{"id":232,"date":"2020-02-18T16:19:00","date_gmt":"2020-02-18T16:19:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.longmontcompletedentistry.com\/blog\/?p=232"},"modified":"2020-03-05T16:20:05","modified_gmt":"2020-03-05T16:20:05","slug":"gum-disease-awareness-month-keep-your-smile-safe","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.longmontcompletedentistry.com\/blog\/2020\/02\/18\/gum-disease-awareness-month-keep-your-smile-safe\/","title":{"rendered":"Gum Disease Awareness Month: Keep Your Smile Safe!"},"content":{"rendered":"\n<div class=\"wp-block-image\"><figure class=\"alignright size-large is-resized\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/www.longmontcompletedentistry.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/03\/AdobeStock_175379131__2___1583421707_46819.jpg\" alt=\"Open mouth and dental mirror showing signs of gum disease\" class=\"wp-image-233\" width=\"304\" height=\"139\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.longmontcompletedentistry.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/03\/AdobeStock_175379131__2___1583421707_46819.jpg 800w, https:\/\/www.longmontcompletedentistry.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/03\/AdobeStock_175379131__2___1583421707_46819-300x137.jpg 300w, https:\/\/www.longmontcompletedentistry.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/03\/AdobeStock_175379131__2___1583421707_46819-768x351.jpg 768w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 304px) 100vw, 304px\" \/><\/figure><\/div>\n\n\n\n<p>Nearly half of\nAmerican adults have some form of gum disease, but because the early symptoms tend\nto be painless and may not even be noticeable in some cases, many people either\nignore it or are completely unaware of it. But if you make this mistake, you\ncould eventually find yourself with fewer teeth \u2013 and surprisingly enough, an\nunhealthy heart. For Gum Disease Awareness Month, read on to learn more about the\nwarning signs of this potentially dangerous oral health issue as well as the\nimportance of <a href=\"https:\/\/www.longmontcompletedentistry.com\/gum-disease-treatment.html\">gum\ndisease treatment<\/a>. &nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<!--more-->\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\">The Signs and Symptoms of Gum Disease<\/h2>\n\n\n\n<p>As noted above, the symptoms of infected gums are often\nsilent, and you may not notice anything wrong until it has reached the\nperiodontitis stage (which is the point where the gums recede and the teeth could\nbecome loose). Visiting the dentist at least twice a year is the best way to\ncatch the more subtle warning signs. <\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Of course, that\u2019s not to say you\u2019ll never be able to\nrecognize gum disease on your own. If your gums bleed easily or become red and\nswollen, it\u2019s a sign that you\u2019re suffering from an infection that\u2019s still in\nits earliest stages. Later on, you might notice your teeth looking longer than\nthey used to, meaning the condition has reached the point where the gums are\nstarting to pull away from the roots. Loose teeth, pus, sores, and persistent\nbad breath are also symptoms that can mean you have advanced gum disease.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\">Why You Should Never Ignore Gum Disease<\/h2>\n\n\n\n<p>Ignoring gum disease \u2013 consciously or not \u2013 can lead to\nserious consequences, some of which are more obvious than others. Long-term\ndamage may include:<\/p>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\"><li>Loss of multiple teeth <\/li><li>Damage to the jawbone<\/li><li>Painful abscesses (infected pockets of pus)<\/li><li>Drifting of the remaining teeth that could\naffect your ability to eat<\/li><li>An increase risk for heart disease, diabetes,\nand complications during pregnancy<\/li><\/ul>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\">How Your Dentist Can Treat Gum Disease<\/h2>\n\n\n\n<p>Since the most common cause of gum disease is a buildup of\nplaque and tartar, sometimes the condition can be reversed with a regular\ncleaning and better brushing habits. For more severe cases, your dentist might\nneed to perform two deep cleaning procedures known as scaling and root planing.\nThis way, the area below the gumline can be thoroughly cleaned, and the roots\nof the teeth will be smoothed out to make it easier for them to reattach themselves\nto the gums. <\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>If you have even the slightest reason to think you might\nhave gum disease, don\u2019t put off your treatment for too long. Get in touch with\nyour dentist today and set up an appointment to have your symptoms properly diagnosed\nand treated. Doing so could mean saving your teeth for years to come!<\/p>\n\n\n\n<h3 class=\"wp-block-heading\">About the Author<\/h3>\n\n\n\n<p>Born and raised here in Longmont, Dr. Dan Maurer has decided\nto follow in his father\u2019s footsteps in the field of dentistry and is proud to\nbe working alongside him. He\u2019s driven by a strong desire to help others and is\nalways grateful for the chance to be able to save his patient\u2019s smiles with gum\ndisease therapy. If you\u2019re worried about the health of your gums, you can schedule\nan appointment with Dr. Dan at Longmont Complete Dentistry by visiting his <a href=\"https:\/\/www.longmontcompletedentistry.com\/contact-us.html\">website<\/a> or\ncalling (303) 772-7000.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Nearly half of American adults have some form of gum disease, but because the early symptoms tend to be painless and may not even be noticeable in some cases, many people either ignore it or are completely unaware of it. But if you make this mistake, you could eventually find yourself with fewer teeth \u2013 [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-232","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-uncategorized"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.longmontcompletedentistry.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/232","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.longmontcompletedentistry.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.longmontcompletedentistry.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.longmontcompletedentistry.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.longmontcompletedentistry.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=232"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/www.longmontcompletedentistry.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/232\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":234,"href":"https:\/\/www.longmontcompletedentistry.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/232\/revisions\/234"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.longmontcompletedentistry.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=232"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.longmontcompletedentistry.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=232"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.longmontcompletedentistry.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=232"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}