AGA: A population-based cohort study of more than 20,000 people in Sweden associated poor oral health with reduced risk for inflammatory bowel diseases (IBD). The article, in the April issue of
Clinical Gastroenterology and Hepatology, reports that the protective effect increases with the severity of poor dental hygiene. Environmental factors, such as westernization and modernization, are
thought to contribute to the increasing worldwide prevalence of IBD.
Improved hygiene has reduced human exposures to microbes, which is
believed to increase risk for autoimmune disorders such as IBD.
