The Multiple Effects of Smoking on Oral Health

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The Multiple Effects of Smoking on Oral Health

Of all the damage one can do to their teeth, most dental professionals agree that smoking is one of the things that causes the most serious impact on overall oral health.

While much damage can be done simply by not following a good oral-care routine including flossing, or regularly indulging in staining foods, like coffee, tea, beets or red wine, smoking is known to cause much more serious damage to the mouth.

What Does Smoking do to the Mouth?

First of all, unlike foods and drinks that simply stain the teeth, the tar and nicotine in cigarettes make teeth yellow after very little time smoking, and long-time smokers’ teeth turn brown.

As if brown teeth aren’t bad enough, smoking is a known cause of periodontal disease, because smoking causes a lack of oxygen in the bloodstream, making it nearly impossible for infected gums to heal. Smoking is also linked to an increase in dental plaque.

A Leading Cause of Oral Cancer

While most smokers consider lung cancer to be the biggest risk when lighting up, research shows that smoking – and the use of other tobacco products – causes a significant increase in the risk of developing oral cancer.

Oral Cancer More Common Than You May Think

According to the Oral Cancer Foundation, oral and pharyngeal cancer causes more than 8,000 deaths per year in America alone. This number has not improved in decades.

“The death rate for oral cancer is higher than that of cancers which we hear about routinely such as cervical cancer, Hodgkin’s lymphoma, laryngeal cancer, cancer of the testes, and endocrine system cancers such as thyroid, or skin cancer (malignant melanoma).

If you expand the definition of oral cancers to include cancer of the larynx, for which the risk factors are the same, the numbers of diagnosed cases grow to 41,000 individuals, and 12,500 deaths per year in the US alone. Worldwide the problem is much greater, with over 400,000 new cases being found each year,” the Oral Cancer Foundation reports.

Apparently the high death rate for this common cancer is due, in part, to the fact that it is often detected too late for effective and swift treatment.