After undergoing periodontal surgery, comedian and television personality Whoopi Goldberg returned to her seat on “The View” and admitted to the public that despite having excellent dental insurance, she's never taken care of her teeth. She was paying the price for that oversight.

“Your mouth is connected to your entire system,” she told viewers. “If you do not take care of your mouth, then you are not taking care of your body, and it will kill you.”

Mountains of research show that poor oral health increases your risk for many maladies, including cardiovascular disease, diabetes, and cancers of the head and neck.

Now research has emerged showing that good dental care (brushing and flossing your teeth daily and getting regular checkups) could prevent or help reduce high blood pressure.

The study, which was published in the journal Hypertension, found that people with healthier gums and little tooth decay have lower blood pressure.

It also revealed that people who take medications for high blood pressure get more benefit if their gums are healthy. Specifically, patients being treated for high blood pressure who had inflamed gums were 20 percent less likely to have their blood pressure in a healthy range than patients with no signs of periodontal disease.

So if you have high blood pressure, remember that maintaining good dental hygiene is as important for protecting your heart as eating fiber regularly or increasing your steps from 8,000 to 12,000 daily.

And if you have periodontal disease, have your blood pressure monitored regularly. And get to your periodontist pronto.