Carbs, sugary diets may cause poor oral health: Study

A new study conducted in the US revealed links between widely consumed foods and the diversity and composition of oral bacteria in postmenopausal womenScientists from the University at Buffalo have shown how eating certain types of foods impacts the oral microbiome of postmenopausal women They found that higher intake of sugary and high glycemic load foods like doughnuts and other baked goods regular soft drinks breads and nonfat yogurts may influence poor oral health and perhaps systemic health outcomes in older women due to the influence these foods have on the oral microbiomeIn a study in Scientific Reports an open access journal from the publishers of Nature the UBled team investigated whether carbohydrates and sucrose or table sugar were associated with the diversity and composition of oral bacteria in a sample of 1204 postmenopausal women using data from the Womens Health InitiativeIt is the first study to examine carbohydrate intake and the subgingival microbiome in a sample consisting exclusively of postmenopausal women The study was unique in that the samples were taken from subgingival plaque which occurs under the gums rather than salivary bacteriaThis is important because the oral bacteria involved in periodontal disease are primarily residing in the subgingival plaque said study first author Amy Millen PhD associate professor of epidemiology and environmental health in UBs School of Public Health and Health ProfessionsLooking at measures of salivary bacteria might not tell us how oral bacteria relate to periodontal disease because we are not looking in the right environment within the mouth she addedThe research team reported positive associations between total carbohydrates glycemic load and sucrose and Streptococcus mutans a contributor to tooth decay and some types of cardiovascular disease a finding that confirms previous observations But they also observed associations between carbohydrates and the oral microbiome that are not as well establishedThe researchers observed Leptotrichia spp which has been associated with gingivitis a common gum disease in some studies to be positively associated with sugar intake The other bacteria they identified as associated with carbohydrate intake or glycemic load have not been previously appreciated as contributing to periodontal disease in the literature or in this cohort of women according to MillenWe examined these bacteria in relation to usual carbohydrate consumption in postmenopausal women across a wide variety of carbohydrate types total carbohydrate intake fiber intake disaccharide intake to simple sugar intake Millen said No other study had examined the oral bacteria in relation to such a broad array of carbohydrate types in one cohort We also looked at associations with glycemic load which is not well studied in relation to the oral microbiomeThe key question now is what this all means for overall health and thats not as easily understood just yetAs more studies are conducted looking at the oral microbiome using similar sequencing techniques and progression or development of periodontal disease over time we might begin to make better inferences about how diet relates to the oral microbiome and periodontal disease Millen saidAlso ReadCheddar fever Indian cheesemakers give desi touch to their cheese win at World Cheese Awards 2022This story has been sourced from a third party syndicated feed agencies Midday accepts no responsibility or liability for its dependability trustworthiness reliability and data of the text Midday managementmiddaycom reserves the sole right to alter delete or remove without notice the content in its absolute discretion for any reason whatsoever