Cleaning your teeth could help you live longer: meet your oral microbiome

• Intestinal health is a buzzing subject, but the oral microbiome could be the next big trend.
• The proof that a clean mouth could reduce the risk of chronic diseases accumulates.
• Large voices in the space of longevity like Andrew Huberman begin to pass the word.

You may know that taking care of the bugs of your intestine or the intestinal microbiome could help you live longer. But another collection of microorganisms draws attention to its health references.

Researchers have known for decades for decades that people with problems such as gum disease, missing cavities and teeth are more likely to undergo cerebral accidents and develop chronic conditions, including cardiovascular disease, cancer, diabetes, obesity, rheumatoid arthritis and Alzheimer.

“I have been in this company for over 50 years,” Judith Jones said, a professor who is doing research on oral disease at the University of Detroit Mercy Schol of Dentistry, told Business Insider: “Centenarians have more teeth than people who do not live as long.”

The potential reasons to this are “messy”, she said: “It is not a simple science”.

The loss of teeth, for example, can affect our self -esteem and our quality of life. We are less likely to socialize if we feel aware of ourselves and have trouble eating nutritious foods but difficult to turn such as nuts, vegetables and lean proteins.

But growing research suggests that the microbes that live in the mouth (the oral microbiome) could play a more important role in our health than we thought before.

Bryan Johnson and Andrew Huberman speak to their supporters of oral health

Some of the noisiest voices in the space of longevity keep the idea that a clean mouth could help us live longer.

Last month, the CEO of technology became the biohacker Bryan Johnson shared his “Protocol” of new oral health in its newsletter, which involves scratching the tongue and tea tree oil to prevent chronic diseases.

A few days later, Andrew Huberman devoted an entire episode of his “Huberman Lab” podcast at the top of the graph to the potential link between the oral and mental health and physical health.

And the Fitt Insider industry newsletter reported on the products focused on the microbiome entering the oral care market of $ 55 billion, including a prebiotic toothpaste featuring personalized ingredients depending on the bugs that live in the mouth of a client.

From 2023 to 2024, the sale of oral care products in the United States increased by 6.3%, going from $ 10.8 billion to $ 12.2 billion, according to the Mint market company. Investments are likely to hope to repeat the success of the global digestive health market, which is expected to be worth $ 71.95 billion in 2027, compared to $ 37.93 billion in 2019, according to market studies by Fortune Business Reports.

The mouth and the intestine have a microbiome

Like the intestine, the microbiome mouth houses a collection of “good” and “bad” microorganisms, but it works differently.

A healthy intestinal microbiome is that with a diverse range of inhabitants. These microbes have been linked to a variety of physical and mental health benefits – of a stronger and better mood immune system at a lower risk of diseases, including type two diabetes and colon cancer. On the other hand, a healthy oral microbiome is relatively rare.

Brushing and dental silk hit the reset button and prevents harmful microbes from colonizing and maturing, Johnathon Baker, assistant professor at Oregon Health and University Science who studies the oral microbiome, told Bi.

He compared the ecosystem of the oral microbiome to a landscape according to a volcanic eruption. It is sterile (after in -depth cleaning), but the plants end up developing and changing the environment, allowing secondary plants such as the foam of growing. After a few years (or a few days not to brush enough), the foam breaks down the rock and more plant species emerge, until, ultimately, has a whole tropical forest of microbes.

The most mature species of microbes are what can cause infections that decompose the barrier between the gums and the blood, allowing them to enter the blood circulation. This is why bleeding gums are a characteristic of periodontal disease, said Baker.

Once in the blood circulation, bacteria can go to different parts of the body and cause damage and inflammation, he said. Bacteria causing gum disease have been found in the brain of Alzheimer’s people, tumors of colon cancer patients and in heart tissues with cardiovascular disease.

Whether these microbes cause a chronic disease, contributing to its development, or that the simple fact of making the body more vulnerable to diseases by causing inflammation is uncertain, said Baker, as research on the oral microbiome is its infancy.

But the evidence suggests that there is a strong link between good oral hygiene and a lower risk of cardiovascular disease, a study suggesting that dental silk per week seemed to reduce the risk of an ischemic stroke by more than a fifth. Similarly, a review of oral health studies and chronic diseases published in 2019 revealed that the most frequently reported correlation was between periodontal diseases and cardiovascular disease.

Baker believes that as our understanding develops, we can one day see “progress that will help our overall health considerably”.

Brush and carefully carefully daily

Jones, who began his career as a dental hygienist, said a good oral hygiene involves brushing his teeth carefully at least once a day. “Most dentists recommend twice a day. I think that part of this is that people do it very well at least once a day. And part of people’s breathing felt better,” she said.

It is also important to make dental silk daily because a toothbrush cannot reach the place between teeth and gums, known as periodontal pocket, where the disease occurs, she said.

“Dental silk helps you keep your teeth,” added Jones.

Regarding the type of wire you need to use, it thinks that simple is the best. “They now say that even water jets are effective, even if I cannot imagine that they are, very honestly,” she said.

Baker reiterated the importance of dental silk. “Before entering this area, I was definitely one of those people who are not really fashionable,” he said. But as a graduate student, he saw “very graphic images” of an advanced periodontal disease.

“I said to myself, I am dental silk every day from now on, and I did it,” he said.

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