Cancer risk from poor dental hygiene (From Daily Echo)

Cancer risk from poor dental hygiene

8:56am Thursday 29th May 2008 in

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GUM disease - which leads to a higher risk of cancer - is worse in Southampton than other parts of the country.

According to the British Dental Health Foundation, almost a third suffer from bleeding gums, a sign of gum disease, and 15 per cent said if they did have bleeding gums they would ignore it and hope it went away.

Some 26 per cent of people questioned said they would brush their teeth more softly if they had bleeding gums when they should actually do the opposite.

A study by Imperial College London, which analysed data from more than 48,000 American males, found that people with gum disease are 14 per cent more likely to develop cancer.

The advice is to brush for two minutes twice a day with fluoride toothpaste, cut down on sugary food and drinks, floss, and visit the dentist regularly.