The Top 3 Signs That You Might Need Dentures
Sign #1: Loose Teeth
When to get dentures? You know it’s time to get dentures when your teeth are loose. Loose teeth are the sign of an advanced periodontal disease infection. This infection destroys the bone around your teeth and the bone loss eventually leads to tooth loss even if your teeth themselves are perfectly healthy.
Here’s how to check your teeth for looseness:
If you can feel your teeth moving while eating hard or chewy foods, the bone around them is missing. If you can move your teeth with your tongue, they are loose because of a severe infection. If you can wiggle your teeth with your finger or your tongue, the bone has been destroyed.
Loose teeth are the number one sign of gum disease as well as the most important of the signs that you might need dentures. The longer you keep infected remaining teeth, the more of your bone gets destroyed by the gum disease. Infected gum tissues affect everything from how well your denture fits to your oral health to increasing your risk for heart disease. Don’t play with loose teeth.
Sign #2: Your Gums Have Receded
How do you know if it is time to get dentures? Look at your natural teeth in the mirror. If your gums have pulled back up your teeth and you can see yellowed tooth roots or dentin, you are going to lose your remaining teeth soon. When gums pull back or recede, it is another sign of advanced periodontal disease and sad gum tissues. Gum recession shows you that the infection has killed most of the bone around your tooth. And as we mentioned above, bone loss leads to tooth loss. If you have serious gum recession, it is time to get full or partial dentures.
Come and talk to Dr. Bec. At a free consultation, you’ll be able to ask your questions and get answers!
Sign #3: Most of Your Teeth Are Bad
If most of your natural teeth have gone bad, that is another sign that it is time to get dentures. Tooth decay happens because of diet, chemotherapy, dry mouth or as a side effect of many drugs and medications. A couple of severely decayed teeth can be repaired easily with treatments like root canals or extractions and implants. However, when most of your remaining teeth have gone bad, it is time to replace them. Whether you lose your teeth to tooth decay or to periodontal disease, dentures are the first step for replacing missing teeth.
Even if you opt for dental implants later, when you need to replace all your teeth, the process starts with dentures, followed by dental implants after healing.
Wondering if it’s time for you to wear dentures?
Check out our blog on how to get started getting false teeth.
It’ll walk you through the process and give you helpful tips that apply no matter where you live.
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