How Lung Problems Affect Your Oral Health

It's no secret that lung problems should be handled swiftly and thoroughly because of how rapidly they can affect your overall health. What you may not realize is how issues with your lungs can impact the health of your mouth and teeth. One of the reasons this occurs is because of the ease in spreading infection. Lungs that are not functioning at their best are less effective at warding off bacteria. This can cause infection in your gums and surrounding tissues and vice versa. In addition, medications used to treat lung conditions have side effects of damaging teeth. Visiting your dental clinic in Richmond Hill for routine dental care is clearly important to your health.

What Type of Lung Problems
Oral health can be impacted by most types of lung conditions. Specific lung conditions, such as those that are more severe, can have a greater impact on your oral health. This also includes diseases that are newly diagnosed or are not fully under control yet. As new medications are introduced to your treatment plan, you are able to monitor your body's response and have adjustments made as deemed appropriate by your healthcare provider team. Specifically, medications in the class of bronchodilators, can have a particularly drying effect and cause issues with your oral health. This type of medication is used to help open your airways and is commonly used to treat asthma.

How This Can be Managed
Regular check-ups, both for your teeth and for your lung conditions, are probably the most important step you can take for better health. Maintaining consistent care from your dental clinic in Richmond Hill helps your providers catch issues early before they can become more difficult to manage. Contact us today to schedule a dental check-up appointment. You should also take all medications as prescribed. This includes using inhalers as prescribed and completing full courses of antibiotics. Doing so increases the effectiveness of your treatment plan and puts you in better health overall.

Go back