The Benefits of Brushing Up
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| Anne Kelly |
| 11/26/2009 |
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| We all have our tricks for staying healthy during flu season. Some people stick with the flu shot, others turn to vitamin C or herbal supplements. There are a lot of different ideas out there, and many work. But some don`t. There`s one method that some people swear by, but dentists say it doesn`t do much.. You can brush till your blue in the face. But it doesn`t make you any less likely to develop the flu. Stop brushing, and you`re at no higher risk of flu and colds either. "Just because your mouth is dirty it`s doesn`t mean you`re going to get sick," says Dr. Sid Schmidt. Dentist Schmidt fully supports brushing and flossing, and says he hates to admit it, but there`s no connection being clean teeth and a cold and flu free season. "One question people have is if you`re sick and you have a toothbrush and you`re brushing with the toothbrush, are you reinfecting yourself? Basically your body will build up it`s immune system to where you don`t have to worry about your toothbrush reinfecting you," he says. But don`t give up on brushing quite yet. Schmidt says while the countless amount of bacteria in your mouth won`t make you sick with the flu, they can make you sick with other health problems. "Studies have shown that bacteria can enter through the mouth into the rest of the body causing heart problems, some stroke problems, also premature births can happen from bacteria in your mouth that can enter," he says. Mouth bacteria that enters into the blood stream has also been connected to arthritis. The bacteria has also been shown to make it harder to control diabetes as infections it can cause can lead to a rise in blood sugar. All good reasons to keep brushing up even if it doesn`t mean you`ll fighting off any unwanted viruses this holiday season. Of course, brushing and flossing is also important because it prevent tooth decay and gum disease. |
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