NEW YORK, US - Good oral care such as regular brushing, flossing and trips to the dentist may help ageing adults keep their thinking skills intact, according to a United States study.

Research has already established an association between poor oral health and heart disease, stroke and diabetes, as well as Alzheimer's disease.

But researchers from Columbia College of Physicians and Surgeons in New York found gum disease could also influence brain function through several mechanisms, such as causing inflammation throughout the body, a risk factor for loss of mental function.

The study based on adults aged 60 and older found those with the highest levels of the gum disease-causing pathogen Porphyromonas gingivalis were three times more likely to have trouble recalling a three-word sequence after a period of time.

The study, led by Dr James Noble, also found that adults with the highest levels of this pathogen were two times more likely to fail three-digit reverse subtraction tests.

The study, reported in the Journal of Neurology, Neurosurgery, and Psychiatry, was based on more than 2,350 men and women who were tested for periodontitis and completed numerous thinking skills tests as part of a national survey.

This article was first published in The Straits Times.