It may be difficult for people to associate periodontal disease with high blood pressure. Still, it is an indisputable medical fact that this infection is a significant contributor to high blood pressure and causes atherosclerosis. Recent research has shown that periodontal bacteria can be found in most plaque and oxidized cholesterol in patients with myocardial infarction blood vessels. Researchers further stated that this disease is said to be ‘prevalent in more than 80 percent of the over middle-aged population’.
Our mouths are full of bacteria, just like our intestines. Periodontal disease is caused by the proliferation of specific strains of bacteria in the mouth, which causes gum inflammation. Oral bacteria are particularly prone to invading the bloodstream, damaging the endothelial cells of the blood vessels. Dysfunctional endothelial cells are believed to be the leading cause of hypertension and atherosclerosis. Some medical studies have pointed out that most of the plaque and oxidized cholesterol in the blood vessels of patients with myocardial infarction can be traced back to periodontal bacteria.
Treating periodontal disease will heal high blood pressure
Patients with periodontal disease tend to bleed easily while eating, drinking, brushing their teeth, or removing tartar at the dental hospital, which means that any bacteria present may invade the body through the bloodstream. Contracting periodontal disease is considered to be particularly serious. Its treatment is deemed to be in the same vein as treating high blood pressure and cardiovascular disease.
Periodontal disease is considered a lifestyle disease, so improving one’s lifestyle habits can also cure this oral disease. Eating less refined carbohydrates and consuming more foods rich in Omega-3 fatty acids, vitamin C, and vitamin D can inhibit the inflammation of periodontal disease. Hypertension, hyperlipidemia, hyperuricemia, diabetes, cancer, and dementia are also considered lifestyle diseases. Many difficult and complex diseases exist, most related to poor lifestyle habits.
Adjusting your diet and lifestyle can overcome pain
The most common pain people experience is in the back, knee, shoulder, and neck. Most people attributed the pain to be simply a muscle problem instead of tracing it back to the adverse effects of their improper lifestyle habits.
It is not uncommon for a patient to be cured of chronic pain without resorting to medication by simply adjusting their diet. As reiterated in the book High GI (Glycaemic Index), carbohydrates such as white rice are unhealthy and should be consumed in moderation, but this can easily be brushed aside and overlooked as an important factor causing people’s pain
This author cites research data from various sources to illustrate that practicing good lifestyle habits improves a particular body symptom and holistically enhances human health. In other words, good living habits reduce blood pressure, improve the intestinal environment, inhibit inflammation, strengthen the antioxidant capacity, and regulate immune function.
This also proves that hypertension and atherosclerosis are both vascular and systemic problems. Good lifestyle habits ensure the health of the whole body and the blood vessels. Instead of treating isolated pain that arises, such as a sore head, we should focus on solving all the symptoms brought about by our poor lifestyle habits that lead to diseases so that we can ‘deal with the two issues in one go.’ In this way, we can save everyone’s medical expenses.
This article is extracted from New Naturalist Publishing House, ‘Reduce Blood Pressure without Drugs or Salt: Medical Data Tells You that Drugs and Salt Reduction Cannot Prevent Atherosclerosis’, by Takaya Yamaguchi.
Translated by Eva and edited by Maria
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