A missing tooth can change the appearance of your smile. Because of this, you may want to hide your smile or prefer to isolate yourself from others. Having a full set of teeth indicates good health and beauty, but when you have lost one or more teeth, this also means a loss of confidence. And not replacing your missing teeth can lead to more serious oral health issues. With missing teeth, you can have difficulty speaking or chewing food properly. Also, not having a full set of teeth can alter your facial and jawbone structure, which in turn, distorts your facial features. This is the reason you must take dental care for your family in Tampa seriously. Preventative dental care is important to avoid tooth loss and its consequences.
Impact of Missing Teeth on Your Jawbone
If you have missing teeth, your entire face may collapse if you leave the gaps without replacement. Your jaw and teeth work together to maintain your facial structure and function. Your jawbone anchors your teeth in place as you bite, chew, laugh, and talk. In turn, these activities stimulate bone growth and strength. However, when you lose even one tooth, the jawbone starts to deteriorate. The deterioration will spread and cause the rest of your teeth to shift toward the gap and become misaligned and loose. When this process continues, you could lose more teeth if you don’t replace the teeth that you have initially lost. Then, speaking and eating will be hard for you.
Impact of Missing Teeth on Your Face
Both your lower and upper jawbone account for 1/3 of your face. When your body reabsorbs the bone because of a lack of use, you will lose the underlying facial structure. When this happens, your lips can fold inward, your skin starts to sag, your cheeks collapse inward, your nose looks bigger, and you look older than your age. In addition, you can develop sinus issues, which impact your quality of life.
Choosing the Best Teeth Replacement
Your dentist can recommend different teeth replacement options and determine the right one for you. But among these options, dental implants are the only ones that function, look, and feel like your real teeth. They offer continuous stimulation to your jawbone because you can speak and eat with them like your natural teeth. Thus, you won’t lose further bone when you get dental implants. But if it has been a while since you lost your teeth, you may need to get a bone graft since your jawbone may not have enough density to support an implant.
