birth-weight infants.

If you are a smoker who is concerned about the effects
smoking can have on your health, and on your gums and teeth
in particular, at least by reading this article you are
learning all the negative impacts of tobacco use, and you
are taking the first step toward quitting.

According to the American Academy of Periodontology recent
studies have shown that tobacco use may be one of the most
significant risk factors in the development and progression
of periodontal disease. And following periodontal treatment
or any oral surgery, the chemicals in tobacco can slow down
the healing process. This makes treatment results less
predictable.

Here are some of the ways that one Los Angeles dentist who
specializes in periodontal gum disease and oral implants
believes smoking increases your risk for periodontal
problems. "Smokers are more likely than nonsmokers to have
calculus, otherwise known as plaque, which hardens on the
teeth," said Dr. Bijan Afar. "When calculus is not removed
it often remains below your gum line, and the bacteria in
the calculus can destroy your gum tissue and cause gums to
pull away from your teeth."

Smokers are also more apt to get deep pockets between the
teeth and gums and they also have loss of the bone and
tissue that supports teeth. Periodontal disease progresses
when these pockets between the teeth and gums grow deeper,
allowing more bacteria to destroy tissue and bone. This
result is that your gums shrink away from your teeth, and
if they are not treated by a periodontist, your teeth may
begin to hurt, become loose, and fall out. It has been
proven that smokers loose more teeth than nonsmokers.
According to data from the Centers for Disease Control and
Prevention, only about 20 percent of people over age 65 who
have never smoked are toothless, while a whopping 41.3
percent of daily smokers over age 65 are toothless.

In addition, research shows that current smokers don't heal
as well after periodontal treatment as former smokers or
nonsmokers. But these effects are reversible if the smokers
kick the habit before beginning treatment.

Furthermore, all tobacco products can be harmful to
periodontal health, such as smokeless tobacco (nicotine gum
products) also can cause gums to recede and increase the
chance of losing the bone and fibers that hold your teeth
in place. In a study of cigar and pipe smokers that was
published in January, 1999 in the Journal of the American
Dental Association it was stated that cigar smokers
experience tooth loss and alveolar bone loss at rates
equivalent to those of cigarette smokers. Pipe smokers
experience tooth loss at a rate similar to cigarette
smokers.

----------------------------------------------------
Kristin Gabriel is a social media marketing writer and PR
professional. Her client, Dr. Bijan Afar, is a Los Angeles
dentist and oral surgeon who owns five dental clinics,
including the Wilshire Dental Clinic.
(www.wilshiredentalcare.com) For more information, visit
http://www.oralimplants.com