Many people know that diabetes can harm the eyes, kidneys, heart, and blood vessels. However, far fewer people realize that diabetes can also have a major impact on oral health.
A new study from the University of Gothenburg has found that people with diabetes are more likely to develop serious dental problems, including gum disease, tooth loss, and complications around dental implants.
The findings come from a doctoral thesis by dentist Anna Trullenque Eriksson, who analyzed information from millions of health records collected through Swedish national databases. The research provides one of the most detailed examinations ever conducted of the relationship between diabetes and oral health.
Diabetes is a long-term condition that affects how the body regulates blood sugar. When blood sugar levels remain too high for extended periods, they can damage blood vessels and weaken the body’s ability to fight infections.
Scientists have long suspected that this may also affect the health of the mouth, but until now there has been limited large-scale evidence.
The researchers used information from seven Swedish national registers covering many years of health data. This allowed them to study extremely large groups of people and compare individuals with diabetes to similar individuals without the disease.
The study examined three major oral health problems. The first was periodontitis, commonly known as gum disease. This condition occurs when bacteria build up around the teeth and cause inflammation of the gums. If left untreated, gum disease can damage the tissues and bone that support the teeth, eventually leading to tooth loss.
The second condition was tooth loss itself. Losing teeth can make it harder to eat, speak, and maintain overall health. Tooth loss can also affect confidence, social interactions, and quality of life.
The third condition was peri-implantitis. This is an inflammatory disease that affects the tissues surrounding dental implants. Dental implants are widely used to replace missing teeth, but inflammation around the implant can cause bone loss and eventually lead to implant failure.
The researchers discovered that people with type 1 diabetes who had poor blood sugar control faced a much higher risk of gum disease and tooth loss than people without diabetes. Interestingly, people with type 1 diabetes who consistently maintained good blood sugar control showed little difference from people who did not have diabetes.
This finding suggests that controlling blood sugar may help protect oral health in people with type 1 diabetes.
The pattern was somewhat different for type 2 diabetes. In these individuals, the risk of gum disease and tooth loss remained higher even when blood sugar was reasonably well controlled. However, the risk became much greater when blood sugar control was poor.
The numbers were striking. Among people with type 1 diabetes, about 34 percent lost at least one tooth over a ten-year period, compared with 29 percent of people without diabetes. The risk increased substantially among those with poor blood sugar control.
For type 2 diabetes, more than 46 percent lost at least one tooth over ten years, compared with about 38 percent among people without diabetes. The gap widened even further among those whose blood sugar levels remained poorly controlled.
The researchers also found an important connection between oral health and other diabetes complications. People with periodontitis were more likely to develop diabetes-related eye and kidney problems. This suggests that inflammation in the mouth may reflect or contribute to health problems elsewhere in the body.
Another important finding involved dental implants. People with either type 1 or type 2 diabetes had a higher risk of developing peri-implantitis and losing dental implants. Once again, poor blood sugar control appeared to play a major role.
The study also highlighted the influence of social and economic factors. People with diabetes who had lower incomes or lower levels of education were especially likely to experience complete tooth loss. This suggests that access to dental care, health education, and preventive services may influence outcomes just as much as medical factors.
The findings reinforce the idea that oral health and general health are closely connected. Problems inside the mouth should not be viewed as separate from the rest of the body. Gum disease may worsen inflammation throughout the body, while diabetes can make oral infections more difficult to control.
The research was conducted by Anna Trullenque Eriksson at the University of Gothenburg and was based on data from Sweden and Denmark. The findings suggest that dentists and doctors should work more closely together when caring for people with diabetes.
If you care about diabetes, please read studies about Vitamin D and type 2 diabetes, and to people with diabetes, some fruits are better than others.
For more health information, please see recent studies that low calorie diets may help reverse diabetes, and 5 vitamins that may prevent complication in diabetes.
Source: University of Gothenburg.
