Constantly Tired? It Could Be Gum Disease.
We all have those days where we feel like we could fall asleep on the spot. But some people suffer from constantly feeling tired, otherwise known as chronic fatigue. While chronic fatigue is a symptom of many illnesses and disabilities, chronic fatigue is also a symptom of gum disease.
What is Gum Disease?
Well, gum disease can affect one tooth or many teeth and it starts when the bacteria in plaque, which is continuously forming a film on your teeth, causes the gums to become infected and inflamed. Although often caused by inadequate oral hygiene, you are wrong to think this won’t happen to you because you brush and floss daily.
What’s the link between gums and chronic fatigue?
Gum disease or otherwise, there will be an increase in the white blood cell count. This means there will also be less red blood cells circulating through your body. As the red blood cells carry oxygen to every cell in the body, it is simple to conclude that an insufficiency is bound to create some fatigue.
This also affects our immune system which constantly works to ensure that our bodies are fighting fit and free from illness and disease. Gum disease will have an effect on the immune system, even though it is entirely preventable through good oral health and regular visits to the dentist. Gum disease will cause stress on the immune system causing it to work harder which can cause fatigue.
On top of that, we know that infection affects the clotting mechanism of the blood, so that it becomes thicker (hyper-coagulation). This means that thicker blood is harder to pump through the heart. Therefore, it’s a natural conclusion that if the heart is working overtime beating faster and harder to circulate blood, that it’s going to create some fatigue in the body.
Toothache can cause you to lose sleep too!
Pain in our teeth because of gum disease can make day to day life harder. Eating, drinking, talking and sleeping can become interrupted because of constant pain. The longer the pain is left, the more it will interrupt sleep, leaving you constantly tired and feeling fatigued. On top of that, some pain medications can cause you to feel drowsy, which won’t help your tiredness.
Visit the Dentist for prevention AND cure
In some cases, gum disease can go unnoticed until there is pain. However, a dentist can spot the signs of decay before the pain manifests. You shouldn’t wait for pain before you visit the dentist. Two, 20 minute check-ups a year is the minimum, but you should go more regularly if you feel pain or a constant tiredness.
Find a dentist near you who can treat your gum disease
Click the link below and type in your location. Choose the advanced search and click ’Gum Disease’. This will give you a list of dentists near you. You can also read their patient reviews!
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