Good oral hygiene isn’t just about having clean teeth and fresh breath—it might also help protect your heart.
A new study from Tokyo Medical and Dental University (TMDU) in Japan has uncovered a surprising link between gum health and the body’s ability to recover from a heart attack.
Published in the International Journal of Oral Science, the research found that a common bacterium that lives in the mouth, Porphyromonas gingivalis, can interfere with the heart’s healing process after a heart attack.
This bacterium is known to cause gum disease, but scientists now believe it could also make heart damage worse.
When someone has a heart attack, it’s usually because a blockage has stopped blood from reaching part of the heart. Without oxygen and nutrients, heart muscle cells—called cardiac myocytes—start to die.
To reduce further damage, the heart uses a cleaning process called autophagy. This process helps cells remove broken or harmful parts so they can function better.
The research team, led by Yuka Shiheido-Watanabe, wanted to find out what happens when P. gingivalis is present during this recovery period. They focused on a protein made by the bacterium called gingipain, which plays a big role in how the bacteria cause disease.
Previous studies hinted that gingipain might block normal cell death, but this new study looked specifically at how it affects heart cells after a heart attack.
To test this, the scientists used two versions of the bacterium—one normal and one genetically modified to not produce gingipain. They then studied how each version affected heart cells in a lab and in mice that had experienced a heart attack.
The results were eye-opening. Heart cells infected with the regular, gingipain-producing bacteria were more likely to be damaged. These cells couldn’t clear away harmful waste properly because the bacterium disrupted a key part of the autophagy process.
Normally, tiny containers inside the cell called autophagosomes fuse with lysosomes, which break down and remove waste. But gingipain blocked this fusion, causing waste to build up in the cells. This led to more damage, swelling in heart cells, and worse outcomes for the mice.
In contrast, the heart cells infected with the modified bacteria (which couldn’t produce gingipain) were healthier. The mice in this group had less heart damage and a better chance of healing after a heart attack.
This study is important because it shows how gum disease could affect more than just your mouth—it might also impact how your heart recovers from serious conditions. While this doesn’t mean that gum bacteria cause heart attacks, the findings suggest they can make heart problems worse if they enter the bloodstream and reach the heart.
For people recovering from heart attacks—or anyone at risk of heart disease—this research is a strong reminder of the importance of oral hygiene. Regular brushing, flossing, and dental check-ups can reduce the number of harmful bacteria in the mouth and lower the risk of gum infections.
It also opens the door to new ways of protecting heart health. For example, treating gum infections early or finding ways to block gingipain might help people recover better after a heart attack.
Taking care of your mouth might not seem related to your heart, but this study shows that the two are more connected than we once thought. By keeping your gums healthy, you could be doing your heart a big favor too.
If you care about heart health, please read studies that apple juice could benefit your heart health, and Yogurt may help lower the death risks in heart disease.
For more information about health, please see recent studies that Vitamin D deficiency can increase heart disease risk, and results showing Zinc and vitamin B6 linked to lower death risk in heart disease.
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