Our teeth play an important role in our everyday life, but some people take them for granted. While teeth are stronger than bones, they do not last forever as they can be at risk of decay, which can lead to premature tooth loss. Over time, missing teeth not only lead to various dental health problems, but they can have a significant impact on your facial features and general health. With proper dental hygiene and practice, you can keep your teeth healthy so you do not have to worry about the cost of tooth implants.
What Causes Premature Tooth Loss
Tooth loss can happen twice during our lifetime—during childhood when our baby teeth give way to adult teeth and in old age when we naturally lose teeth. However, there are certain factors that can increase our risk for premature tooth loss.
- Tooth decay
Poor dental hygiene is the most common culprit for tooth decay. It occurs when the bacteria feed on the sugar in your mouth, turning it into acid that wears down the enamel of your teeth. Unfortunately, tooth decay does not discriminate. It can happen in both children and adults. However, limiting your sugar consumption, maintaining good oral hygiene practices, and visiting your dentist regularly for regular checkups and cleaning can help prevent the problem.
- Gum disease
Also known as periodontitis, this common dental health problem can cause significant damage to the tissue that holds your teeth in place. This can result in bone deterioration and eventually tooth loss. While poor dental hygiene can cause inflammation and bleeding of the gums, genetics, stress, pregnancy, and diabetes can increase your risk. Gum disease is a common cause of tooth loss in middle-aged and elderly people.
- Dental trauma
It is often caused by accidents, such as a strong blow to the face. People who often engage in high-contact sports, such as football, are at risk of losing teeth. However, you can reduce your risk of losing a tooth by wearing a custom sports guard appliance to protect your teeth and gums from trauma.
Why You Should Replace Missing Teeth
When you lose a tooth, you should visit your dentist to discuss your teeth replacement options. Although it may seem like a minor issue, not replacing missing teeth immediately can affect the symmetry of your face. While there are many reasons to replace missing teeth, some people simply ignore the problem and not getting a permanent teeth replacement can be a bad idea.
Here are the top reasons why you should replace your missing teeth.
- Affects Your Overall Health
Depending on the area of the missing teeth, it can have a significant impact on your ability to chew your food properly. Not only will you miss out on enjoying your favourite foods, but it can also affect your overall health and well-being.
Chewing the food properly helps the body absorb nutrients. However, when you have a few missing teeth, it can lead to nutrient deficiency. Tooth loss can also have an impact on your mental health as it can lead to a loss of confidence.
- Prevents Deterioration of the Surrounding Bone
When you do not fix missing teeth immediately, the remaining teeth will eventually shift toward the position of the previous tooth. This can lead to crooked or misaligned teeth and deterioration of the jawbone. Unresolved missing teeth problems can eventually decrease the density and volume of the jawbone due to loss of stimulation. This can lead to a more serious problem as it weakens the remaining teeth and makes cleaning even more difficult, which puts you at risk of dental problems.
- Retains Function
Among the vital functions of your teeth includes biting, grinding, and speaking. To be able to carry out these functions, you need to have a full set of teeth. Missing teeth can prevent you from biting and chewing hard or chewy foods. Also, the gaps caused by missing teeth can affect the way air flows when you speak. Severe shifting of the teeth can even result in permanent speech impairment. Teeth replacement, such as dental implants and dentures, helps restore and retain the essential functions of your teeth.
- Improves Visual Appearance
Losing your molars can change the structure of your mouth, which can potentially make you look older your age. You may not realize that each part of your face is connected. Losing teeth can degenerate your bones and cause your facial muscles to droop over time. However, you can keep the other aspects in place by replacing your missing teeth and practicing good oral care to ensure the health of your mouth.
- Prevents the Need for Difficult and Costly Treatment
The thought of getting teeth replacement may seem expensive at first. However, delaying treatment can eventually cause more serious dental issues, which may result in more difficult and more costly treatment.
Severe jawbone loss makes it harder to place dental implants. In case of insufficient bone volume, you may need a bone graft to support the dental implant into place. The more teeth are missing, the more implants you will require. This means longer, more complicated, and more expensive treatment.
- Maintains Your Smile
Every day, you meet and interact with people. When you have multiple missing teeth, it can spoil your smile and confidence. That is why dentist offers various restorative teeth replacement options to retain the beauty of your smile and restore your confidence.
- Improves Your Ability to Speak and Chew
Missing a few teeth can change the way you chew your food and pronounce words. For instance, if you have a few missing teeth on the left side, you tend to chew more on the right side or chew at a slower pace. You may also find it difficult to pronounce certain words, depending on the location of the missing teeth. Teeth replacement can help realign your bite and restores your ability to speak comfortably.
Do not let missing teeth affect the quality of your life. Discuss your teeth replacement options with a trusted dentist in Etobicoke.
Dr. Mark Rhody Dentistry offers excellent teeth replacement options to prevent the effects of missing teeth problems. Call us at (416) 231-4281 to book an appointment at our dental clinic in Etobicoke.
