Smile for the dentist

Poor dental health in baby boomers can mean more than an unattractive smile. It can cause periodontal disease, a serious oral infection that in turn can lead to cardiovascular disease, stroke, respiratory illness, diabetes and a host of other serious illnesses. People who have gum disease are more than twice as likely to have cardiovascular disease than people with healthy mouth tissue, according to the American Academy of Periodontology. But nearly 80 percent of adults have some form of periodontitis, a chronic bacterial infection of the gums and bone surrounding the teeth, according to the National Institutes of Health. The condition begins when bacteria in plaque Ð the sticky, colorless film that constantly forms on the teeth Ð causes gu