June is the month we celebrate Father’s Day. A day for some fun, maybe a barbecue, watching a ball game on TV and drinking a few cold ones, right?

While I’m not trying to put a lid on your celebration, according to WebMD, men die at higher rates than women for all of the top 10 causes of death.

Of course, while we aren’t able to control every risk factor, there are many things that are within our control that will lower our risk of developing life-threatening conditions. Many of the things covered below can be positively impacted by some habit changes.

So, why don’t men take better care of themselves?

It’s a complicated issue, rooted in part in the fact that men are still told by society too often that we are supposed to be tough and ignore pain. It starts early on the playground or ball field and is perpetuated throughout a man’s early life.

In fact, women are 33 percent more likely to visit a doctor in general, although the gap does narrow as we get older. The problem is that, if we don’t eat right or exercise, then complicate it by avoiding the doctor, we only make it worse. If we don’t go, there is no opportunity to discover problems early and discuss solutions.

Would you only change the oil in your car when the “check engine” light came on? Of course not. We see the importance of preventive maintenance when it comes to our cars and other gear. Why not treat the equipment that makes up our body the same way? It is easy to live in denial, or as my friend likes to joke, “at least have a vacation condo there”.

Men will usually come to see a dentist for preventative visits far more often than they visit their MD, if they have even chosen one. Many men simply head to the urgent care clinic when they feel they need to see a doctor for a specific problem that has become too urgent or annoying to ignore.

Our patient’s regular dental visits give my team and I both the opportunity and responsibility to be on the lookout for signs and symptoms of possible general health issues, in men and women. Many health factors are connected, and having complete information is critical to helping you stay healthy.

Research is showing increasing associations between dental conditions and overall health. For example, heart disease, stroke, cancer, obesity, erectile dysfunction, rheumatoid arthritis and Alzheimer’s disease have all been shown to have an association with untreated gum disease.

While the exact links and causes are not yet clear, ongoing research is being done that continues to support the view that chronic inflammation and infection anywhere in the body has a negative effect on your overall health.

Periodontal disease is a very common chronic inflammatory condition. A study done in 2010 estimates that 47.2 percent of American adults have mild, moderate or severe periodontitis. In adults 65 and older, prevalence rates increase to 70.1 percent. It has been estimated that the surface area of inflamed and infected area of gum tissue would be similar in size to the top of your thigh.

Even the most die-hard, doctor-avoiding guy would likely be headed to the emergency room if he had a wound that large, and yet they will often ignore bleeding when they brush as “no big deal”. Below are some of the specific health conditions men deal with most commonly and their possible association with dental health.

Heart disease and stroke. Oral bacteria may affect the heart when it enters the blood stream, attaching to fatty plaques in the coronary arteries (heart blood vessels) and contributing to clot formation. Blood clots can obstruct normal blood flow, and may lead to a heart attack.

Another theory is that the inflammation caused by gum disease contributes to swelling of the arteries. Research has shown that people with gum disease are almost twice as likely to have coronary artery disease. If the clot lodges in the brain instead of a heart artery, the result is a stroke.

Cancer. There has been an increase in oral cancer among men, even those who do not smoke or drink excessively. It is due to the HPV virus, which can be transmitted by oral sex. There are vaccines available for men and women for the HPV virus.

Pancreatic cancer has also been found to have an association with gum disease. In one study, men with a history of gum disease had over a 60 percent higher risk of developing pancreatic cancer than those who did not.

Obesity. One published study showed that obese individuals between the ages of 18 and 34 were found to have a rate of periodontal disease 76 percent higher than individuals within a normal weight range. While the connection between obesity and dental health is complex, part of the reason is likely a diet high in sugar and simple carbohydrates, which is inflammatory also, which only compounds the problem.

Diabetes. People with poor blood sugar control get gum disease more often and more severely, and they lose more teeth than do persons with good control of their diabetes. Since diabetics are more prone to infection and poor wound healing in general, it would make sense that they would be especially susceptible to gum disease.

Erectile disfunction. We’ve all seen the ads for Viagra, Cialis and Levitra. Companies spend millions on ads directed toward men for this condition, which affects one in ten of us worldwide. Underlying health issues like diabetes or heart disease account for about 70 percent of all ED issues. As mentioned earlier in this article, both of those conditions are linked to periodontal disease. You may be thinking, “I’ve seen bathtubs and dancing, but never a toothbrush in those ads. Can my bleeding, swollen gums and lack of flossing really be connected to ED issues?” One study showed that lab rats with gum disease had unusually low levels of a critical enzyme needed to relax smooth muscle and allow increased blood flow to tissues. That’s how the male pluming works. This likely explains why almost 16% of all men with periodontal disease also have ED. Enough said.

Alzheimer’s disease. While studies have yet to yield conclusive results, research suggests that exposure to inflammation early in life increases your risk of developing Alzheimer’s disease by four times normal. Apparently, an inflammatory burden early in life, like chronic periodontal disease, might have severe consequences later on as a contributing factor to Alzheimer’s. This is a terrible disease that has been called “the long good bye” for its ability to rob a person of their mind long before their body gives out.

Research also indicates that in the U.S. African-Americans are about twice as likely – and Hispanics one and a half times more likely – than older whites to get Alzheimer’s disease and other forms of dementia.

According to Johns Hopkins researcher Dr. Juan Troncoso, who studied the disease in African-Americans, the difference between the races could be due to multiple factors: “People may have a different culture background. They may have different education, so those tests are in many ways suspect.” Yet, “African-Americans tend to have more vascular disease, so that may be a contributing factor to dementia.”

Vascular disease factors (including high blood pressure and diabetes) increase the risk for Alzheimer’s, so the difference in rates of the disease between racial and ethnic groups could stem from non-genetic factors (which might potentially be reduced through changing diet, education, exercise and medication).

Rheumatoid arthritis. RA is caused by an overactive immune system, which leads to chronic inflammation, just like periodontal disease. This may explain the connection. Inflammation is a protective immune system response to substances like viruses and bacteria. In autoimmune diseases like rheumatoid arthritis, the immune system mistakenly triggers inflammation, although there are no viruses or bacteria to fight off. Studies have shown that when a group of people with severe RA had their gum disease treated, the pain and other arthritic symptoms in their joints got better too.

Sleep apnea. This condition, also addressed in an earlier article in the Reporter, is much more prevalent in males, especially if they are obese, with a neck circumference greater than 17 inches, and middle-aged. Seventy percent all people diagnosed with sleep apnea fit in this category. The remaining 30 percent of those diagnosed are men or women of any age, thin or heavy. Sadly, researchers estimate that the vast majority of people who very likely have sleep apnea remain undiagnosed. Most primary care providers ask few if any questions about sleep, yet some researchers are saying that its importance cannot be overstated. Questions about sleep quality and quantity should be considered a “vital sign”, like blood pressure, and be part of any comprehensive physical exam.

Untreated sleep apnea is associated with a whole host of serious health issues, including all of those mentioned above. If you have daytime sleepiness and fatigue, wake up unrested after a full night’s sleep, have been told that you snore or gasp in your sleep, wake up with headaches or sore jaws, or grind your teeth, there is an excellent chance that you have sleep apnea, and should be evaluated immediately. Untreated sleep apnea puts you at risk for heart attack and stroke that is several times the normal rate. That risk is only compounded if you have other health issues like obesity or heart disease.

OK guys, no more excuses about being “too busy” to care for your health, or “too tough” to be concerned with a little blood on your toothbrush in the morning. Real men do floss, as well as a bunch of other things like eating right and exercise, to keep themselves healthy.

I think I know what you’re thinking; your choices only affect you, so what does it matter? It does matter … a lot. While we may be “driving the bus” that we call our lives, there are other passengers on that bus, whether it’s a spouse, children, parents, siblings, friends, coworkers or some combination.

Other people’s lives are affected by our choices, both positively and negatively. You may be driving the bus, but checking out early by “crashing and burning” or crossing the center line and causing a head-on collision, all because you didn’t do your preventive maintenance, affects a lot of other people besides yourself.

I’ve committed to making several positive health changes this year. How about you?

Dr. Stuart Rich is the owner of Simply Smiles, a general dental practice in Auburn, and enjoys writing on a variety of dental topics. For more information, call 253-939-6900 or visit www.SimplySmilesAuburn.com or www.SleepSolutionsNW.com.