So Americans' lousy teeth are killing our unborn babies too.

[Bonobo]

Where are the supposed "right to lifers" on this one?
I guess this explains our third-world like infant mortality rates.

HEALTHY MOUTH, HEALTHY PREGNANCY?

http://news.discovery.com/human/healthy-mouth-healthy-pregnancy.html

Scientists say they've identified a culprit behind stillbirths and miscarriages in seemingly healthy pregnant women. It turns out that oral bacteria -- even the kinds that exist normally -- can travel through an open wound in the mouth into the bloodstream, settle in the placenta and potentially end a pregnancy.

When bacteria migrate from their normal environment (where they usually don't cause harm) to a new one, problems can arise. The placenta doesn't have an immune system, and it can become inflamed when the oral bacteria set up shop. This can lead to premature births as well as deaths, researchers say.

Yiping Han of the Case Western Reserve School of Dental Medicine led the study. She said they expected the bad bacteria, like the kind that causes gingivitis, to be responsible for aborted or premature pregnancies.

his research comes on the heels of earlier studies linking gum health to heart disease. Han said more research needs to be done to find out exactly which kinds of bacteria are colonizing the placenta so more effective treatments and therapies can be designed for pregnant women.

The more oral bacteria, the higher the risk of heart attack, UB study shows

http://esciencenews.com/articles/2009/04/01/the.more.oral.bacteria.higher.risk.heart.attack.ub.study.shows

Several studies have suggested there is a connection between organisms that cause gum disease, known scientifically as periodontal disease, and the development of heart disease, but few studies have tested this theory. A study conducted at the University at Buffalo, where the gum disease/heart disease connection was uncovered, now has shown that two oral pathogens in the mouth were associated with an increased risk of having a heart attack, but that the total number of germs, regardless of type, was more important to heart health.
"The message here," said Andriankaja, "is that even though some specific periodontal pathogens have been found to be associated with an increased risk of coronary heart disease, the total bacterial pathogenic burden is more important than the type of bacteria.

"In other words, the total number of 'bugs' is more important than one single organism," she said.

The study involved 386 men and women between the ages of 35 and 69 who had suffered a heart attack and 840 people free of heart trouble who served as controls. Samples of dental plaque, where germs adhere, were collected from 12 sites in the gums of all participants.