Don’t just floss, bleeding gums suggest a vitamin C deficiency

When your gums start bleeding, your dentist will tell you to brush and floss more often—but really he should be telling you to top up your levels of vitamin C.

A vitamin C deficiency is one of the main reasons your gums start bleeding when they are gently probed by the dentist—but it’s a connection that most dentists have forgotten about. Another tell-tale sign of a deficiency is bleeding in the eye, or retinal hemorrhaging.

These are common health problems, and they happen even in people who take vitamin C supplements—but that’s because they are following the very low levels recommended by health agencies.

The RDA (recommended daily allowance) can still cause vitamin deficiency and will only prevent diseases such as scurvy, a deadly disease that is caused by extremely low levels of the vitamin, say researchers from the University of Washington.

They took another look at 15 studies that involved 1,140 people who were healthy and compared them against data on 8,210 US residents. Vitamin C deficiency was common, and especially in those whose gums bled, and the problem resolved when they upped their levels.

This can be done by eating more vitamin-rich produce, such as kale, peppers and kiwi fruit, and also by supplementing at levels far above the RDA. People on special diets, such as a paleo or who eat lean meats and no offal, are at special risk of being deficient, said researcher Philippe Hujoel.

None of this is news. The link between vitamin C deficiency and gum (gingival) bleeding had been recognised more than 30 years ago, but over time, “that’s been drowned out or marginalized by an over attention to treating the symptom of bleeding with brushing or flossing rather than treating the cause,” she said.

There’s also an association between retinal hemorrhaging and gingival bleeding and stroke risk, but although topping up vitamin C levels can reverse the first two, there are no guarantees it will also reduce your risk of stroke, she added.

It might, though, and missing the connection between vitamin C deficiency and gum bleeding could have more serious health consequences, she said.

(Source: Nutrition Reviews, 2021; doi: 10.1093/nutrit/nuaa115)

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