Swishing mouthwash may seem like a bedrock of good oral healthcare, and studies do show that it — along with brushing and flossing — can lower the risk of gum disease. But nitric oxide experts say the cost is way too high.
“Mouthwash does a good job at killing bad breath,” says Nathan Bryan, PhD, coauthor of The Nitric Oxide (NO) Solution, “but it also kills the bacteria essential to nitric oxide production.”
Mouthwash does to the oral microbiome what antibiotics do to bacteria in the gut — annihilates good and bad guys alike.
The mouth is home to more than 700 species of bacteria. Mouthwash does to the oral microbiome what antibiotics do to bacteria in the gut — annihilates good and bad guys alike. Decimating the oral microbiome every day (or sometimes twice a day) can have negative repercussions for systemic health.
Bryan draws a direct line from the estimated 200 million Americans who use mouthwash daily to the 122 million Americans with high blood pressure.
When scientists followed 540 higher-weight adults in San Juan, Puerto Rico, for three years, they found that those who used mouthwash twice daily were 85 percent more likely to develop hypertension than their peers who used mouthwash less frequently.
“The No. 1 thing a person can do to protect their levels of nitric oxide is to stop using mouthwash,” Bryan says.
What You Need to Know About Nitrates
Despite their bad reputation, these nitrogen-based compounds are a vital piece of a nutrient jigsaw puzzle. Our bodies need them to make nitric oxide, which plays a major role in how well we age. Learn more at “What You Need to Know About Nitrates,” from which this article was excerpted.
Comments (1)
Could we use hydrogen peroxide instead?