This is a topic I’m passionate about.
As a society we’ve been conditioned to accept that the mouth is a separate part of the human body. This is manifested in health policy. Most medical treatments are subsidised by Medicare, however, adult dental services are not.
[Side note – Children in families eligible for the Family Tax Benefit are eligible for dental treatment covered by Medicare].
The result is that individuals are contributing to 57% of total expenditure on dental services. This is compared to 12% of all other medical services. So you are paying 5x more for your dental than medical expenses. And we wonder why visiting the dentist is expensive. Medicine is equally expensive, it’s just that the government pays for it.
So why is the mouth important?
It’s the gateway to the human body!
Chronically poor oral hygiene is one of the main risk factors of periodontal (gum) disease. Research on gum disease has established that it increases the risk of systemic health issues such as:
-diabetes
-respiratory illnesses such as pneumonia
-stroke
-cardiovascular disease
-heart infections
-Alzheimer’s disease
This is why dentists recommend you visit them every six months.
Even a brief analysis of your tongue, nose, tonsils and the airway at the back of the mouth can help dentists detect if your predisposed to conditions such as obstructive sleep apnoea.
In 2005, the World Health Organisation called for oral health to be integrated with all health care:
“the compartmentalization involved in viewing the mouth separately from the rest of the body must cease because oral health affects general health by causing considerable pain and suffering and by changing what people eat, their speech and their quality of life and well-being”
That’s the World Health Organisation calling for this.
Enough said.
Please help spread the word. Share this post, like our facebook page and help put the mouth back into health
[gravityform id=”3″ title=”true” description=”false” tabindex=”0″]
