There’s no bad time to quit smoking, but it’s an especially good idea if you’re getting dentures. In fact, smokers are more likely to need dentures in the first place. It’s long been known (and clearly visible) that smoking is bad for your teeth, but it can also damage the gums. This can create issues with the way your dentures fit because they are supported by the gums and the bony ridges beneath them. Read on to learn more about how smoking can cause problems while wearing dentures.
Smoke Can Stain Natural and Artificial Teeth
Tobacco smoke will stain artificial teeth as easily as it will stain natural ones. While natural teeth can often be professionally whitened, dental restorations do not respond to the treatment in the same way. There are ways to remove stains from artificial teeth, but they do not always work as well as hoped.
Smoking Makes It Harder for Your Gums to Heal
Nicotine causes blood vessels to constrict, limiting blood flow to tissues in the mouth and body. This can cause gum tissue to take longer to heal, making them more vulnerable to injury and infection. Smoke can be especially troublesome immediately after receiving dentures because it can interfere with the healing of tooth extraction sites. This can cause infection or a painful condition known as dry socket involving the nerves and bone within the extraction site becoming exposed to the mouth’s environment. If your dentures are held in place with implants, smoking increases the risk of their failure.
Smoking Causes Recession of the Gums and Jawbone
When you inhale tobacco smoke, the gums harden to protect themselves. Over time, the exhaustion of this repeated process causes them to recede, which can change the way your dentures fit. After you quit smoking, the softer gum layer regenerates so that the dentures can fit more easily and comfortably. It also accelerates the rate of bone loss, which means that the jawbone will recede more quickly into the face, eventually leaving you with a sunken mouth.
Dentures are not a cheap item that can be easily replaced, so why would you continue a habit that makes them more likely to degrade and ultimately fail? Kicking a tobacco habit is an excellent way to take charge of your life and preserve your newly restored smile.
About the Author
Dr. Jonathan H. Cohen graduated from the State University of New York at Buffalo School of Dental Medicine before completing a General Practice Residency at University Hospital in Syracuse, NY. He serves as a member of the Academy of General Dentistry, the American Academy of Cosmetic Dentistry, the American Academy of Implant Dentistry, and the International Congress of Oral Implantologists. His practice in St Johns, FL, offers preventive, restorative, cosmetic, and emergency dentistry in addition to denture services. If you’re interested in getting dentures, contact him online or dial (904) 230-2961.