As Halloween approaches, many of us are looking for ways to incorporate scary themes throughout the holiday. Some of us may dress up as our favorite monsters or villains, while others may be participating in the local neighborhood scare-off as to who can decorate their house the spookiest– hey it’s not always a competition for the best Christmas lights! Our movie buffs will be using the holiday for an excuse to binge watch their favorite horror films via AMC FearFest, and for the bakers out there, Halloween is the perfect time to try out the new jack-o-lantern cupcake recipe you found on Pinterest.
No matter what method you choose, Halloween is in the air and we are more than ready for a scare – but I can guarantee you didn’t think it would be coming from your teeth!
Negative Impacts of tooth loss
You are not alone when it comes to tooth loss. People lose teeth for various reasons such as illness, an accident, or genetics. No matter what the cause, tooth loss is serious and should be taken care of as soon as possible. However, many people find it more “convenient” to simply let the problem progress and avoid the dentist and oral surgeon at all costs. Although this may seem like the easiest solution at the time, you will be in for a rude awakening when it comes to discovering the imminent problems first hand.
Some consequences may be more obvious than others, such as missing out on some of your favorite foods – and with Halloween in the air, this is harder than ever since the majority of candy is absolutely out of the question. There are many emotional impacts as well. People become less confident in themselves, avoid smiling, and some begin to dismiss themselves from social outings out of embarrassment of their teeth. However, there are many consequences of tooth loss you may not have considered.
The consequences of tooth loss can be scary.
Your Teeth Function as a System
Rather than thinking of each tooth as having their own individual function, it is important to realize your teeth are an integrated system. Each tooth relies on one another to function properly and stay aligned. With tooth loss, all of your teeth are affected, not just one. Each tooth is a central element in continuously stimulating the jawbone and preventing bone loss.
Tooth Loss Causes Bone Loss
As mentioned above, each tooth is a crucial component in maintaining bone tissue. In order for your jawbone to stay healthy and maintain volume and density, it needs to be stimulated. Bone is stimulated by teeth touching each other through chewing, speaking, and other normal activities occurring numerous times throughout the day. This pressure causes the bone underneath each tooth to continuously rebuild in order to maintain density.
However, with tooth loss, the bone is no longer stimulated, causing the jawbone to weaken and lose density. As a result resorption occurs, which is when the jawbone shrinks over time.
Bone Loss Makes You Look Older
Thanks to society’s infatuation with youth, the pressure to stay young is stronger than ever. Based on the numerous advertisements for revitalizing skin and wrinkle creams, Botox, and other types of plastic surgery, it’s evident maintaining a youthful appearance is important to the majority of people.
Rather than devoting hundreds of thousands of dollars to plastic surgery and skin ointments, you will be surprised to know that neglecting tooth loss is a huge component of making you look older. The longer missing teeth are neglected the more bone you will lose over time – and the older you will look. As your jawbone loses density and shrinks your skin will sag giving a sunken appearance.
Research shows that after the first year of tooth loss alone, there is a 25% decrease in the width of your jawbone. Over the next four years there is an overall decrease of 4 millimeters in height as well. Not only when your jawbone shrinks do you start looking older, you become more prone to jaw fractures too!
Unfortunately, traditional solutions such as dentures and bridges don’t help stimulate the jawbone since they only function as an aesthetic solution, but with dental implants you are provided with a root replacement option functioning as your natural tooth. So there is hope! By being proactive with your tooth loss you can prevent yourself from looking older than you are.
Conclusion
Don’t let your teeth be your biggest scare this Halloween. Take action as soon as possible and you will avoid the ongoing problems of tooth loss. For those of you who are already suffering from tooth loss there are options for you to take as well. The All-On-4 dental implant concept uses only four implants to replace an entire upper or lower set of teeth. Rather than going through the hassles of bone grafting, you can receive a new set of teeth in just one day.
Video copyright of Nobel Biocare
Thanks to society’s infatuation with youth, the pressure to stay young is stronger than ever. Based on the numerous advertisements for revitalizing skin and wrinkle creams, Botox, and other types of plastic surgery, it’s evident maintaining a youthful appearance is important to the majority of people.
Rather than devoting hundreds of thousands of dollars to plastic surgery and skin ointments, you will be surprised to know that neglecting tooth loss is a huge component of making you look older. The longer missing teeth are neglected the more bone you will lose over time – and the older you will look. As your jawbone loses density and shrinks your skin will sag giving a sunken appearance.
Research shows that after the first year of tooth loss alone, there is a 25% decrease in the width of your jawbone. Over the next four years there is an overall decrease of 4 millimeters in height as well. Not only when your jawbone shrinks do you start looking older, you become more prone to jaw fractures too!
Unfortunately, traditional solutions such as dentures and bridges don’t help stimulate the jawbone since they only function as an aesthetic solution, but with dental implants you are provided with a root replacement option functioning as your natural tooth. So there is hope! By being proactive with your tooth loss you can prevent yourself from looking older than you are.
Thanks to society’s infatuation with youth, the pressure to stay young is stronger than ever. Based on the numerous advertisements for revitalizing skin and wrinkle creams, Botox, and other types of plastic surgery, it’s evident maintaining a youthful appearance is important to the majority of people.
Rather than devoting hundreds of thousands of dollars to plastic surgery and skin ointments, you will be surprised to know that neglecting tooth loss is a huge component of making you look older. The longer missing teeth are neglected the more bone you will lose over time – and the older you will look. As your jawbone loses density and shrinks your skin will sag giving a sunken appearance.
Research shows that after the first year of tooth loss alone, there is a 25% decrease in the width of your jawbone. Over the next four years there is an overall decrease of 4 millimeters in height as well. Not only when your jawbone shrinks do you start looking older, you become more prone to jaw fractures too!
Unfortunately, traditional solutions such as dentures and bridges don’t help stimulate the jawbone since they only function as an aesthetic solution, but with dental implants you are provided with a root replacement option functioning as your natural tooth. So there is hope! By being proactive with your tooth loss you can prevent yourself from looking older than you are.
