Trying to have a baby? It might be time to see your dentist. New evidence from the Director of Fertility Specialists in Western Australia, Professor Roger Hart suggests that gum disease can affect the chance of a woman conceiving.
Professor Hart presented his findings of the SMILE study at the European Society of Human Reproduction and Embryology recently.
Gum disease sets up a host response that delivers a cascade of inflammatory chemicals and markers into the bloodstream. These have been well recognised to influence heart disease, cause premature birth and miscarriage and now evidence points to their influence on conception.
The team followed 3737 women in Western Australia and measured pregnancy outcomes. Women with gum disease took an average of 7 months to conceive compared with women with healthy gums who took only 5 months. The figures were less positive for non-Caucasian women who took over a year to conceive.
Professor Hart said “Until now, there have been no published studies that investigate whether gum disease can affect a woman’s chance of conceiving, so this is the first report to suggest that gum disease might be one of several factors that could be modified to improve the chances of a pregnancy.”
The report concluded that gum disease exerts a negative influence on fertility that is of the same order of magnitude as obesity. This study also confirms other, known negative influences upon time to conception for a woman; these include being over 35 years of age, being overweight or obese, and being a smoker. There was no correlation between the time it took to become pregnant and the socio-economic status of the woman.
Our advice for those planning to conceive – seek advice from a dentist or hygienist. They will be able to assess very quickly whether you have gum disease or not and will propose a range of strategies, from treatment to home-care advice and prescription of products that will help reduce harmful bacterial counts.
If you think you might be at risk of gum disease we’d be happy to advise. You can phone us on +64 9 9192660 or email us on info@citydental.co.nz
Read the full article in Science Daily at http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2011/07/110705071548.htm
