Regular dental visits can help keep pneumonia at bay

Zee Media Bureau

New Delhi: Paying a visit to your dentist at least twice a year is not only good for your gums and teeth but it can also decrease the risk of pneumonia to a certain extent.

Regular dental check-ups can help reduce bacteria in the mouth thereby preventing the risk of getting exposed to pneumonia.

Based on an analysis of a database of more than 26,000 people, the research found that people who never get dental checkups had an 86 per cent greater risk of pneumonia than to those who visit the dentist twice a year.

"There is a well-documented connection between oral health and pneumonia, and dental visits are important in maintaining good oral health," said lead author of the study, Michelle Doll from Virginia Commonwealth University in the US.

"We can never rid the mouth of bacteria altogether, but good oral hygiene can limit the quantities of bacteria present," said Doll.

(With PTI inputs)