Dental News - Optimised diet for oral health reduces gingivitis

Dental Tribune International

Thu. 21. June 2018

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AMSTERDAM, Netherlands: Generally, a diet low in refined carbohydrates is associated with positive consequences for overall health and for oral health in particular, as it reduces the risk of dental caries. According to a recent study conducted at the University of Freiburg in Germany and presented at EuroPerio9, the world’s leading congress in periodontics and implant dentistry, a diet optimised for oral health can also significantly reduce gingivitis.

Previous research at the university found a pronounced effect of dietary interventions on gingival inflammation. However, the mechanisms behind this are broadly unknown. The recent study aimed to determine how an oral health-optimised diet could affect both periodontal and systemic inflammation.

“We conducted a randomised clinical trial using the design of our previous study, with one group of patients asked to follow a special diet low in processed carbohydrates and animal proteins, but rich in omega-3 fatty acids, vitamins C and D, antioxidants, plant nitrates and fibres,” said lead author Dr Johan Wölber, from the Department of Operative Dentistry and Periodontology at the University of Freiburg medical centre. “People in the control group did not change their eating habits, following a common Western diet rich in processed carbohydrates and saturated fatty acids, and low in micronutrients. We asked both groups not to clean between their teeth during the study. We assessed the clinical periodontal parameters and systemic inflammatory parameters at baseline and after four weeks.”

Commenting on the results, Wölber said: “We were amazed to find that—after only four weeks—a healthy diet substantially reduced inflammation of the gums. On the whole, we found a significant reduction of gingivitis of about 40 per cent, which was, like in the previous study, significantly different from the control group—without interdental cleaning. Regarding the serological parameters, we saw no differences between the control and experimental group, except a significant increase of vitamin D in the group eating healthily. In other words, an optimal diet seems to influence early gingivitis, before systemic inflammation sets in.”

The results of the recent study, titled “The effect of an oral health optimized diet on periodontal and serological parameters”, were presented at EuroPerio9 on 20 June in Amsterdam. The previous study, titled “An oral health optimized diet can reduce gingival and periodontal inflammation in humans—A randomized controlled pilot study”, was published on 26 July 2016 in BMC Oral Health.

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