{"id":995,"date":"2019-11-07T19:00:00","date_gmt":"2019-11-07T19:00:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.premierdentalwaco.com\/blog\/?p=995"},"modified":"2023-07-18T15:29:08","modified_gmt":"2023-07-18T15:29:08","slug":"gum-disease-diabetes-month","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.premierdentalwaco.com\/blog\/gum-disease-diabetes-month\/","title":{"rendered":"How to Prevent Gum Disease When You Have Diabetes"},"content":{"rendered":"<div class=\"wp-block-image\">\n<figure class=\"alignleft size-medium\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"300\" height=\"186\" src=\"https:\/\/www.premierdentalwaco.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/AdobeStock_62394043__1574706473_37993-300x186.jpg\" alt=\"multiple hands holding up the word &quot;diabetes&quot;\" class=\"wp-image-996\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.premierdentalwaco.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/AdobeStock_62394043__1574706473_37993-300x186.jpg 300w, https:\/\/www.premierdentalwaco.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/AdobeStock_62394043__1574706473_37993-768x477.jpg 768w, https:\/\/www.premierdentalwaco.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/AdobeStock_62394043__1574706473_37993.jpg 800w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 300px) 100vw, 300px\" \/><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">If you have diabetes, you already know that it\u2019s a disease that affects your whole body. But did you know the ways it affects your mouth? That\u2019s right, people with diabetes (of both types) are more likely to get oral health problems like gum disease. Since November is National Diabetes Month, now is the perfect time to learn about the connection between uncontrolled diabetes and dental health issues. <\/p>\n\n\n\n<!--more-->\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\">How Oral Health Is Linked to Diabetes <\/h2>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">The link between diabetes and problems like gum disease is\nhigh blood sugar. When you don\u2019t keep your blood sugar levels under control, it\nweakens your white blood cells, which are your body\u2019s first line of defense\nagainst bacterial infections like gum disease. <\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Uncontrolled diabetes has been linked to multiple different\noral health issues, such as:<\/p>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li><strong>Dry mouth: <\/strong>A condition where your mouth\ndoesn\u2019t have enough saliva. This increases your risk for tooth decay and\nperiodontal disease. <\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><strong>Gum disease:<\/strong> Also known as periodontal\ndisease, gum disease is a bacterial infection in the gum tissue that can cause\nyour gums to bleed, and even make your teeth come loose in their sockets. <\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><strong>Poor healing of oral tissues:<\/strong> Those with uncontrolled\ndiabetes don\u2019t heal quickly after dental procedures like oral surgery because blood\nflow to the area may be damaged. <\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\">How to Prevent Oral Health Problems If You Have Diabetes <\/h2>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">The best way to keep oral health issues at bay, as well as\nany other complications from diabetes, is to keep your blood sugar as close to\nnormal as you can. Try and keep your hemoglobin A1C under 7%. Keeping a healthy\ndiet and exercise regimen is the best method of getting your average blood\nsugar down to a healthy level. <\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">It also helps to schedule regular checkups with your dentist\nor, even better, a periodontist, at least once every six months. A periodontist\nis a dentist who specializes in care of the gum tissue, so you can see why it\u2019s\nextra beneficial for diabetics to see one. A regular dentist should still be\nenough to help keep your teeth and gums clean enough to prevent and fight off\noral infections. <\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Having diabetes might make you more likely to get problems\nlike gum disease, but that doesn\u2019t mean it\u2019s a guaranteed. Keep your blood\nsugar levels under control to prevent oral health problems from taking hold. <\/p>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\">About the Author <\/h2>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Dr. Rick Cofer obtained his doctorate from Baylor School of\nDentistry. He opened his practice, Premier Family Dental, in Waco, TX in 2012. He\nis able to perform periodontal therapy, also known as gum disease treatment,\nfor diabetic patients. For more information, you can contact his office by <a href=\"https:\/\/www.premierdentalwaco.com\/contact.html\">clicking here<\/a> or\ncalling (254) 732-0309. <\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>If you have diabetes, you already know that it\u2019s a disease that affects your whole body. But did you know the ways it affects your mouth? That\u2019s right, people with diabetes (of both types) are more likely to get oral health problems like gum disease. Since November is National Diabetes Month, now is the perfect [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":3,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-995","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-uncategorized"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.premierdentalwaco.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/995","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.premierdentalwaco.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.premierdentalwaco.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.premierdentalwaco.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/3"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.premierdentalwaco.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=995"}],"version-history":[{"count":2,"href":"https:\/\/www.premierdentalwaco.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/995\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":1252,"href":"https:\/\/www.premierdentalwaco.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/995\/revisions\/1252"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.premierdentalwaco.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=995"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.premierdentalwaco.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=995"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.premierdentalwaco.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=995"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}