The Research Library

The evidence behind Primary.

Every claim we make about the mouth-body connection is built on published science, government reports, and mainstream reporting. This is the library: curated, current, and linked directly to the source.

23
Papers & reports
9yrs
Spanned
28
Conditions linked
6
Source types
Source typePeer-reviewedGovernment & health agencyWhitepaperPatient educationMainstream pressClinician blog
20251 entry
20244 entries
Mainstream pressMar 2024

Why Isn't Dental Health Considered Primary Medical Care?

Lola Butcher · Knowable Magazine (Annual Reviews)

Investigative long-read on the historical separation of dentistry from medicine. Profiles integration models: embedded hygienists in medical clinics, combined dental-medical practices, coalitions pushing to "put the mouth back in the body."

Read the article →
Whitepaper2024

The Connection Between Poor Oral Health and Chronic Disease

National Assoc. of Chronic Disease Directors · NACDD / CDC whitepaper

Public-health framing of oral health as an under-recognized driver of diabetes and cardiovascular outcomes. Urges bidirectional referrals: dental providers screening for diabetes and hypertension, medical providers flagging oral disease.

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Patient educationUpdated Mar 2024

Oral Health: A Window to Your Overall Health

Mayo Clinic Staff · Mayo Clinic (Patient Education)

Authoritative patient-facing overview. Oral bacteria and inflammation are linked to heart disease, stroke, premature birth, low birth weight, pneumonia, and worsened diabetes control.

Read the overview →
20234 entries
Clinician blog2023

Clean Mouth, Clean Brain

Mark Hyman, MD · drhyman.com

Functional-medicine framing of the oral microbiome's role in brain health, connecting P. gingivalis to Alzheimer's pathology, and oral-gut microbial crosstalk to rheumatoid arthritis and chronic inflammation.

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20222 entries
20214 entries
Government & health agencyDec 2021

Oral Health in America: Advances and Challenges

U.S. Dept. of Health & Human Services (NIDCR) · NIH (Surgeon General-style report)

Landmark 20-year update to the 2000 Surgeon General report. Calls for "integrated oral, medical, and behavioral health care" as national policy: the most authoritative federal endorsement of the oral-systemic model.

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Mainstream pressOct 2021

Gum disease linked to Alzheimer's disease

Shervin Molayem · Nature Outlook: Oral Health

Porphyromonas gingivalis, the keystone gum disease bacterium, and its gingipain toxins detected in Alzheimer brain tissue. Suggests chronic oral infection as a modifiable risk factor for neurodegeneration.

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WhitepaperJan 2021

Innovations in Oral Health and Primary Care Integration

Primary Care Collaborative (PCC) · PCC Report

Documents successful medical-dental integration programs: prenatal oral health initiatives, geriatric oral care in nursing facilities, co-located dentists in primary clinics. Aligns oral health with patient-centered medical home principles.

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20203 entries
Peer-reviewedFeb 2020

Periodontitis and cardiovascular diseases: Consensus report

Sanz M, Marco del Castillo A, Jepsen S, et al. · J. Clinical Periodontology (EFP / World Heart Federation)

Joint workshop of the European Federation of Periodontology and the World Heart Federation. Confirms an independent association between severe periodontitis and CVD, a paradigmatic medical-dental collaboration statement.

Read the consensus →
20191 entry
Clinician blogDec 2019

Clean Mouth, Clean Brain (original)

Mark Hyman, MD · drhyman.com

Early functional-medicine summary citing research that P. gingivalis gingipains can travel to the brain and release neuron-damaging toxins implicated in Alzheimer's, reframing oral hygiene as brain hygiene.

Read the post →
20171 entry
Context3 entries

This library is updated as new evidence lands. If you're a clinician or researcher and want a paper added to the review, write us. We'd rather our science keep growing than settle.