Healthy Mouth: An Odontological Perspective

Abstract

The face and the mouth are often considered to be the windows to our general health. Screening and monitoring of young children for healthy growth and development of the jaws and teeth is becoming a standard practice in more and more countries with a national health system/strategy. Such screenings are based on certain formal and informal notions of what a healthy mouth is. Making the ageing population more aware of their mouth and teeth status, and how oral health is connected to a healthy life is being realized increasingly. This article provides a brief overview of what characteristics are used while screening and evaluating the growth and development of a healthy mouth. The article describes the structural aspects of the healthy bony skeleton, temporomandibular joints, masticatory muscles, lips, palate, dental arches, occlusion, teeth, gingiva, periodontal ligament, oral mucosa, tongue, saliva and microbiome. This is followed by discussing the functional aspects of a healthy mouth, and finally commenting on the relation between a healthy mouth and a healthy body.