November is Diabetes Consciousness Month—a great time for dental hygienists throughout Canada to remind us of the necessary connections between diabetes and oral well being.
In accordance with Diabetes Canada, greater than 11.7 million individuals in Canada reside with diabetes or prediabetes. These people are significantly vulnerable to oral well being issues, akin to dry mouth (which might trigger soreness, ulcers, and tooth decay) and gum illness (periodontitis). Analysis additionally means that periodontitis, like all infections, could trigger blood glucose ranges to rise and make diabetes more durable to regulate. As Anne Caissie, president of the Canadian Dental Hygienists Affiliation (CDHA), explains, “It is vitally necessary for individuals residing with diabetes to go to their dental hygienist frequently for skilled oral care and to practise good oral hygiene at dwelling.”
To that finish, CDHA has produced an oral well being care tip sheet, out there in English and French, for individuals with diabetes (www.dentalhygienecanada.ca/diabetes). It presents straightforward directions for day by day mouth care and wholesome residing, together with steerage on when to schedule dental hygiene appointments and what info to share. Caissie notes, “Your dental hygienist must know when you have diabetes and whether it is below management, as a result of it has an influence on their medical evaluation and therapy suggestions.” The objective of each at-home {and professional} oral care is to cut back irritation within the mouth, permitting shoppers with diabetes to take pleasure in optimum oral well being, higher regulate their blood glucose ranges, and scale back the danger of doubtless life-threatening problems from this critical illness.
CDHA is the collective nationwide voice of greater than 30,000 dental hygienists in Canada, instantly representing 21,000 particular person members, together with college students. Since 1963, CDHA has labored to advance the career and promote the significance of oral well being. Dental hygiene is the sixth-largest regulated well being career in Canada, with professionals working in quite a lot of settings, together with impartial dental hygiene observe, with individuals of all ages, addressing points associated to oral well being. For extra info on oral well being, go to dentalhygienecanada.ca.
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