Olympic oral health!

Research shows a direct link between oral health and sports performance. Thus, Annimari Korte, a Finnish Olympic athlete, finds it disappointing that sports bodies such as her home country’s Olympic Committee do not support the oral health of competitive athletes like they support general health by paying for medical and physiotherapy services, even though good oral health is known to improve sports performance and results.

Annimari Korte, a top-performing hurdler, said, “Throughout the years I have represented Finland as a competitive athlete, there has been no official talk about the importance of oral health in top performances.” Annimari believes insufficient information is the most significant reason official sporting organisations do not support their athletes’ oral health more visibly. She continued, “I hope this situation will change. Studies have shown that oral problems such as gingivitis and periodontitis have been shown to reduce performance significantly”.