What Are Some Common Oral Problems From Diabetes?
Diabetes affects the body’s ability to process sugar resulting in high blood sugar levels. This can cause problems with the kidneys, eyes, hearts, and mouth. If you live with diabetes, you have to work extra hard to protect your mouth. The dentist in Breckenridge, CO, can help keep your mouth healthy. In turn, this slows the progression of diabetes.
How Will You Know Whether You Have Mouth Problems From Diabetes?
Diabetes affects every part of your body. You can know that diabetes affects your mouth by checking for some signs and symptoms. They include:
- Having inadequate saliva that causes dry mouth and
- Bad breath
- Bleeding, tender and inflamed gums
- Loss of the sense of taste when taking food or drinks
- Increases susceptibility to mouth infections
- Delayed oral wound healing
- Teeth erupting earlier than usual in kids
How Does Smoking Affect the Mouth?
Using tobacco products is harmful to your health, particularly oral health. It is even worse for people living with diabetes. Smoking raises blood sugar levels since nicotine makes the body more resistant to insulin. This weakens white blood cells, which help defend against infections in the mouth.
As a result, the patient’s chances of getting gum disease, oral cancer, and thrush. In addition, oral bacterial and fungal infections increase. Smoking also impairs the flow of blood to the gums and mouth. This causes wounds in the oral tissues to take longer to heal.
Besides, the nicotine in tobacco discolors teeth and causes bad breath. Smoking also raises your chances of getting type II diabetes. It is more severe and causes more oral health issues. Therefore, smokers should consider quitting.
Common Oral Health Problems From Diabetes
- Gingivitis
Gum disease is the most common dental health problem among people with diabetes. Gingivitis is gum disease in the earliest stage where you first notice changes in your gums. If blood sugar levels are uncontrolled white blood cells weaken. Your blood vessels also thicken. Therefore, the gums receive inadequate nutrients and are unable to fight bacteria.
This happens to people with untreated diabetes, resulting in more severe gum disease. The symptoms of gingivitis are several. They include red, swollen, bleeding gums, gum recession, and chronic bad breath. Regular visits to the dentist in Breckenridge, CO, will help reverse gingivitis.
- Periodontitis
If untreated, gingivitis progresses into a more severe type known as periodontitis. The disease erodes the gum, bone, and tissues that support teeth. Its symptoms include loose permanent teeth, change in your bite, and pus between teeth and gums. You will need to work closely with a doctor and dentist to manage this disease and control your diabetes.
- Dry mouth
It is also known as Xerostomia and is a lack of adequate saliva in the mouth. People with uncontrolled diabetes struggle a lot with dry mouth. It causes the mouth to feel dry constantly, lips to crack, teeth decay, and problems when eating or talking. Dry mouth also leads to sores or infection in the patient’s mouth, causing pain and soreness.
- Oral Infections
People with diabetes get fungal yeast infections easily. An example is a thrush which causes white or red patches to appear on the tongue and inside the cheeks. People who smoke, take antibiotics or wear dentures are more prone to this infection.
Diabetes Dental Health Action Plan
Working with a dentist can help you keep your smile healthy and control blood sugar levels. That is why the Breckenridge Dental Group team has a dental health plan for diabetics. The experts at this practice work in tandem with your primary doctor. They do this to ensure that necessary precautions for your health are taken.
The dentist will ensure that your blood sugar levels are under control before carrying out any dental procedure. This is because low blood sugar levels increase the risk of infections in the mouth. They also affect the immune system, thus slowing down recovery.
The diabetic dental health action plan helps you control blood sugar levels to help your body fight oral infections. It focuses on assisting patients to maintain proper oral hygiene. The program helps prevent oral problems caused by diabetes. They also work with smokers to help them quit or reduce smoking.