Bad dental health can lead to pneumonia

The Dental Health Foundation has warned that poor oral hygiene could cause the respiratory infection after research found a link between bacteria in the mouth and the lung disease.

Dr Samit Joshi of Yale University School of Medicine found changes in bacteria in the mouth preceded the development of pneumonia.

He concluded that this process “suggests that changes in oral bacteria play a role in the risk for developing pneumonia".

Pneumonia is thought to affect more than 620,000 people in the UK and claims the lives of around five per cent of those who contract the disease.

Although further research is required to determine the exact relationship between oral health and pneumonia, it is not the first time the two diseases have been linked.

For full article: http://www.telegraph.co.uk/health/healthnews/8979191/Bad-dental-health-can-lead-to-pneumonia-Yale-study-suggests.html