I’ve just read an interesting white paper by Dr Daniel Sindelar about the link between Alzheimer’s Disease and oral health.
Did you know that Alzheimer’s Disease is expected to triple by 2050?
Alzheimer’s disease costs $500 billion every year and has a devastating impact on individuals, families, and society. Yet $60 billion in research on beta amyloids and over 100 proposed treatments have yielded little if any result. Most of the research has been looking at amyloids, yet it appears the amyloids show up because of oral pathogens.
By overlooking the mouth, we are overlooking one of the major influences of most inflammatory diseases. Don’t overlook oral health as an integral portion of inflammatory diseases and the oral pathogens in particular that are associated with oral biofilm.
Oral biofilm—communities of bacteria that are localised in the mouth—originate in the mouth, but send remnants, particles, live bacteria, and communicate throughout the body, as distant as knees, pancreas, blood vessels around the heart, liver, uterus, genitourinary tract, colorectal, and even the BRAIN!
News Flash!
Oral biofilm and Alzheimer’s disease are now directly connected. Groundbreaking research shows oral pathogens—spirochetes, specifically—play an important and possibly causative role in Alzheimer’s disease.
Dr Sindelar poses the question “Is the final cure of Alzheimer’s disease in your dental chair?”
I would say Probably not. Alzheimer’s disease is an extremely complex disease with many factors. But, if Dr Sindelar is correct, you can start reducing risk for dementia and Alzheimer’s disease now, simply by maintaing your oral health.
Your oral health impacts the health of your whole body – from life debilitating diseases like Alzheimers to simple immune system issues. The importance of your oral health cannot be understated!
Dr Daniel L. Sindelar, DMD is the founder and Editor-in-Chief for OSH News Network. He is a practicing dentist; co-founder, past president, & board member for the American Academy for Oral Systemic Health; and the founder and president of Oral Genomics, LLC.