How Oral Health Affects Your Overall Health: The WHY Behind My Cause

I’m a huge believer in the power of “why.” 

I became an endodontist because the field changed my life. After experiencing a months-long infection that it seemed no doctor could diagnose, I was finally treated by a kind endodontist who explained what was happening in my mouth, performed a root canal that relieved me of my pain, and helped me understand the importance of saving teeth. The entire experience inspired me to help others avoid a similar fate.

But that mission to save teeth is part of an even greater calling to educate the world on how oral health affects overall health. Teeth are a crucial piece of the puzzle, yes, but there is so much more to the picture. I see it as my responsibility to empower both dentists and patients like you to become well-informed advocates for your health through endodontic and oral health education.

That’s why today, I want to talk to you about the important link between your oral health and the rest of your body, what it means for your overall well-being, and why I’m so passionate about sharing this knowledge with everyone I can.

My Tooth Story: The Inspiration Behind My Mission

My own experience as a dental patient was the catalyst for the cause I now champion today, and I think you’ll understand why once you’ve heard the whole story. Plus, it serves as a great example of how oral health can affect overall health, which is exactly what I hope to communicate through my mission!

A Mystery Infection  

By the time I got my big infection, I had already had a ton of dental work done. Having been born without eight teeth, I was no stranger to cavities, implants, bridges, you name it! But this was a whole new battleground. What started as intermittent tooth pain became steady and downright unbearable, and I had no idea what was happening.

Over the next few months I saw seven different doctors, received multiple misdiagnoses, and was prescribed medication that made me woozy and nauseated. I was even told that the pain was “all in my head.” 

At that point, my general dentist referred me to an oral surgeon, assuring me that having a particular tooth extracted would rid me of my pain and infection. Although the surgeon wasn’t keen on performing the procedure, it seemed like there was no other option to provide me with the relief I so desperately needed, so he proceeded at my mom’s request. 

An Unexpected Turning Point

Unfortunately, it was not the happy ending I was hoping for. As soon as the anesthesia wore off after the procedure, my pain returned with a vengeance—the infection was still there! It continued to worsen until my face and neck swelled like a balloon, and I spiked a fever of 104 F.

That could only mean one thing: My referred pain had complicated the diagnosis, and the oral surgeon had extracted the wrong tooth. 

By that point I was distraught. Not only was I STILL without answers for why I was in so much pain, but a provider I was supposed to be able to trust had extracted a perfectly healthy tooth, and it was now gone forever. I felt frustrated, scared, and was even starting to doubt my own body—all of which had a negative impact on my overall well-being. This mind–body link is just one of the ways in which oral health can affect overall health.

Yet just when I thought all hope was lost, I was finally referred to an endodontist, who knew right away what was wrong. With patience and compassion, he took his time to arrive at the correct diagnosis and explained what was happening in a way that I could understand.

He told me that the tooth behind the one that had been extracted was cracked, and that crack had allowed bacteria to enter the tooth and kill the nerve inside. That was what had been causing the excruciating pain and infection, and according to him, it was entirely fixable.

Instead of extracting my tooth, he performed a root canal, and it FINALLY relieved me of the pain and suffering I had been dealing with for so many months. It felt like a miracle, and it changed my life forever.

A New Calling

The way that that kind and thorough endodontist treated me, and what he did for my health… It opened my eyes to my purpose.

He showed me the power of seeing a specialist—someone specifically trained to address your health concerns; he helped me understand the very real connection between what was going on in my mouth and how it impacted my body; he guided me towards the belief that patients should be empowered and informed about their own health; and he modeled how to understand the WHY behind what’s going on with your oral health and the reason that knowledge is so important.

From that point forward, I knew I wanted to become a dentist (and later an endodontist), and pass that same wisdom on to my patients. And now, thanks to my growing community, I’m able to educate even more people on how oral health impacts overall health!

How Oral Health Impacts Overall Health

The mind-body connection demonstrated in my own tooth story is just one way in which oral health can impact your overall health. In reality, there’s also a very strong physical connection between your mouth and the rest of your body that manifests in different ways.

The Mouth and Your Digestive System

Something that you know but probably don’t spend much time thinking about is that the mouth is the start of our digestive system. Our teeth—helped by our saliva—chew our food into smaller pieces, making it easier for our stomachs to break down later and use for nutrients. This makes the mouth an important first step in our digestive process.

Crucially, this means that what’s happening in the mouth directly impacts what’s happening in the gut, and vice versa. When the bacteria in your mouth are out of balance (i.e., dysbiosis), that means the bacteria in your gut will be too. That’s actually another reason we have saliva—to prevent pathogens from entering our gut! The proteins and enzymes within it work to stop bad bacteria from attaching to our teeth’s surfaces and traveling to the rest of our body. 

On the flip side, problems in the gut can just as easily manifest in the mouth. A great example of this is Crohn’s disease, which is a chronic illness that causes inflammation in the gut. One of the symptoms of this disease—and one of the signs used to help diagnose it—is sores that develop in the mouth. Do you see how oral health can impact overall health?

The Connection Between Periodontitis and Systemic Health Conditions

The gut isn’t the only part of the body impacted by your oral health. When you don’t take the time to brush and floss, you become much more susceptible to inflammation in the areas around your teeth, including gingivitis (inflammation of the gums) and—if left untreated—periodontitis (inflammation of the gums and supporting bones that can lead to bone loss in your mouth). This can spell trouble for the rest of your body!

You see, research shows that there’s a strong connection between periodontitis and the development of a variety of health conditions throughout your body. This includes everything from heart disease, asthma, and rheumatoid arthritis, to Alzheimer’s, diabetes, and cancer. Periodontal disease can even lead to preeclampsia and low birth weight.

Importantly, this is NOT true of root canals! While many people confuse the two, there is no research to show that root canals cause systemic health conditions like periodontal disease does. On the contrary, root canals are one of the tools that can restore the balance of your oral microbiome, helping to prevent such conditions from ever developing.

When You Take Care of Your Mouth, You Take Care of You!

I hope you can see now why I’m so passionate about educating people on how oral health affects overall health. Not only do I have firsthand experience with the mouth–body link because of my own tooth story, but there’s strong evidence of this connection and its importance for not just myself but each and every one of us.

The biggest takeaway I want to leave you with is that when you take care of your mouth, you’re also taking care of you! And the best way to maintain your oral health is by becoming an empowered patient who is both knowledgeable and confident. Fortunately, I’ve created a super simple, super accessible, and super fun course that can help you do just that: Tooth Wisdom: The Empowered Patient’s Guide to Oral Health! 

Check it out today and discover how easy it can be to take control of your oral health and become your own best advocate through patient-focused endodontic education.

– Sonia