Inflammation is a part of life and it hits us in 2 forms, acute and chronic. Acute inflammation happens all the time in sports, or you slip and sprain and ankle or hand. Your body has a wonderful defense mechanism that sends billions of cells into recovery from acute inflammation.
Chronic inflammation, however is an entirely different process. It is commonly linked to speeding up the aging process. Now if you are like most, you are probably wondering why this topic is on a dental website. Excellent question! Here is your answer and I'll emphasize it so that this important answers stays with you:
BECAUSE CHRONIC INFLAMMATION USUALLY STARTS IN YOUR MOUTH
You see, you think of your hygiene appointments as "Just a cleaning" and if you miss it, well you can do it another time of if you are lucky, you can put it off indefinitely. Yes you can, but at what price are you willing to pay?
GINGIVITIS AND ITS AFFECT ON THE LIVER AND THE DISEASE PROCESS
When bacteria build up in the mouth, the onset of inflammation begins! This is your first clue.
At first your body attempts to fight it, but because the bacteria can tenaciously attach to the tooth, the body's defense mechanism cannot properly remove it. As a result to the presence of chronic inflammation, the body sends a signal down to the liver and the liver responds by making a protein called C-reactive protein (or CRP).
CRP has several affects on the human body, almost all detrimental. For instance, it circulates onto blood vessels causing them to harden on the outer layer and then it travels through the vessel where it scratches the endothelial lining. Now when cholesterol travels through the blood vessel, it increases the probability of cholesterol sticking and building up. This leads us to to an important question, are patients on statin drugs for high cholesterol being masked by the real problem of high CRP levels due to gingivitis, which are damaging the blood vessels. This much we do know, the higher the rate of systemic inflammation, the higher the CRP levels climb in the blood.
When you are having your teeth cleaned, they usually bleed. However some bleed heavily, some moderately, some lightly. This is another clue!
Because CRP is linked to most of the diseases listed above, you must listen to what your body is telling you. For example, what if you recently had a blood test by your physician and that your cholesterol is fine and you are not taking any medication to lower cholesterol but during your cleaning you bleed heavily? Are you at high risk or low risk for heart disease?
Some studies have found that when they gave anti-inflammatory drugs to Alzheimer's patients, their dementia decreased. If an anti-inflammatory decreases dementia, does a chronic source of inflammation, i.e. higher levels of chronic CRP lead to at least one reason for dementia? William of Ockman, a 14th century logisist, theologian and Franciscan friar developed "Occman's Razor" which says that "The simplest solution is usually the correct one." In science, Occman's Razor is still considered the gold standard for developing scientific theory.
In my practice, patients who have moderate to heavy bleeding are told about how their gums cause their liver to produce C-reactive protein. And they are given a brochure to take home.
According to the American Heart Association:
- hs-CRP reading less than 1 mg/L = low risk of heart disease
- hs-CRP reading of 1-3mg/L = moderate risk of heart disease
- hs-CRP reading above 3mg/L = high risk for heart disease
Remember, CRP rises with higher levels of chronic inflammation and the most common site of chronic inflammation in the body is gingivitis. In my practice I consider anyone 30 years of age and above who has moderately heavy bleeding to be a high risk patient for a heart attack unless proven otherwise. Be prepared!
Fortunately, there are several wonderful solutions out there. If your dentist does not freely give you this type of information or you would like to become a patient in our health centered practice, please give us a call today at (951) 698-1700. Together, we can put you on the road to wellness and more affordable health care.
