AARP: 6 Very Big Reasons to Brush

However perfect your oral hygiene, your mouth is still filled with microbes — about 700 species of them, give or take. While some of these organisms are beneficial, many others are responsible for the growth of plaque, the sticky film that paves the way for tooth decay and gum disease. What’s more, the same germs that can cause bad breath and lead to bleeding gums have been linked to an array of systemic health problems that, at first glance, might seem like they have little to do with your mouth.

...Either way, older adults are particularly at risk. Periodontal disease and other oral health problems become more common with age, at a time when many people lack the resources to properly address them. “The lack of dental access through programs like Medicare has left more than 26 million people without dental benefits,” says Julie Frantsve-Hawley, director of analytics and evaluation at the CareQuest Institute for Oral Health.

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