Your Oral Microbiome Can Affect Your Heart Health

A recent study reveals insight about your heart health: your oral microbiome is an age-dependent, dynamic switch for your blood pressure.

When we eat nitrate-rich plants like beetroot, spinach, or kale, these plant compounds immediately begin working their magic. That being said, the real brilliance lies in how these nitrates reprogram the bacteria in your mouth.

In older adults especially, this plant-nourishing shift suppresses "harmful" bacteria like Prevotella (which can sabotage beneficial nitric oxide production) and boosts "good" bacteria such as Neisseria.

The result? A dramatic, more efficient conversion of dietary nitrates into nitric oxide, the crucial molecule that relaxes blood vessels and lowers blood pressure. As our bodies naturally produce less nitric oxide with age, this oral pathway becomes an even more vital, actionable lever for systemic vascular well-being.

Oral bacteria in the mouth has been linked to dangerous conditions affecting cardiovascular health. Harmful oral bacteria can lead to clogged arteries and heart attacks. When "bad" bacteria from our mouth reaches our heart, they can cause inflammation which can lead to infections of the heart lining (endocarditis). Dental disease can also increase an adult’s risk of having a stroke. Maintaining good oral health can reduce these risks, protecting our heart and overall health.

It's a powerful reminder: your plate and your oral hygiene are intricately linked to the very core of your cardiovascular healthspan.