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Diabetes and Oral Health

White blood cells are part of the body’s immune system. They help the body fight against infections and diseases. A consistently raised glycaemic control (raised blood sugar), can weaken the white blood cells defences and lead to oral health problems which can manifest as infections, delayed healing, mucosal ulcers and in some rare occurrences these can be fatal.

Gestational Diabetes

This refers to diabetes which occurs in about 5% of women who are pregnant. During pregnancy, a woman’s body experiences significant hormonal changes. These changes have an effect on how the body uses insulin to get to glucose (sugar) into the cells. These changes cause the body to not use insulin well which leads to insulin resistance (a condition where the cells don’t respond well to insulin and glucose cannot get to the required destination of need).

Steroid Induced Diabetes

There are certain chronic inflammatory diseases such as Rheumatoid arthritis, Chrons disease, etc. that require treatment with high doses and long term steroid use. Steroids can increase your blood sugar levels by either stopping glucose from getting into the blood through the cells, reduce how the body responds insulin and also cause the liver to produce more glucose. An accumulation of glucose in the blood can lead to diabetes.