As well as having a serious impact on your self-esteem, having a missing tooth or multiple missing teeth can have damaging health implications, causing a variety of potential problems. Here at Shields we offer the next best thing to a missing tooth – dental implants. Below, we have highlighted a few reasons why replacing a missing tooth with implants as soon as possible, is essential to your overall wellbeing.
A little bit on dental implants…
Dental implants can be used to replace one or several missing teeth. They replace the tooth’s root which means they fuse with your jawbone, becoming a permanent part of your body. The least synthetic way of replacing a missing tooth, dental implants are small titanium posts onto which a restoration is placed, secured by an abutment.
- Restore your self-esteem. Having a missing tooth can make you extremely self-conscious about smiling and opening your mouth to speak and eat. Dental implants are a fixed solution, unlike dentures, so you need not worry about them falling out or feeling uncomfortable.
- Improve your dental health. Having a missing tooth may not present any health complications straight away but if left untreated for a lengthy amount of time, you are at risk of several problems. Vacant gaps in your mouth are susceptible to the build-up of bacteria which can lead to gum disease. Adjacent teeth can also begin to shift into the gap.
- Change of facial structure. You may not realise it, but your teeth are essential in maintaining your facial structure. When you loose a tooth, overtime your facial muscles are unsupported and therefore your face will start to ‘droop’, altering the way you look. This can be a big contributor to feeling low in confidence.
- Digestion and speech issues. A single missing tooth can affect your speech – if you are missing several teeth this will likely be worse. You will also find it more difficult to break down food and over several years this may affect your digestion.
- Jaw bone loss. When you exercise your body, it helps to retain muscle tone. Your jaw bone mass is maintained in the same way, stimulated by movement such as chewing and biting. If you are missing a tooth, the bone around this area does not receive the stimulation it needs and it will begin to disappear, otherwise known as resorption.
Please do not hesitate to contact us to arrange your free consultation with our expert team. You can contact us here.
