Poor oral hygiene and gum disease could contribute to poor blood sugar control and high blood pressure, a dental surgeon has warned, urging Ghanaians to take oral health seriously as part of efforts to prevent non-communicable diseases.
Dr Emmanuel Baah Abekah, the founder of Aura Family Dental Care, said severe gum disease could increase blood sugar levels and make diabetes more difficult to control, while uncontrolled diabetes could, in turn, worsen gum inflammation and impair the body’s ability to fight infections and heal.
In an interview with The Ghanaian Times on Friday, Dr Abekah said scientific evidence pointed to a strong relationship between periodontal disease, diabetes and hypertension.
He described the relationship between gum disease and diabetes as bidirectional, meaning each condition could worsen the other.
“It means that when somebody has severe gum disease, it can make the sugar rise, and the sugar being difficult to control. And when they have diabetes too, the diabetes can cause inflammation of the gum,” he said.
Dr Abekah explained that inflammation resulting from gum disease could contribute to insulin resistance, making it more difficult for glucose to enter body tissues and causing blood sugar levels to rise.
On hypertension, he said inflammation associated with gum disease could affect blood vessels and contribute to high blood pressure.
He also noted that some medicines used to control hypertension, including amlodipine, could cause gum enlargement, making the gums more susceptible to inflammation when plaque was present.
Dr Abekah explained that gum disease developed when bacteria accumulated in the mouth to form plaque, which could harden into calculus if not removed.
“The hardened deposits could release substances that damage the tissues supporting the teeth, causing inflammation, bone loss, receding gums, bleeding and, eventually, tooth loss,” he said.
He estimated that “if you pick three patients, one of them at least has gum problems,” attributing the prevalence partly to inadequate dental check-ups and professional cleaning.
He advised people with swollen, thick or bleeding gums not to ignore the symptoms but to seek dental examination and, where necessary, have their blood sugar levels checked.
Dr Abekah said treating gum disease could also improve blood sugar control, citing research that recorded about a 0.4 percentage-point reduction in glycated haemoglobin (HbA1c) levels three months after periodontal treatment.
HbA1c is a blood test that indicates average blood sugar levels over the previous two to three months.
Dr Abekah identified misconceptions that discouraged some Ghanaians from seeking dental care, including the belief that visiting a dentist automatically meant having a tooth extracted.
He said extraction was usually a last resort and stressed that early detection and treatment could help preserve natural teeth.
Another misconception, he said, was that dental care was necessarily expensive.
He explained that delaying treatment could make treatment more expensive because a minor problem could progress into a condition requiring extensive intervention.
FROM AMA TEKYIWAA AMPADU AGYEMAN, KOFORIDUA
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