Introduction
The American Academy Of Neurology in their article on July 5, 2023, provides information in their study about an association between good dental care and better brain health. The study author, Satoshi Yamaguchi of Tohoker University, states. “Tooth loss and gum disease including inflammation of the tissue around the teeth are very common and provide a link with dementia.” Those conditions shown in the study play a role in the health of the brain area. That controls thinking and memory. Thus, people need to take good care of their teeth.
The study involved 172 people with an average age of 67 and who had no cognitive decline at the begging of the study. These people had dental exams and took memory tests at the start of the study. They had brain scans of the hippocampus both at the start and also 4 years later. Researchers counted the number of teeth and measured the gum tissue. A very good measure is 1-3 millimeters, and mild gum disease is 3-4 millimeters. Severe loss is 5-6 millimeters which cause bone loss.
Researchers found the number of teeth and amount of gum disease caused changes in the left hippocampus of the brain. Also, if the participant had fewer teeth and mild gum damage, then the brain had a faster rate of brain shrinkage. The results of the study also stated “if a person had mild gum disease and one less tooth that was equivalent to one year of brain ageing. Conversely, if a person had severe gum damage and one more tooth that was equivalent to 1.3 years of brain aging.”
Dr. Yamaguchi
Dr. Yamaguchi said that future studies need more people and found from other regions of Japan. He states,” The results highlighted the importance of preserving the health of teeth. Retaining teeth with severe gum disease is associated with brain atrophy. Some of these teeth need to be extracted and replaced.
On October 5, 2021, the National Institute On Aging in their article entitled” Tooth Loss in Older Adults Linked To A Higher Risk Of Dementia” stated also that tooth loss increases the risk of cognitive impairment. Oral health problems are more common in older adults. The National Institute On Aging linked with researchers at New York University and analyzed several long-term studies. They researched many biomedical science publications with over 14 studies. They used questionnaires, assessments, medical records, and facts on death certificates. There were 34,074 participants and 4689 people had dementia.
Researchers Opinion
The researchers found that the more missing teeth a participant had reflected a 48% higher risk of cognitive impairment and a 28% higher risk of dementia. A person with 20 or more missing teeth had a 31% higher risk. If a person lost all of their teeth, they had a 54% higher risk. People who used dentures did not have a significantly higher risk of dementia.
If a person lost teeth, that attributes to problems chewing which causes a clinical imbalance or changes to the brain. Poor oral hygiene means increased bacteria and inflammation which raises the plaque in the brain. The studies suggest for older adults that dentures, orthodontic treatments, and good oral hygiene can prevent or slow down cognitive decline.