Bleeding of gums can be a scary sight. It can be due to a simple reason such as abrasive bruising or flossing, or can be due to major health problems. Having that said, a few reasons for bleeding of gums may include:

- Brushing tooth hard or using a toothbrush with hard bristles

- Just started flossing and the gums are not used to this activity

- Use of blood thinning medicines

- Gum inflammation during pregnancy

- Dentures that do not fit well

Most commonly, the gums bleed due to gingivitis which is the common term used for gum inflammation. It is basically a gum disease but in mild form. The major reason for gingivitis is the buildup of plaque.

Gingivitis can result in bleeding of gums when you brush or floss your teeth. The gums remain swollen, tender and irritated during this condition.

The easy way to deal with gingivitis is to take good care of your oral hygiene. Good news is that gingivitis is normally reversible. You need to make sure that you brush and floss your teeth in correct way twice in every day. Moreover, you will have to avoid missing any routine dental visit.

Nor caring much when you have gingivitis can lead you to periodontitis; or long term gum disease in simple terms. This disease mainly involves destruction of tissues of gums and teeth. Periodontitis can cause serious inflammation and infection in the gums. As a result, the gums are pulled away from the teeth, providing pockets under the gum line to bacteria. This condition can make things even worse. This disease leads to the tooth loss but it doesn’t stop here. It advances further to cause damage to the jawbone.

While periodontitis cannot be treated by only taking care of your oral hygiene, you can certainly get it treated from your dentist. However, you will have very short time left to get over this problem.

If your gums bleed, it may be a sign of type-1 or type-2 diabetes. This is due to the fact that diabetes weakens the body’s ability to respond to actions by germs. Higher blood sugar level can greatly affect the body’s ability to heal. If you get gum disease during this time, it might get worse if you do not get it treated on timely basis.

Another reason for bleeding gums is the deficiency of vitamin K. Vitamin K is known for initiating the clotting of blood when you are injured. The lack of this vitamin causes deficiency in clot formation. Hence, the gums keep bleeding for hours.