Eating healthy, focusing on foods with anti-inflammatory properties such as nuts, berries, fruits, vegetables, whole foods, healthy oils (like extra virgin olive oil) and fish, while avoiding refined carbohydrates, could improve clinical parameters of gingivitis and periodontitis, such as gum bleeding. This is suggested by a meta-analysis published in the journal ‘Evidence-based Dentistry’ by Nature Group and conducted at the University of Edinburgh.
Directed by Charlotte Glavin and coordinated by Steven Bonsor, the study also indirectly emphasizes the importance of avoiding other risk factors like smoking, which could negate the protective effect of the diet.
A “healthy” diet, such as the Mediterranean diet, or more broadly, diets with “low inflammatory intake,” consist of foods low in refined carbohydrates and saturated fats, high in fiber, and with high nutritional value. Several studies have already shown that this diet is associated with better outcomes for heart disease, diabetes, and obesity, often in combination with favorable lifestyle factors like regular exercise. Commonly associated foods with healthy diets include nuts, berries, fruits, vegetables, whole foods, healthy oils, and fish.
Experts started with an analysis of scientific literature, initially considering 1220 studies and selecting 9. It was found that 8 out of the 9 selected studies showed that an improvement in periodontal parameters, such as pocket depth, gum bleeding, alveolar bone loss, and dental attachment loss, is associated with a diet low in refined carbohydrates, low in saturated fats, high in fiber, and high in nutritional content.
Evidence examined in this systematic review indicates that adopting a diet associated with improved outcomes for chronic systemic inflammatory diseases, like heart disease, obesity, or diabetes, has the potential to improve periodontal parameters in patients with gingivitis or periodontitis, especially in the elderly population, but the effects can be negated by risk factors like smoking. The results suggest that further research can provide valuable insights into dietary habits and periodontal disease.
A study on periodontal parameters conducted over a prolonged period, at least 10 years, with thousands of participants in different contexts and locations, using a video monitoring system to record dietary habits, could provide additional information on current outcomes, write the authors of the study. This data could be used to educate healthcare providers in the dental field about healthier dietary options, which could be incorporated into patient treatment plans along with oral hygiene instructions and non-surgical periodontal therapy, ultimately optimizing periodontal outcomes for patients, conclude the experts.
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