Exposing your teeth to light may be just what you need to keep gum diseases at bay, if a study published in the Antimicrobial Agents and Chemotherapy is anything to go by.

US researchers led by Max Goodson of the Applied Molecular Photomedicine Laboratory at the Forsyth Institute, Boston, suggest that light ? more accurately the blue part of it ? can be effective in killing several bacteria that cause gum diseases.

When exposed to a specific wavelength of light, the harmful bacteria, which are very light-sensitive, get eradicated within minutes. Exposure to light kills the bacteria by destroying various light-sensitive compounds, the researchers explain.

They studied oral cultures enriched with 600 oral bacteria. The cultures were collected from 15 patients of periodontitis (a condition that affects the gums and bone around the teeth) who received no treatment for the condition for the last three months. The researchers exposed the cultures in the blue spectrum of light for a minimum of 60 seconds.

They found that within a few minutes, a variety of the harmful oral bacteria, called oral black-pigmented bacteria (BPB), got eradicated. At the same time the population of the helpful oral bacteria (which maintain a healthy oral cavity) got significantly increased.

According to the researchers, the study speaks for an easy and non-invasive means of treatment for gum diseases. Around the world more than 200 million people suffer from them.

3 other diseases caused by bad gums

1: Gum disease is also linked to cardiac arrest and stroke, according to a study published in the journal Circulation. Researchers from the Columbia University Medical Center looked at 657 people and concluded that gum disease was closely associated with cardiovascular disorders, including stroke. It was found to promote the thickening of arteries, thus causing a narrowing of their walls.

2: Gum disease can increase the risk of premature birth of babies, suggests a study presented at the annual meeting of the American Association for Dental Research. The study found that pregnant women with gum disease were three to eight times more likely to have a baby born before time.

3: Saliva of people suffering gum diseases can carry the hepatitis C virus and thus increase the risk of transmission of the disease. It happens because gum disease leads to bleeding and the blood mixed with the saliva spreads the disease.