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Gum disease gets worse with age, leading to bone and tooth loss.<\/p>\nGum disease gets worse with age, leading to bone and tooth loss.<\/p>\n
But what if a small change in your kitchen could help protect your gums and even your skeleton?<\/p>\n
A study in npj Aging<\/em> found that oleic acid, the main fat in olive oil, reduces bone and tissue loss caused by gum infections.<\/p>\n Gum disease isn\u2019t just a mouth issue.<\/p>\n It\u2019s a full-body inflammatory condition triggered by bacteria like Porphyromonas gingivalis<\/em>.<\/p>\n As we age, our immune system becomes less effective, allowing these bacteria to do more damage, not just in the mouth, but throughout the body.<\/p>\n Researchers tested whether diet could offer better protection.<\/p>\n They fed mice one of three diets:<\/p>\n Then they infected all the mice with P. gingivalis<\/em> and tracked the damage.<\/p>\n The results were striking:<\/p>\n 2.\tThey had more inflammation in their jaws and bodies.<\/p>\n 3.\tTheir gut bacteria were thrown out of balance.<\/p>\n 4.\tTheir bone marrow became \u201cprimed\u201d to overreact to infection.<\/p>\n 5.\tThey lost bone in their femurs too, showing the damage wasn\u2019t limited to the mouth.\n<\/dd>\n<\/dl>\n But mice on the oleic acid diet?<\/p>\n 2.\tMaintained healthy gut microbiomes.<\/p>\n 3.\tPreserved levels of a molecule linked to lower stress and better immune control.\n<\/dd>\n<\/dl>\n Now I\u2019d definitely recommend you ditch saturated fats and use monounsaturated fats instead.<\/p>\n But that\u2019s not enough to fix your Gum Disease for good.<\/p>\n\n
\n●\t a Western-style diet rich in saturated palmitic acid
\n●\t a Mediterranean-style diet enriched with oleic acid.\n<\/dd>\n<\/dl>\n\n
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