The rise in obesity may be going hand-in-hand with increases in severe gum disease, US research suggests.
As many as 40% of adults worldwide have periodontal disease, and tests on mice hint that obesity makes us vulnerable to the bacteria which cause it.
Boston University scientists reported in the journal Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences that fat mice had a "blunted" immune system.
This may mean obese humans are more at risk from all bacterial infections.
Links between gum disease and other more serious illnesses continue to emerge.
There have even been suggestions of a relationship between gum disease and heart disease risk. . .
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