Losing one or more teeth can have significant, long-term impacts on your oral health, which is why preventing it is typically the better option for your smile. However, not everyone realizes how preventable tooth loss can be, or what may be contributing to their specific risks of experiencing it. Today, we examine a few of the common things that could lead to much higher risks of losing teeth, and how you can mitigate those risks to improve your chances of preventing tooth loss.
Ignoring the warning signs of gingivitis
Gingivitis, which is the first stage of gum disease, can often seem minor when it first develops. Even though signs such as inflamed and bleeding gum tissues should serve as ample warnings, they can be easy to miss, or seem insignificant enough to ignore. That’s especially true when the signs aren’t accompanied by any discomfort in your gum tissues, and because of this, gingivitis can often easily progress into more severe gum disease before patients realize it. Unfortunately, severe gum disease is the leading cause of adult tooth loss, which makes ignoring the warning signs of gingivitis an almost sure way of raising your tooth loss risks.
Failing to correct tooth misalignment
Gum disease may be a leading cause of tooth loss, but it isn’t the only threat that can seem minor only to have more serious consequences later on. The alignment of your teeth can sometimes be another. Tooth alignment describes the specific angle and positioning of each tooth, and all of your upper and lower teeth should be aligned properly for your bite to function. A discrepancy in this alignment can lead to a variety of issues with your bite’s balance, exposing some or all of your teeth to excessive levels of bite pressure. Over time, this can lead to increasingly more severe tooth damage and greater risks of losing one or more natural teeth as a result.
The absence of one or more natural teeth
Of the many different things that could potentially lead to tooth loss, the current loss of one or more teeth may be one of the most significant. Losing even a single tooth can have a domino effect on the surrounding oral health structures that leads to heightened risks of losing one or more additional teeth. The longer you wait to replace the lost tooth, preferably with a dental implant, the greater this risk will become.
Learn how to lower your risks of tooth loss
There are several things that could contribute to a heightened risk of tooth loss, though you have a good chance of avoiding it if you recognize and address your specific risk factors. To learn more, schedule an appointment with us by calling Dreem Dentistry in Leawood, KS, today at 913-681-5500.
