Thread by @DrGrahamLJ

Thanks for playing the anatomy game everyone

https://twitter.com/DrGrahamLJ/status/1662989869323255808?s=20

Many mentioned the skin as 1 of their 5 organs

Some mentioned the gut (intestine/bowel)

There’s another organ that bridges the skin and gut, which nobody has mentioned …

The mouth!

Your mouth is amazing!

Think of all the incredible things you can do with your mouth.

You can speak, sing, shout, scream, kiss, chew, taste, smile, whistle …

If you have good oral health then your mouth acts an immune organ, a physical barrier which protects your body from outside pathogens (such as bacteria), just like your skin protects you

If you have poor oral health, then your mouth is like an open wound, allowing bacteria to pass directly into the bloodstream, just like an open wound on the skin

In future tweets I will be explaining how the mouth is an immune organ and how it is increasingly clear that poor oral health plays an important part in keeping our bodies healthy

I will be discussing the links between poor oral health and diseases of the body such as
#Alzheimer's
#CardioVascularDisease
#Diabetes
#RheumatoidArthritis
and many more

(For info on links between #oralhealth and #COVID please see pinned tweet)

In the meantime, please take good care of your mouth, visit the dentist/hygienist regularly, campaign for free/affordable access to these dental services, and demand the best possible oral healthcare in every setting (hospital, care home etc.)