Does dental health impact mental health?

“Depression can also make you feel tired or unmotivated to even brush or floss your teeth, and lead to smoking, drug abuse or alcoholism, all of which can cause gum disease and oral cancer,” says Dr Jaradi.

When it comes to a relationship between mental health and dental difficulties, stress is one of the risk factors, according to the British Society of Periodontology. People who are stressed are more prone to smoke, ignore their oral hygiene regimen, and miss dentist visits, all of which raises the risk of a variety of dental disorders.

The dental expert said, “Stress causes bruxism – teeth clenching or grinding leading to dental wear or facial pain. Cortisol, which is the body’s stress hormone, can increase the growth of Porphyromonas Gingivalis. People diagnosed with Obsessive-Compulsive Disorder (OCD) are prone to brushing their teeth repeatedly, which causes abrasion.”

“Even medication associated with the treatment of mental health can cause oral health issues. Antidepressants, along with antipsychotics, are among a number of drugs that are associated with dry mouth, also referred as xerostomia. In fact, salivary flow rates can fall by 58% in individuals who take tricyclic antidepressants such as amitriptyline,” says Dr Jaradi.