Smokers at increased risk of tooth loss

Regular and heavy smokers have a significantly increased risk of tooth loss, warns a study. 

Male smokers are up to 3.6 times more likely to lose their teeth than non-smokers, whereas female smokers have 2.5 times greater risk, the findings showed. 

“Most teeth are lost as a result of either Caries (tooth decay) or Chronic Periodontitis (gum disease). We know that smoking is a strong risk factor for Periodontitis, so that may go a long way towards explaining the higher rate of tooth loss in smokers,” said Lead Author Thomas Dietrich, Professor at University of Birmingham in England. 

Tooth loss remains a major public health problem worldwide. Nearly 30 percent of 65-74 year olds in the world are Edentate (have lost all of their natural teeth), the study said. 

Smoking can mask gum bleeding, a key symptom of Periodontitis. As a result, the gums of a smoker can appear to be healthier than they actually are.

“It is really unfortunate that smoking can hide the effects of gum disease as people often don’t see the problem until it is quite far down the line,” Dietrich noted.

“The good news is that quitting smoking can reduce the risk fairly quickly. Eventually, an ex-smoker would have the same risk for tooth loss as someone who had never smoked, although this can take more than ten years,” Dietrich pointed out.

The findings are based on data from 23,376 participants.

The study aimed to evaluate the associations between smoking, smoking cessation and tooth loss in three different age groups.

The association between smoking and tooth loss was stronger among younger people than in the older groups.

In addition, the results clearly demonstrated that the association was dose-dependent; heavy smokers had higher risk of losing their teeth than smokers who smoked fewer cigarettes.

The study was published in the Journal of Dental Research.

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India among 11 South Asian countries to sign anti-tobacco declaration

Health ministers from 11 countries of the WHO South-East Asia region, including India, on Monday signed a declaration pledging to accelerate hard-hitting measures to reduce tobacco use, the WHO said in a statement. With tobacco killing 150 people every hour in the region, the ministers — gathered in the Timor-Leste capital of Dili for the inaugural session of the 68th Regional Committee Meeting of the WHO South-East Asia region — expressed their concern over high tobacco consumption. 

‘Tobacco use in South-East Asia is alarmingly high, triggering major health and economic consequences. Tougher actions are needed for tobacco control and prevention,’ said Poonam Khetrapal Singh, regional director of WHO South-East Asia region. ‘Countries must equally tax all tobacco products, ban tobacco advertisements, enforce pictorial warning on cigarette packs and implement ban on public smoking,’ she added.

The Dili Declaration called on governments, United Nations agencies and partners to accelerate tobacco control in the region which accounts for over one-third of the world’s tobacco use. ‘Tobacco kills 1.3 million people in the region every year, including people who were exposed to second-hand and third-hand tobacco effects. It is also home to 25 percent of the world’s smokers and 90 percent of the world’s smokeless tobacco users,’ the statement said. 

Tobacco use has been identified as one of the major risk factors for serious diseases of the lung, heart, and cancer. In 2012, an estimated 62 percent deaths in the region were attributed to non-communicable diseases; of these 48 percent were below 70 years. Highlighting the fact that premature deaths were not only a loss to the families, but also have a huge economic impact on the country, Singh said there was an urgent need to ‘enforce stringent policies and measures to help people reduce and eventually quit tobacco’. 

‘WHO recommends enhancing awareness on the ill-effects of all types of tobacco products; effective control measures to reduce tobacco consumption and counter-interference of tobacco industry; strengthening taxation systems on tobacco products to reduce consumption, and enhancing surveillance, research and cessation of tobacco use,’ she said. 

Source: The Health Site

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Never tried to promote tobacco and alcohol: Sachin Tendulkar

Master blaster Sachin Tendulkar, who has been an inspiring cricketer and ad icon for nearly three decades, has said that he as a brand ambassador has never tried to promote tobacco and alcohol.

"One thing my father told me... try not to promote tobacco and alcohol. So those are the two things I stayed away from," he said at the final day of a three-day summit organised by International Advertising Association (India chapter) in Kochi as part of its silver jubilee celebrations.

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