Second Hand Smoke Contributes to Gum Disease

Breathing second hand smoke for a few hours each day can double a person’s risk of suffering from severe gum disease. Evidence reported in the American Journal of Public Health (Dec. 2011), suggests that the more time spent breathing second hand smoke the greater the risk of periodontal disease. For many years we have known that smokers are significantly more susceptible to many oral diseases, but this is the strongest evidence to suggest minimal exposure of a non-smoker can have measurable effects on oral health.