How your Mental Health is linked to your Dental Health?

Everyone is quite aware of the causes behind bad dental health. To name a few they are

• Eat too many sweets
• Irregular brushing and flossing
• Overlooking the cavities and not visiting your dentist on time

Apart from these usual reasons, there are few other unique reasons as well that affect your dental health. You will be quite surprised to know that even your mental health condition can create a negative impact on your dental health and hygiene.

Shall we see how?

1.     Poor Food Choice

When in some kind of depression or anxiety, you tend to indulge in more sweets which you think will relax you and will cool down your angry hormones. Also you will overlook your hygiene and healthy eating habit and will obviously begin to binge on junk and sweets. This eventually will lead to poor dental hygiene.

2.     Increase in cortisol levels

An increase in stress levels or anxiety levels automatically leads to a boost of cortisol hormone in the body. This in turn results in gingivitis (Gum Inflammation) and other forms of gum diseases like periodontitis. Moreover, when you give into antidepressants and anxiety drugs to reduce your stress and depression, these drugs tend to induce dryness in your mouth. Due to the lack of saliva in your mouth, the food particles and bacteria are not washed out completely. This finally leads to more cavities in your teeth.

3.     Loss of Interest in daily dental hygiene

A state of depression and anxiety can make you lose interest in many things since you are both mentally and physically tired. This condition of yours may also stop you from doing the routine things like brushing your teeth or washing your mouth etc. As a result it can gravely affect your dental health.

4.     Teeth clenching and grinding

During anxiety you are more susceptible to issues like canker sores, teeth clenching and grinding. And this also hampers your dental health and causes facial pain.

So when during depression or mental anxiety, ensure to keep your dental routine intact as you may come out of your state of depression or anxiety someday, however you might notice that your dental health has taken a toll post your depression stages.

The best way to overcome this issue is to take extra care of your dental hygiene by brushing and flossing your teeth regularly, irrespective of your mental state.

Team

Running Toddlers