Believe it or not, the root of gum disease stems from a nasty bacteria that lives in your mouth. When this bacteria mixes with starches and sugars found in food, it turns into plaque. Plaque is a sticky, colorless film made up of bacteria. It’s also a relentless predator. Here’s why...

Plaque is constant. In fact, it re-forms within 24 hours after you brush. And that’s not the worst of it. All it takes is two to three days of not brushing to enable plaque to harden. 

Once it hardens, it becomes tartar. And tartar can only be removed by a professional. It’s important at this stage of the game to get it removed because plaque sticks to tartar better, making it harder to brush it away. 

At this point, your oral health will decline if you don’t get the professional dental treatment you need. The tartar and plaque will continue to build up at the gumline causing inflammation and bleeding. 

Next, it will work its way underneath the gums slowly separating your gum tissue from your teeth creating pockets. These pockets help foster harmful bacteria and plaque rapidly forms as your toothbrush cannot reach into these pockets. This is how infections and further decay occur.

Another known cause of a milder form of gum disease - gingivitis - is pregnancy. This has been linked to hormonal changes in the woman's body that may promote plaque production and make your gum tissue more sensitive to plaque.

Now that you know the causes of gum disease and how quickly it can fester, check out the ways of preventing periodontal disease.