More Evidence That Dentist Trips Save Your Heart

There has been more and more research to suggest that oral health is linked to heart health and now another study directly links visiting the dentist with a decreased risk of heart disease.  The new study consists of 100,000 participants and they found the people who had their teeth cleaned and scraped by a professional dentist had a 24% lower risk of a heart attack and a 13% lower risk of a stroke in the seven years after the appointment.

These findings were reported by the American Heart Association Scientific meeting according to the article “Trip to Dentist Can Reduce Risk of Heart Attack: Research” by Rebecca Smith on Telegraph.CO.UK.  Cardiology Fellow at the Veterans General Hospital in Taiwan, Dr. Emily Chen, points out that protection from heart disease and stroke was more pronounced for those that received tooth scaling at least once a year.

This study had 51,000 adults who received at least one full or partial scaling with similar genders and health conditions who did not have the tooth scalings.  The theory is that the tooth scaling specifically reduces inflammation-causing bacterial growth which could lead to a heart attack or a stroke.  Based on this information, there is no better time to make that appointment with your Miami dentist!