The mouth acts as mirror and a gateway to the body. Not only is oral health an early warning system, but it is also an agent provocateur. In its role as a mirror, the mouth reflects what is happening systemically. Many conditions, including leukemia, ulcerative colitis, and diabetes, can manifest in the mouth before a person experiences other symptoms. Current research has found that the health of the mouth appears to have a profound impact on the rest of the body. Even low-grade gum disease has been associated with serious systemic problems, including cardiovascular disease. Chronic oral disease, which may persist undetected for years, is a major source of low-grade inflammation in the entire body.
From hijacking the immune system to health-destroying inflammation, an unbalanced oral microbiome can affect the mouth and overall health. One of Dr. Curatola's groundbreaking themes is that anti-microbial toothpastes and mouthwashes cause an ecological catastrophe in the mouth. Oral care, that "kills germs on contact," popularized in the '70s, renders the oral microbiome ineffective in its protective role and creates a climate in the mouth in which pathogens thrive and move on to affect other parts of the body.
In THE MOUTH-BODY CONNECTION, Dr. Curatola presents his three-stage program-Rethink, Restore, Renew-- for fostering a healthy oral microbiome and bringing the body into balance by means of diet, supplements, exercise, and stress reduction. The program is designed to help change habits that undermine health and to replace them with a way of life that keeps microbial communities balanced to support well-being.
