Tuesday, March 24, 2020

Mouthwash is not a fancy!

Generally speaking, oral healthcare is not a priority till the gums bleed or the tooth aches!  However, with 8 crore prediabetics and diabetics in India, oral (mouth) cavity care must and should get top priority for overall well-being.  This is because, gum disease (periodontitis) vulnerability is higher in diabetics.  Plaque formation and severity of same is higher due to various reasons in diabetics.  This causes gumline or gingival inflammation, and progresses to severe gum disease in which abscesses or pus pockets form.  The result is bad breath and oral dysfunction.  Bleeding gum disease is more in diabetics too.  Oral care is not a low priority issue, after all, the mouth is gateway to whole body health.

Just like smokers, diabetics suffer oral dysfunction.  There is hyposalivation or reduced saliva secretion.  This leads to dry mouth syndrome.  It is also called burning mouth syndrome.  When diabetics suffer low saliva production, tooth decay and bad breath (fruity malodour) is the result.

It is in this regard that for oral care of diabetics (and non-diabetics) mouthwashes like Freshchlor play a significant contributory role.


Mouthwashes are often considered a fancy item of oral healthcare.  It is not seen as a useful daily use product.  However, mouthwashes are science-backed products.  In people susceptible to gum disease, rinsing with mouthwash reduces havoc of bacteria in causing gum problems.  The specialty of an active ingredient like stabilised chlorine dioxide in products like Freshchlor is the marked bactericidal (this means bacteria killing) effect on bacteria associated with gum disease.  Hence, in vulnerable patients like diabetics and prediabetics, use of Freshchlor mouthwash is sagacious.  Particularly, night-time oral rinsing with Freshchlor will prove beneficial since diabetic or prediabetic subjects are susceptible to early morning dry mouth syndrome. 

Severity of gum disease is directly proportional to level of hyperglycemia.  Cardiac and renal problems in diabetics normally occurs alongside severe gum disease.  So if a diabetic suffers severe gum disease, there could be systemic complications like cardio renal problems, hence, it is a vital sign.

The current Covid-19 coronavirus pandemic has increased the use of handwashes and emphasized importance of hand hygiene.  This is because hand hygiene reduces viral contamination.  People  habitually touch the face, mouth, eyes and nose - so virus contaminated hands will lead to entry of disease causing viruses into the respiratory system.  Yet it is to be appreciated that lack of oral hygiene will also increase concentration of disease causing bacteria and viruses in the mouth.  They cause destruction of teeth through bacteria - induced acid attack and gum tissue infection.  Some virulent viruses and bacteria also enter the body and cause severe infections.  Oral healthcare problems lead to several whole-body complications.  Inflammation of gums causes leak of pro-inflammatory molecules into the bloodstream, the general inflammation in body goes up and causes other health problems.  This is very evident in diabetic subjects.  Incidentally, diabetic subjects are extremely vulnerable to Covid-19 infection and can be fatal to them.

In this backdrop, it is wise for diabetics and prediabetic subjects not to treat handwashes and mouthwashes as fancy items, but necessary self-care health products for hand hygiene and oral hygiene, respectively.

Periodontal disease or gum disease in diabetic people is considered the sixth complication of diabetes.  Cardiovascular disease, neuropathy (nerve disease), retinopathy (eye disease), nephropathy (kidney disease), skin complications (dermopathy) and finally gum disease (periodontal disease) are the six complications of diabetes (consistent elevated blood glucose levels).  Gum disease and whole body disease is a two-way relationship, gum disease causes whole body problems, and problems in the rest of body will cause also gum disease ie., vice versa. 

So all in all, the mouthwash formulation is not a fancy concept of health, it is as important as the hand washes.  Hand hygiene is vital for health and so is the aspect of oral hygiene - a great enabler of physical, mental and social well-being.  Mouthwashes are a friend of good oral health (physical, mental and social well-being).  

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