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Gum disease is one of the common diseases, with 3 out of 10 Korean adults suffering from gum disease.

Gum disease can make your teeth ache and shorten the lifespan of your teeth.

Recent studies have also shown it to increase the risk of dementia and cancer.



This is Cho Dong-chan, a medical reporter.



<Reporter>



In Korea, 3 out of 10 adults over the age of 19 suffer from gum disease.



It increases rapidly from the age of 50, and more than 47% have gum disease.



[Jinseok Kang / 58 years old: There are cases where blood is mixed when brushing.

If I eat cold food, my teeth hurt.]



A dental x-ray can be taken to determine the condition of gum disease more accurately.



[Cha Jae-guk/Professor of Periodontology, Severance Dental Hospital: Overall, it looks okay, but in the case of the upper right and upper left molars, the alveolar bone is lost little by little.]



Gum disease is caused by bacteria, but it can cause mild inflammation around the gums. It can even melt to the root of the tooth.



The National Institutes of Health in the United States divided 6,000 Americans into two groups according to the presence or absence of gum disease bacteria and diagnosed dementia 26 years later when they reached the age of 65 on average.



This is because gum disease bacteria and toxins lowered the immunity of brain cells and suppressed brain nerve cells.



When Severance Hospital observed 710,000 Koreans for 10 years after dividing them by the presence or absence of periodontal disease with other cancer risk factors such as old age and smoking similarly adjusted, the cancer incidence rate was 13% higher.

[Professor Hansang



Kim/Professor of Oncology at Severance Hospital: Inflammatory mediators caused by inflammation in the oral cavity circulate through the blood and can now affect various organs that cause cancer.]



It is recommended to use an interdental toothbrush.



It is recommended to have tartar removed at least once a year by the dentist, but health insurance covers those over the age of 20.



(Video coverage: Park Jin-ho, video editing: Hwang Ji-young, CG: Kim Jong-un)