Losing your teeth is always a traumatic day. No matter how bad your own teeth were, replacing what you grew up with is usually a scary moment. Then you get new replacement for your teeth and over time, these new replacements become a part of you. After time, your denture or dentures become a normal part of your day to day life and routine. Like with anything you have for an extended period of time and have become comfortable with, you can become rather attached, OR completely indifferent, to that particular item.
Wether you’ve become attached to your current set of dentures or have become rather oblivious to them, there are clear signs that your dentures have run their course and need to be retired, such as the following:
Cracks and breaking
Sometimes, only an isolated tooth breaks. Or there may be times when there are only chips or breaks in a denture. While they still may be wearable, you can risk splitting the whole denture. And I can tell you that after 43 years of treating patients, this never happens at a good moment in life. It happens the day before your child’s wedding, or the night before the trip you have planned for the last year.
I always tell denture wears that you can choose to wait for the drama of denture failure or you can be proactive and always have a stable denture to use. Be sure to visit your dentures Calgary downtown dentist ASAP!
Struggling to chew
Over time things wear out. Cars wear out, jeans wear out, shoes wear out. And yes, the teeth in your denture can wear out. Constant grinding will wear out the plastic teeth placed in dentures. You may find that eating has become a challenge with your dentures sliding around or causing discomfort.
You may find that you will begin to have more jaw pain or head pain as the teeth wear out. You may also find that the bone in your jaw that holds the denture in disappears with increased tooth wear. This is why we recommend taking this seriously. Your dentures are supposed to make eating easier — not a challenge. Sometimes, a new denture is needed.
Facial sagging
New wrinkles? Do your cheeks look sunken in? If your dentures are no longer functional, your facial features are no longer being supported properly. With the loss of jaw bone that supports your denture, or the loss of tooth height due to wear and chipping, your chin slowly is getting closer to your nose.
Dentures provide support to the features of your face. The surest way to appear aged is to lose this support. The surest way to look younger is to have new dentures regain this facial support.
Slipping
Denture retention is not magic. Dentures stay in the mouth for 4 reasons:
(1) the way the denture or dentures bite or function is balanced to provide support while chewing
(2) the jaw bone that supports the dentures has height and width to be a supportive base for a denture
(3) You have ‘denture adhesive’ inside the denture to hold it onto your gum tissue
(4) You have dental implants that help create a solid and attractive denture
Dental implants can make the denture feel solid and return denture support, size and function. Dental implant supported dentures are an amazing combination of solid replacements and restoring what was lost. Being able to eat apples, chew pencils, and laugh without your hand in front of your face is a wonderful feeling. Confidence in your denture means whole new fun things are available for your life. Sometimes the reality is that teeth cannot be saved. Implant supported dentures are the closest thing to your own teeth.
I always joke with patients “when you are in the nursing home, do you want to sit at the dining table with the blender or the table with the knives and forks.” Implant supported dentures are the closest dentistry has to offer for your own teeth.
Overal Discomfort
You shouldn’t be constantly aware of the feeling of wearing dentures. If you feel pressure, looseness, aches or soreness in your mouth, it’s time to see your dentures Calgary downtown dentist like Dr. Westersund at Dentalife.com for support.
Unfortunately, dentures don’t last forever. Even the highest quality, most durable dentures will need to be replaced after 7-10 years.
We understand that getting new dentures upfront isn’t always financially feasible. Payment plans are available to ensure that you can replace your dentures sooner than later and get back to enjoying life.
