Simple mouth rinse may indicate early heart disease risk: Study

Scientists believe they have found a way to identify the earliest warning signs of cardiovascular disease from a simple saliva samplePeriodontitis is a common infection of the gums which has previously been linked to the development of cardiovascular disease scientists suspect that inflammatory factors may enter the bloodstream through the gums and damage the vascular systemThe team from Mount Royal University in Canada used a simple oral rinse to see if levels of white blood cells an indicator of gum inflammation in the saliva of healthy adults could be linked to warning signs for cardiovascular diseaseThey found that high levels correlated with compromised flowmediated dilation an early indicator of poor arterial healthEven in young healthy adults low levels of oral inflammatory load may have an impact on cardiovascular health one of the leading causes of death in North America said Trevor King of Mount Royal UniversityIn the study published in Frontiers in Oral Health the team examined currently healthy young people without diagnosed periodontal issues to determine whether lower levels of oral inflammation can be clinically relevant to cardiovascular healthWe are starting to see more relationships between oral health and risk of cardiovascular disease said KerYung Hong first author of the study now studying dentistry at the University of Western OntarioIf we are seeing that oral health may have an impact on the risk of developing cardiovascular disease even in young healthy individuals this holistic approach can be implemented earlier onThe team chose pulsewave velocity which can measure the stiffness of arteries and flowmediated dilation a measure of how well arteries can dilate to allow for higher blood flow as key indicators of cardiovascular risk These measure arterial health directly stiff and poorly functioning arteries raise patients risk of cardiovascular diseaseThe scientists recruited 28 nonsmokers between 18 and 30 with no comorbidities or medications that could affect cardiovascular risk and no reported history of periodontal diseaseThey were asked to fast for six hours except for drinking water prior to visiting the labAt the lab participants rinsed their mouths with water before rinsing their mouths with saline which was collected for analysisParticipants then laid down for 10 minutes for an electrocardiogram and stayed lying down for another 10 minutes so that the scientists could take their blood pressure flowmediated dilation and pulsewave velocityThe scientists found that high white blood cells in saliva had a significant relationship to poor flowmediated dilation suggesting these people may be at elevated risk of cardiovascular diseaseHowever there was no relationship between white blood cells and pulse wave velocity so longerterm impacts on the health of the arteries had not yet taken placeIn the pilot study the scientists hypothesised that inflammation from the mouth leaking into the vascular system impacts the ability of arteries to produce the nitric oxide that allows them to respond to changes in blood flowHigher levels of white blood cells could have a greater impact on vascular dysfunction the levels found in the participants are usually not considered clinically significantAlso Read DadiNaniapproved expert haircare guide Say goodbye to itchy dry scalp with timetested home remediesThis 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