Eating Without Teeth – The Risks
If you don’t replace lost teeth, your oral and general health can degrade.
If you no longer have any of your teeth, or perhaps just a few left, and you have chosen to avoid dentures, dental implants or bridges, then you’ll currently be eating in rather a compromised way.
Over time, you might become used to doing this, and it might even seem acceptable for you. Whilst it may be convenient for you to approach eating in this way, eating without any teeth or several missing teeth, can be very bad for your oral health as well as your overall health.
It is certainly worth at least knowing the risks and considering them, before continuing to leave your missing teeth as they are.
Your Gums & Jaw Are At Risk
When you chew food without any teeth, the pressure that would have been applied to the teeth is applied to the jaw and to the gums. Without effective tooth replacement, your gums and jaw have no protection at all. The result of this constant pressure on the jaw and gums from eating without teeth, is irritation of the soft tissues, potential infection and TMJ (temporomandibular jaw disorder). Your jaw is also more likely to become weak and suffer fractures.
The scariest thing is, even if you eat soft foods, is that there is still excess pressure on the jaw and gums caused from the action of mashing them in your mouth.
Your Stomach Is Also At Risk
Your digestive system is complex and amazing, and every single tiny process has an important part to play when it comes to digesting food properly. The beginning of the process starts with your mouth and so not chewing foods as they should be chewed, can cause huge issues with the entire process. When food isn’t chewed properly lots of bad things can happen in the digestive tract. The precious nutrients from the food aren’t fully extracted, and the undigested food in the colon can lead to indigestion and gas.
The Solution
The solution to avoiding these problems is getting your teeth replaced; there really is no other way around it. There may be many reasons you or a loved one are avoiding getting teeth replaced through shame or worry about judgement, or worry about pain. But please be assured that here at your St John’s Wood dentist we have various modern, advanced solutions to your tooth loss problem.
From dental implants, to dentures, and combination cosmetic and general dentistry treatments, we can transform your smile and help you eat freely again. We will work with you to find the best possible solution to replacing one missing tooth, or entire arches. There is always a solution that works best, both for the practical and aesthetic side of tooth replacement.
It might seem daunting, or almost as though you don’t need teeth because you have become so used to eating, talking and living without them, but this will cause your body damage long term, and it is important to address the issue as soon as possible.
Please call Abbey Road Dental on 02076241603 and we can provide you with more information. We’re excited to help you get your teeth and your smile back!