Stress increases your risk for gum disease. When your immune system is worn down by stress, the harmful bacteria in your mouth seize the opportunity to wreak havoc on your gums. Ultimately, this causes an infection of the gums known as gingivitis. Gingivitis, in its earliest stages, is easy to manage.
Stress increases your risk of gingivitis and gum disease.
And when you're stressed, you release a hormone called cortisol, which can deplete your immune system and allow bacteria to thrive. These bacteria then wreak havoc on your gums, causing them to become inflamed.
Psychological stress is a risk factor for periodontal disease. Stress can also increase the severity of periodontal disease and decrease the effectiveness of treatments.
Experiencing stress can be the cause of many teeth, mouth, gum or jaw problems, but experiencing oral health problems can lead to more stress which then exacerbates the problems. It's therefore crucial to deal with the sources of stress in your life before they can have a chance to impact on your oral health.
Periodontal (gum) disease is an infection of the tissues that hold your teeth in place. It's typically caused by poor brushing and flossing habits that allow plaque—a sticky film of bacteria—to build up on the teeth and harden.
VITAMIN B12. A Vitamin B12 deficiency can increase your risk of a severe form of gum disease called periodontitis.
47.2% of adults aged 30 years and older have some form of periodontal disease. Periodontal disease increases with age, 70.1% of adults 65 years and older have periodontal disease.
It can cause severe gum recession and an increased likeliness of periodontal disease. Long-term stress is proven to weaken the immune system. This lowers your body's ability to fight infections. As a result, you have an increased risk of several dental issues, like bleeding and inflamed gums.
So, can stress or anxiety cause your teeth to shift/move? The answer is a resounding YES! If feeling stressed or anxious causes you to develop bruxism, over time the regular grinding and clenching of your teeth and the subsequent pressure on them could cause them to alter position slightly.
Periodontitis is common but largely preventable. It's usually the result of poor oral hygiene. Brushing at least twice a day, flossing daily and getting regular dental checkups can greatly improve your chances of successful treatment for periodontitis and can also reduce your chance of developing it.
When the body is under stress, it produces more of the hormone cortisol, which acts as an anti-inflammatory agent. When cortisol is produced peripherally in the gums, it stimulates mast cells to produce more proteins, simultaneously increasing inflammation and the progression of periodontal disease.
If not treated, it leads to gum and bone recession, bad breath and tooth loss. The disease can be symptom-free as well and that is why it is also called the 'Silent Killer'. As a result of the 'Silent Killer' the remaining teeth have to be extracted as there has bone left that could hold them.
Stress can affect your oral health in a number of ways: Jaw issues, or disorders of the jaw joint or chewing muscles. These can cause pain around the ear or face. Teeth grinding, or bruxism.
Dry Mouth
But when you are stressed, you experience reduced saliva production resulting in more plaque buildup and an increased likelihood of dental issues. Overuse of alcohol and tobacco can also cause dry mouth leading to tooth decay and gum disease.
Depression can affect oral health as a result of neglecting oral hygiene procedures, cariogenic nutrition, avoidance of necessary dental care which leads to an increased risk of dental caries and periodontal disease.
Oral anxiety is the stress effects on oral health. Stress or anxiety can impact your oral health; when you are stressed, your immune system is compromised, and while the cause of canker sores is not proven, there is some correlation or higher likelihood between lowered immune and those nasty painful canker sores.
It can weaken the body's ability to fight off infections and diseases, including gum disease. This weakening of the immune system from stress is a major factor behind the progression of gum disease, allowing it to move from gingivitis into periodontitis with the risk of losing teeth.
Stress and emotional factors can play a significant role in the development of gum (periodontal) disease and the severity can increase with the amount of stress you are experiencing.
The traditional method of treating gum recession is through a gum graft, which entails donor tissue being harvested from another area of the mouth—usually the palate—and transplanted onto the receding area to cover the exposed tooth root.
Gum disease occurs when the tissue that surrounds and supports the teeth becomes infected. It is very common in Australia, with 3 in every 10 adults having moderate to severe gum disease. Brushing your teeth and gums twice daily can help prevent gum disease.
It's never too late to seek treatment for gum disease, and the degree of treatment you require will depend on how advanced it is.
Gum disease is preventable, especially when it is diagnosed in its earliest stages. Even for those people with advanced gum disease, it is never too late to seek diagnosis and restorative treatment.