Two minutes that could save your life

Last night I attended a course with the local dental society.  The speaker at this course was a man named George Taybos.  He did a fantastic job.  He talked about the relationship between the mouth and the rest of the body. 
There is now significant evidence that poor oral hygiene and oral health are related to several severe health conditions.  For example, Respiratory problems, heart problems, diabetes, rheumatoid arthritis, dementia, stroke and Alzheimer's disease, as well as pregnancy issues dealing pre-mature birth and low birth weight.  That is a very significant list of problems.  Research indicates that of inflammation caused by poor oral health and or bacteria entering your blood stream from your mouth can contribute to, and possibly cause all of these issues I just listed. 

So how does two minutes save your life?  Simple floss.  If you floss and brush daily, your gums will be healthy and you will not have the inflammation that can contribute to so many problems.  Your gums won't bleed and your blood stream will be protected from the bacteria in your mouth.  I am not going to go into the mechanisms behind how this all works but suffice it to say flossing could really save your life some day.