It is very often said that false teeth or Dentures are no good; they look bad, are loose and are for the ‘very old’. Is this really the case? The answer is a definitely NO. It all depends on the dentist, the technician denture technology applied and the patient.

With or without teeth, your mouth slowly changes as you age. But people who have no teeth on average lose 1/3 mm of jawbone height and width each year. Sometimes the tissue loss is greater due to certain medical conditions such as osteoporosis. As our jawbone shrinks, so do our gum tissues. They can shrink up to a quarter-inch in 10 years!

When teeth are lost and gum tissues shrink, some facial support is lost. This explains why people with no teeth often have deep wrinkles around the mouth and a sunken look to their cheeks and lower face.

Often you don’t notice the gradual receding of your gum tissues. But over time, your dentures loosen and become unstable, affecting you in any of a number of different ways. This is why its recommended to replace your false teeth every 5 to 7 years.

Losing teeth in adulthood does not have to cripple your daily eating habits, your social life or your confidence. Thanks to progress in dentistry, removable dentures – whether full or partials – can look as natural as real teeth. At your denture appointment ,we will will take precise measurements of your mouth and gums to ensure your replacement teeth fits your facial profile.

At Lane Ends Dental Practice, we understand that your smile is a unique reflection of your personality, and one of the key visual signifiers by which you communicate with the world around you. Natural-looking false teeth shouldn’t compromise this. In fact, once you’ve got the perfect fit and made the adjustment and chosen your denture adhesive cream, your new false teeth will be able to sustain your smile for years to come.

However, we appreciate that until you’re fully comfortable with your new dentures, it’s possible to feel like your smile isn’t your own. Similar to how a small ulcer inside your mouth might feel huge to your tongue, you may feel that your new teeth are shouting ‘false teeth’ to people when in fact they’re hardly noticeable, if at all.

 

Tips for the Perfect Denture Smile

Choose together. Ask a loved one whose opinion you value to accompany you when you are having new denture made. They’ll help you select natural looking denture that best recreate your original smile.

A right mouthful. The sensation of having new denture that feel too big for your mouth is a common one, especially in the first few weeks or a month after fitting. You may even feel as though your lips are being pushed outwards by your dentures. You may notice it but most people are highly unlikely to, so don’t worry or allow this to damage your confidence. Again,

First get the right fit. If your smile has changed, it may take a little time to get used to it.

Take good care of your new teeth as they are not indestructible. Like real teeth, natural looking false teeth are just as susceptible to the effects of smoking, food getting trapped between them and being stained by drinks – especially tea and coffee.

Big changes are never easy to accept, and new denture are no exception. So, if you’re told you need dentures, you may feel a bit nervous wondering what this new experience will feel like.

• Speaking. At first, you may find pronouncing certain words requires practice, but reading out loud and repeating troublesome words helps. If you notice your new dentures “click” while you’re talking, speak slower.

• Fitting. Your new denture may feel awkward for a few weeks until you get used to them. They may also feel loose while the muscles of your cheek and tongue learn to keep them in place. This feeling will fade as your mouth becomes accustomed to them.

• Slipping. You may also find your new dentures occasionally slip when you laugh, cough or smile. To fix this problem just re-position your teeth by gently biting down and swallowing.

False teeth don’t need to mean the end of your social life – far from it! One of the most significant ways in which wearing dentures can impact your life is that your saliva may no longer be able to reach the hard-to-reach areas of your mouth, where it would normally perform a natural cleansing and lubricating action. This can lead to the spread of bacteria, a leading cause of bad breath. However,this one is all on you. If you don’t brush and clean your dentures properly, food will get stuck in them and cause bacteria growth. This not only will give you bad breath, but it weakens the denture.

As earlier mentioned , success with denture originates from a collaboration among dentist, laboratory technician, and, of course, the denture-wearer. Creating false teeth that look natural is as much an art as it is a science. We take a number of steps to make sure you will get the best results. These include:

Positioning the teeth. Using facial landmarks and photographs of how you used to look before your teeth were lost helps us determine where to place each tooth and how the upper and lower teeth should line up in relation to each other. For example, we will consider what size the teeth should be; how close to the lip they should be; and how much space should exist between the upper and lower teeth when they are at rest.

Simulating natural gums. If you are someone with a “high lip dynamic” (a lot of gum shows when you smile), it is particularly important to simulate real gum tissue in a set of full dentures. Fortunately, there are many colours and textures available to create a realistic effect. Again, photographs can be helpful in achieving this.

Balancing the bite. We must make sure that your upper and lower teeth come together in a way that facilitates normal biting, chewing, and speech.

We are proud to be able to offer natural looking denture option and even more services to our patients who suffer from tooth loss. Have more questions for us about these treatments? Contact our team today!