Welcome back to Hartwell Dentistry blog. This week we continue sharing with our patients how continued education can help Hartwell Dentistry bring the best care and advice to our patients.

In March this year Quyen, one of our Oral Hygiene Therapist attended the “Dentistry and Chronic Disease” Continuing Professional Development program. Today Quyen will be sharing what she learnt and how this information can benefit our patients.

This program was part of the Dental Health Service Victoria’s (DHSV) number of professional development programs. DHSV has many clinics throughout Victoria. This session gave me an opportunity to catch up and discuss ideas with many clinicians throughout Victoria.

The day of learning focused on chronic health problems, such as:

  • Diabetes
  • Smoking
  • Asthma
  • Mental Health
  • Drugs/alcohol abuse

Not only do these chronic issues affect our oral health, but also it was emphasised that improving your oral health can help with your general health.

It has been found that risk factors that are associated with diabetes, asthma and other renal/eye diseases are similar to risk factors associated with gum health. These include family history, obesity, age, exercise and mental illness. Therefore, improving our general lifestyle factors, such as healthy eating, physical activity, being smoke free and moderate alcohol consumption, not only improves your general health, but also your oral health.

This was a real eye-opener for me, as this information demonstrates how your oral health is integral in the health of your body and general health.

At Hartwell Dentistry we focus on preventative care. We find it of the utmost importance to understand your current and previous medical condition in order to give you the best, appropriate care.  We aim to educate our patients that having good oral health can have a positive effect on our overall heath. If you have any questions about your oral health any one of our Team members are here to help!