What’s the Best Way to Replace Missing Teeth?

Dealing with missing teeth or removable dentures is difficult and frustrating. No one wants to think about losing their teeth, but unfortunately, there are millions of Americans who are living without teeth. There are huge repercussions to losing your teeth, and you need to know the best ways to restore your mouth.

Today, we need to speak about ways you can repair your mouth and eat the foods you love again. Missing teeth make it nearly impossible to get the nutrition you need. Because of the lack of food options available to people with missing teeth or dentures, it’s likely that your overall will also suffer. I’ve read studies that claim patients without teeth cut as much as 10 years off their life. It makes perfect sense. Without good nutrition, it’s next to impossible to live a healthy life!

Below I’ve shared some ways in which we can replace your missing teeth with dental implants and give you the option to eat the food you love again. I’ll also show you how dental implants compare with other treatments

Dental implants to replace single missing teeth

For years, the most convenient way to replace missing teeth was with a denture or bridge. These options don’t so much replace the missing tooth or teeth as they do fill the gap caused by the missing tooth. A bridge requires us to file down the adjacent healthy teeth to support the appliance, and a traditional denture slides around in the mouth. Bridges have a higher failure rate because we have to shave down your healthy teeth — and anytime you restore teeth, you risk needing additional dental work. And the biggest problem with a denture is that it’s hard to keep in place.

There is always the option of doing nothing. But single missing teeth are important to fix because one missing tooth can affect the alignment of your remaining healthy teeth, and of course, missing teeth are an eyesore. Today, dental implants are our ideal way to replace missing teeth. The implants, which are made from titanium, naturally fuse with the jawbone to support a permanent, lifelike restoration.

No more slippery dentures

We’ve covered how to fix single missing teeth, but we can also use dental implants to stabilize dentures. Removable dentures are tough on patients. These dentures work great shortly after they are crafted, but overtime, they can warp and slide around in the mouth. Also, because the teeth are lost, the jawbone begins to change shapes. All of this leads to poor biting force, which directly affects the patient’s overall health.

I don’t know too many patients who enjoy wearing removable dentures. Actually, I typically find that denture wearers keep their teeth by their bed or in their pocket more than they do in their mouth. We can place dental implants around the mouth and then fashion a denture to secure on top of the dental implants. The dental implants open up your food options, and you no longer have to worry about your teeth sliding around in your mouth.

This is just a short introduction into dental implants. We have so much more to tell you about. To visit our office for an in-depth consultation, call one of our two locations. You can reach the St. John dental office at 219-322-9920 or the Valparaiso office at 219-462-1970.