- Oral hygiene helps women conceive two months faster
Women with gum disease took just over seven months to become pregnant, while their peers took five months
Gum disease could significantly delay the chances of conceiving, fertility specialists have found.
In the first study of its kind, researchers found women with gum disease took an extra two months to get pregnant compared with those who had healthy teeth and gums.
It took around seven months on average for those with poor oral hygiene to conceive, but just five months for those who brushed and flossed their teeth properly.
Gum disease – or periodontal disease in its severe form – is caused by a build-up of plaque. It leads to bad breath and bleeding gums and, if untreated, causes cavities, receding gums and tooth loss.
Bleeding gums caused by failure to brush properly can allow up to 700 different types of bacteria to get into the bloodstream.
It is not clear how gum disease may trigger problems with conceiving, but infected gums may release inflammatory chemicals, which activate the immune system and inflame the lining of the womb. This could affect implantation of a fertilised egg.
Experts at the University of Western Australia in Perth who carried out the study said the delay was similar to that posed by being obese.
The team from the University of Western
Australia also confirmed previous studies that suggest age, weight and
smoking all impact on a woman's ability to conceive
£38 fertility test beats the calendar
'It is easily treated, usually involving no more than four dental visits.’ More than a quarter of pregnant women have gum disease, he added, and there is evidence it is linked with miscarriage, stillbirth and premature birth.
The researchers questioned almost 4,000 women who were 12 weeks pregnant. A total of 26 per cent were confirmed to have gum disease.
They found delays in conceiving among those aged 35 and over, smokers and obese women – already known risk factors. But there was a higher level of gum disease – one in three – among the women who took more than a year to get pregnant.
Of those who had healthy gums, only one in four took longer than a year, the European Society of Human Reproduction and Embryology was told.
Professor Hart said there was also evidence gum disease in men impaired their sperm quality. ‘I would advise any couple wanting to start a family to visit a dentist first,’ he said.