Periodontal disease happens when the bacteria in dental plaque make their way into a person’s bones and blood stream.

Those bacteria can increase chances of pneumonia, osteoporosis, heart attack, stroke and premature low birth weight babies.

Studies show that having periodontal disease makes you twice as likely to get coronary artery disease as a person without periodontal disease.

Warning signs of periodontal disease to look for include bleeding gums, loose teeth, pain chewing, sensitivity, bad breath or a bad taste in your mouth.

To prevent the problem people should brush and floss twice a day, see your dentist at least every six months, eat a healthy diet and avoid tobacco.

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• Discount Counterfeits Can Be Dangerous (FORBES): Discount stores that scour the world for deals sometimes give shoppers something they didn’t bargain for: bogus products of uncertain origin that may even be dangerous. A prime example: this week’s recall of toothpaste believed to be both counterfeit and toxic.
• Lax oversight, globalization erode product safety (CNNMoney): Consumer safety advocates say not enough is being done to prevent unsafe products from reaching store shelves in the U.S.
• China sentences ex-official to death (CNNMoney): Zheng Xiaoyu, the former head of State Food and Drug Administration, was convicted of accepting bribes from drug companies. China sentenced the former head of its food and drugs agency to death for corruption in a surprise judgment as the government sought to contain a wave of scandals over health safety.
• FDA targets China toothpaste imports (CNNMoney): Move comes after shipments of product in the Dominican Republic, Panama found tainted with engine coolant chemical.
• Discount counterfeits can be dangerous (AP):Even though many bogus goods, including the toothpaste, have murky origins, signs point to overseas – and China in particular. China was the source of 81 percent of all phony goods seized in 2006, according to federal statistics. “We do not make it, we don’t import it, we just buy it from a guy,” said Chris Kim, manager of MS USA Trading Inc., the North Bergen, N.J., company that recalled the 100 cases of suspect toothpaste. A telephone message left for the source identified by Kim – a man he knows only as “Dialo” – was not immediately returned Thursday.

  Discount stores in particular can be an important outlet not only for fakes but other dangerous goods as well, federal officials said.

Want stuff you put in your mouth and give to children from an importer who “just buys it from a guy”?

Is it time to revisit “most favored nation” trade status?

A Food and Drug Administration official, Doug Arbesfeld, confirmed Wednesday that testing had found the chemical in a product with the Colgate label. But he said the agency is unsure if it is really Colgate or a counterfeit.

“We are aware that toothpaste is something that’s been counterfeited in the past,” he said. “We don’t want to alarm people unnecessarily.”

MS USA Trading, Inc. of North Bergen, New Jersey, said the toothpaste may contain diethylene glycol, a chemical found in antifreeze.

The company said the toothpaste, imported from South Africa, was sold in discount stores in New Jersey, New York, Pennsylvania and Maryland.

“Made in South Africa” is printed on the box and the batch includes Regular, Gel, Triple and Herbal versions.

The trading company said the problem was discovered in routine testing by the Food and Drug Administration. It said no illnesses have been reported to date.

The same chemical has led to the recall of several brands of toothpaste imported from China in recent weeks.

Colgate-Palmolive issued a statement early Thursday saying the tubes are counterfeit.

The company said it does not use, nor has ever used, diethylene glycol as an ingredient in Colgate toothpaste anywhere in the world.

“Colgate does not import toothpaste into the United States from South Africa,” said the statement from Colgate-Palmolive Company. “In addition, the counterfeit packages examined so far have several misspellings including: `isclinically,’ `SOUTH AFRLCA’ and `South African Dental Assoxiation.’

“Counterfeit toothpaste is not manufactured or distributed by Colgate and has no connection with the company whatsoever,” the company said, adding that Colgate is working closely with the FDA “to help to identify those responsible for the counterfeit product.”