Recently I attended the Australian Society of Periodontology Conference. Australian’s best Specialists in Periodontology and Implantology were there to get insights into the connection with genetics, Nutrition and Lifestyle changes with the management of periodontal disease.
Having been a holistic dentist who has taken these factors into account for over two decades it was a refreshing change from the out of date idea that it is all about how you clean your teeth.
Plaque is the soft build up that accumulates at the neck of the teeth that is part of the accumulative biofilm of your mouth. Once this plaque is removed there is a healing response in the tissues and they stop being swollen and bleeding. It has been assumed that if a patient is susceptible to gum disease then removal of this plaque is all that is needed. It is now becoming clear that this is only 20% of the answer.
Gum disease is a chronic inflammatory disease that is aligned with other chronic inflammatory diseases such as Heart Disease, Diabetes, Alzheimer’s and Obesity.
The whole profession is becoming aware that the more holistic care of our patients with lifestyle and nutritional interventions, and now nutrigenomic products that have scientifically been shown to reduce genetic weakness to systemic inflammation should be incorporated into our treatment plans.
I am pleased to see this focus shift from symptom based medicine to preventative management becoming more mainstream.
Just to reaffirm these changes, I came across this recent study showing the anti bacterial activity of Turmeric against the bacteria that are present in plaque next to and under the your gums that are associated with gum disease. Read more here:
http://www.joponline.org/doi/abs/10.1902/jop.2015.150260
Keep Smiling!
Dr David Cowhig
Contact us today on 3511 1399 so we can create a Safer Healthy Beautiful Smile for you and your family.