Dental hygiene is an issue that has taken the center stage in the past few years. Many health experts lobby for frequent visits to scientists in order to ensure that the oral hygiene is maintained as dental cavity is kept at minimum. Now an observational study, published in the BMJ Open online journal, has come up with fact that would make it even more important to have proper oral hygiene.

According to the researchers, an increased amount of dental plaque is associated with premature cancer death. They came to this conclusion after examining 1,390 people over a period of 24 years from 1985 to 2009. During the research, all participants were quizzed on factors likely to increase their cancer risk.

They were then reexamined after 24 years. The researchers found that 58 patients out of the total number of people had died. What was more profound was the fact that 35 of those deaths were a result of cancer. After examining those deaths, the researchers discovered that those who died had a significantly higher amount of dental plaque than survivors.

The survivors had a dental plaque index of 0.66 to 0.67 while those who died had a dental plague index of 0.84 to 0.91.