All About YOU: What Your Mouth Says About Your Health

Here's one way to check your health: Open wide and say ahh.

Yup. Your mouth, more than any outward part of your body, speaks volumes about your well-being. Here's what the state of your teeth and tongue can tell you . . .

Beyond Cavities: The Tale of the Tongue
Traditional Chinese medicine uses the tongue for most diagnoses. If it looks quite fat, you could have an overactive thyroid. A beefy, red tongue may point to anemia. Bumps that look like small hairs? Better work on your dental hygiene. Blisters? Might be a drug reaction. (Get tips on what to do for medication reactions and other medical errors.)

And the Story Behind Unhealthy Gums
Red, swollen, bleeding gums signal gingivitis, an early form of periodontal disease. And gum disease has been linked to a host of other health problems, from heart attacks to erectile dysfunction. Here's why: Gum-invading bacteria may trigger an immune response that promotes bodywide inflammation and arterial hardening, which restricts blood flow. (Here's another way to keep gums healthy: yogurt.)

Think you understand your body? Take our Body Smarts Quiz, and find out what you really know.

YOU: The Owner's Manual, Updated and Expanded Edition -- An Insider's Guide to the Body That Will Make You Healthier and Younger. Roizen, M. F., Oz, M. C., New York: HarperCollins, 2008.