Quit Smoking to Stop Gum Disease

ThirdAge News

Fifty percent of the cases of periodontal disease can be attributed to smoking.

This is the word from Scott Tomar, former epidemiologist and dentist for the division of Oral Health at the Center for Disease Control in Atlanta. But he also tells ThirdAge News that smokers can take steps to reverse those figures.

"The longer you smoke, the more likely it is that you'll have periodontal disease," says Tomar. "And baby boomers have often smoked 20, 30, even 40 years. The good news, though, is that the longer it's been since you've quit smoking, the better the outlook for your teeth and gums. After 11 years of being smoke-free, your gums won't look any different than a nonsmoker's."

Tomar was the lead researcher for a study published in 2000 in the Journal of Periodontology that analyzed government health data on 13,650 people ages 18 and older. The study found that quitting smoking reduced and gradually erased the harmful effects of tobacco use on periodontal health and that the more people smoke, the greater the risk for gum disease.

"Someone who doesn't smoke is able to heal better from most conditions, and their diseases won't progress as rapidly," Tomar says. "There's a much better prognosis and better response to antibiotics and to dental implants for those who don't smoke."