Is Gum Disease Caused By Good Personality Traits?

Gum disease is usually blamed on bad oral health and other negative factors.

But a new study in the journal Folia Medica proves that it is likely caused by our personality traits, among other things.

And it can actually be our good personality traits that are responsible for gum disease.

Gum disease results from an excess of inflammation, which your immune system uses to try to kill the bacteria in your mouth.

The inflammation then damages your gums and the bone underlying them.

Given all this, a team of researchers wondered whether factors that cause a lot of inflammation in our bodies could increase our risk of gum disease.

Two of the major causes of systemic inflammation are obesity and stress.

Hence, the team decided to study the effects of body weight, personality, and stress vulnerability on the development of gum disease.

They recruited 132 young adults aged 18–22, with varying body weights. Participants were divided into four groups based on their Body Mass Index (BMI) – normal weight, overweight, and two levels of obesity.

The researchers checked the participants’ dental health and collected data on gum bleeding, plaque, and overall oral hygiene.

They also used questionnaires to assess each person’s personality type, anxiety levels, and how their nervous system responds to stress.

This is what they found:

1. A striking 90% of those with obesity had gum inflammation, suggesting a strong link between being overweight and having gum problems.

2. Phlegmatic temperament (calm, reliable) was linked to normal weight and good oral health.

3. Sanguine temperament (lively, optimistic) correlated with obesity and gum disease.

4. Higher anxiety and extroversion were more prevalent in obese individuals, suggesting that these characteristics might eventually contribute to poor dental health.

5. On the other hand, introversion and emotional stability tended to be more common among those with normal weight, suggesting that these characteristics are more compatible with good dental health.

These findings proved the researchers’ suspicion that anxiety contributed to poor dental health, while a calm temperament reduced inflammation of the gums.

The introversion and extroversion finding is perhaps more interesting, since it suggests that introverts are more likely to have a healthy body weight and healthy gums.

This might be related to the tendency of extroverts to find themselves in social settings with food, alcohol, smoking, potentially stressful events, and other lifestyle factors that can be destructive to both body weight and dental health.

As such, this study reminds us of the complex relationship between physical, psychological, and lifestyle factors in determining our overall health.

But it’s not easy to lose weight or change our personality. It’s much easier to heal your gum disease following the simple, natural steps explained here…