(STUDY FINDS) -- ANN ARBOR, Mich. — Inflammatory bowel disease (IBD) affects about three million people in the United States. An imbalance in the gut’s microbiome can be the cause of painful, and sometimes chronic, stomach conditions. A new study suggests trouble in your gut may actually start with trouble in your mouth. Researchers from the University of Michigan say poor oral hygiene can make a person’s IBD worse.
The study reveals two possible ways bacteria in a patient’s mouth travels to the gut and causes more inflammation. Researcher Nobuhiko Kamada says there is growing evidence that people with IBD have an overgrowth of foreign bacteria in their gut. That bacteria, Kamada says, typically starts within one’s mouth.
“I decided to approach the dental school to ask the question, does oral disease affect the severity of gastrointestinal diseases?” the assistant professor of internal medicine says in a university release.
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