We spend a lot of time educating on good dental health practices to avoid losing teeth, but what about what you do after you’ve already lost a tooth? Like a lot of our patients, we’ll bet you’re not quite sure how to deal with tooth loss and what happens when you have gaps in your smile. That’s why we’ve compiled this helpful article just for you.

Keep reading to learn more!

How Missing Teeth Erode Your Confidence

First impressions are everything, and so we hope you don’t think we’re being shallow when we discuss the aesthetic changes caused by missing teeth. People place a lot of importance on appearance, and the changes to your teeth can alter the course of professional and personal relationships. 

The structure of your jaw is significantly influenced by your teeth. Losing teeth means reducing the support and stimulation your jaw uses to maintain its shape. Over time, not replacing teeth leads to your jaw shrinking, causing prematurely sagging cheeks.

The gaps left behind by missing teeth also allow the rest of your teeth room to drift and shift out of alignment. If you’ve lost a front tooth or your front teeth have drastically shifted out of alignment, you’ll actually see impacts to your speaking patterns. The front teeth play important roles in differentiating many consonant sounds. Try saying “first”, “thirst”, and “verse” without letting your tongue or lips touch any front teeth.

How Missing Teeth Erode Your Health

Misaligned teeth don’t just cause cosmetic changes; they’re also a precursor to further health problems. If you remember being a kid and losing your baby teeth, you naturally shift your chewing habits to avoid the side with fewer teeth. This is fine when we’re young and our permanent teeth are still coming in, but as adults, this prolonged, uneven chewing actually puts a lot of premature strain on your teeth. Left untreated, misalignment and uneven eating patterns can lead to future tooth loss.

All Is Not Lost!

We believe you deserve to be proud of your smile, but that can be hard with so many long-term effects of tooth loss. Thankfully, restorative dentistry can mitigate the health and cosmetic changes that come with tooth loss, and there are many options for tooth replacement, including:

• Dental Implants
• Dental Bridges
• Partial Dentures

If you’re ready to restore your smile and your confidence, call our office located in North Huntingdon, PA, and we’ll schedule an appointment for a consultation. Once you decide on the tooth replacement that’s best for you, we’ll get you on the path to better oral health and a gorgeous smile.