All About Your Oral Microbiome

While gut health has become a hot topic in recent years, there’s another microbiome you may not have heard of—yet. 

Your oral microbiome. 

When it comes to your health, the secret to feeling great may be someplace you never considered before, in your mouth. 

And we’re not just talking about dental health. Your oral microbiome plays an essential role in your overall well-being, including your immune and digestive health. 

Even more fascinating, your oral microbiome and gut microbiome are closely connected, working together to keep your body healthy and happy. 

Let’s take a closer look at how your oral microbiome impacts your health, how it’s linked to your gut microbiome, and how to keep both thriving. 

What Is the Oral Microbiome?

It’s no secret that your body is home to trillions of microbes, like bacteria, fungi, and other microorganisms. The majority of them live in your gut microbiome—one of the big reasons that gut health has garnered increasing attention over the years. 

However, that’s not the only place in your body that’s teeming with bacteria. They also live on your skin, in your nose and ears, and in your mouth. 

Now, you might not be thrilled at the thought of a mouthful of bacteria. But these microorganisms play a vital role in maintaining your health.

In fact, a healthy oral microbiome can help protect your teeth and gums, support your digestive system, and even promote your immune health. 

Having the right balance is key.

Like your gut, your oral microbiome houses both beneficial (“good”) and pathogenic (“bad”) bacteria. And—also like your gut—there’s only so much room in your mouth. 

When the beneficial bacteria thrive, they crowd out the pathogenic bacteria. The result? A healthy, thriving oral microbiome. However, when this happy harmony is disrupted, the pathogenic bacteria have room to flourish, a condition known as dysbiosis.

Why does this matter? Let’s take a closer look at what a vital role your oral microbiome plays in your overall health. 

Why Is the Oral Microbiome Important?

It’s not just about fresh breath or preventing cavities. Your oral microbiome—that bustling, diverse community of bacteria living in your mouth—plays a surprisingly important role in your overall well-being.

Of course, a healthy oral microbiome is necessary for your oral health, preventing cavities and gum disease by reducing or even eliminating harmful bacteria. 

But the health of your mouth can affect your entire body—both positively and negatively. 

When your oral microbiome is experiencing dysbiosis, the bad bacteria flourishing in your mouth can enter your bloodstream. From there, they can spread out to the rest of your body, triggering symptoms and wreaking havoc everywhere they go. It’s the oral equivalent of “leaky gut” disease.

On the flip side, a healthy oral microbiome doesn’t just keep your teeth and gums healthy. It also kicks off the digestive process, helping your body break down food and absorb nutrients. And those same beneficial bacteria can also help support your digestive health, immune function, and overall well-being. 

How the Oral Microbiome Affects Your Health

As we mentioned earlier, your oral microbiome doesn’t stop at your mouth. It’s connected to your whole body. 

When it’s healthy, it can act as your body’s first line of defense, protecting you from harmful bacteria that could cause issues elsewhere. 

But when your oral microbiome is out of balance—in dysbiosis—it can allow bacteria to thrive and travel throughout your body, potentially having a negative impact on your overall health. These harmful microorganisms can even travel to your gut, through the oral-gut microbiome axis, which we’ll get into later. But here’s a hint: this can affect your digestion, immunity, and even your emotional health.

Your oral microbiome can be the first point of contact for bacteria entering your body, acting as either a gatekeeper or the first line of defense.

Here are just some ways in which the health of your oral microbiome can affect the health of the rest of your body.

• Studies show the connection between chronic periodontitis—caused by bacteria buildup on your teeth—and diabetes.
• Other studies show that oral dysbiosis can be tied to pregnancy issues, including pre-term births. 
• Research also shows that pathogenic bacteria that travel to your gut might be linked to chronic intestinal diseases, including inflammatory bowel disorder (IBD), Crohn’s disease, ulcerative colitis, and bowel cancer.

The Oral-Gut Microbiome Axis

Up until now, we’ve been focused on your oral microbiome—the colonies of bacteria living in your mouth. 

But there’s another crucial microbiome in your body, and they’re interconnected: your gut microbiome. 

About Your Gut Microbiome

In recent years, the gut microbiome has been in the spotlight, and for good reason. The vast majority of the bacteria living in your body are housed in your gut. And just like in your gut microbiome, there are both beneficial and pathogenic bacteria, fighting for space. 

Ideally, your beneficial bacteria will be the stronger, more vital of the two, supporting a healthy digestive system and overall well-being. Even your immune health is impacted. The vast majority of your immune system (70–80%) is housed in your gut, making gut health crucial to a strong, powerful immune response. 

The Link Between Microbiomes

Interestingly, these two vital microbiomes are connected by the oral-gut microbiome axis, a two-way highway that allows them to communicate and interact via your bloodstream, saliva, and even the gut-brain axis.

The connection between these two microbiomes means that your oral health can directly influence your gut health, and vice versa. When one is robust and thriving, the other microbiome can enjoy better health as well. On the other hand, when either microbiome is out of balance or in dysbiosis, it can disrupt the other, too. 

For example, pathogenic bacteria living in your mouth can travel to your digestive system through saliva or swallowed food, ultimately ending up in your gut microbiome. There, they can promote your gut’s existing colonies of bad bacteria, tipping the delicate balance of your gut microbiome and interfering with your digestive, immune, and overall health.

The same thing happens if your gut microbiome is unbalanced. When the harmful bacteria in your gut proliferate—due to poor diet, stress, antibiotics, or other factors—it can weaken your immune system. This can make your oral microbiome more vulnerable to its own pathogenic bacteria, causing oral issues such as gum disease or thrush.

Because of their close connection—and their significant impact on your overall wellness—one of the most important things you can do to promote your overall health is to support both your oral and gut microbiomes. 

Let’s look at how you can keep these two vital microbiomes balanced and thriving.

How to Support Your Oral and Gut Microbiomes

Because your oral and gut microbiomes are so interlinked, keeping both of them healthy and balanced is essential to your overall well-being. 

Here are some things you can do to support both your oral and gut microbiomes. 

Add a Spore Probiotic Supplement

The single most important thing you can do to support your oral and gut microbiomes is to take a daily spore probiotic supplement. 

Probiotics are similar or identical to the beneficial bacteria already living in your body. When you take a probiotic supplement, it joins forces with those good bacterial colonies, adding both quantity and quality, crowding out bad bacteria, and balancing your gut microbiome. 

We’re big fans of Just Thrive Probiotic, an award-winning supplement that’s guaranteed to arrive 100% alive in your gut—ready to work. With its four proprietary spore strains, Just Thrive Probiotic provides superior support for your digestive, immune, and overall health. And thanks to the oral-gut axis, it supports your oral microbiome, too.

Eat a Healthy Diet

Avoid sugary foods and drinks. They’re the perfect fuel for bad bacteria and can lead not only to tooth decay but to imbalanced microbiomes. Instead, adopt a healthy, nutrient-dense diet filled with organic foods. 

Probiotic-rich foods such as kimchi, kombucha, miso, sauerkraut, tempeh, yogurt, and more can strengthen your beneficial bacteria and help you maintain well-balanced oral and gut microbiomes. 

Practice Good Oral Hygiene

Be consistent with your dental habits. Brush, floss, and visit your dentist regularly to prevent oral health issues. 

Also, keep an eye on your tongue. Changes to its coating can indicate oral dysbiosis.

Adopt a Healthy Lifestyle

Healthy habits can create a favorable environment for beneficial bacteria. 

Here are some simple steps you can take. 

• Exercise regularly
• Get enough sleep
• Stay hydrated
• Reduce stress 
• Avoid alcohol
• Quit smoking

Avoid Antibiotics

Antibiotics are a double-edged sword. They can be effective, and necessary, for treating certain illnesses or infections. But antibiotics don’t just target harmful bacteria; they can wipe out your entire bacterial population, creating space for bad bacteria to grow. 

If antibiotics are medically necessary, try to reduce the damage to your microbiomes with countermeasures such as taking a probiotic, getting enough sleep, and being extra vigilant with your diet.

Final Thoughts

Taking care of your oral microbiome isn’t just about fresh breath or a bright white smile. It’s about supporting the health of your whole body.

By taking steps to encourage a strong, balanced oral microbiome, you can also support your digestive, immune, and overall well-being. 

Consistent habits and small lifestyle tweaks can make a major difference. And it’s worth it; let your oral health be the start of a happier, healthier you! 

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