Gum Disease Linked to Women’s Hormones

As if girls don’t have enough to contend with at the onset of puberty, a new study shows that it is also the beginning of hormone fluctuations that will leave them at an increased risk of gum disease and other related illnesses.

Charlene Krejci of Case Western Reserve University School of Dental Medicine has spent a great deal of time compiling data that told of a serious correlation between times of hormone fluctuation and oral health issues.

She reviewed 61 journal articles and approximately 100 other studies in an effort to gain the insight to draw such a conclusion.

Not only did she find that females have periods of increased risk of gum disease, she also learned that the hormonal changes had a direct relationship to bone loss.

While it has long been proven that women, in general, take better care of their mouth, teeth, and gums, than their male counterparts, there is worry that it is not enough to stave off the damaging bacteria during those periods of hormonal alterations.

Krejci highly recommended women step up their dental game in her piece, ‘Women’s Health: Periodontitis and its Relation to Hormonal Changes, Adverse Pregnancy Outcomes and Osteoporosis”, published in Oral Health and Preventative Dentistry.

Especially during pregnancy, women need to be sure to stay in close and regular contact with their dentists to prevent the very serious spread of bacteria through the body.

Visit the full article to read more about gum disease and women’s health.