Have you lost a tooth or two or more? Maybe you have replaced those missing teeth with a denture or you are still considering your tooth replacement options. If so, we want you to understand the difference that dental implants can make over having a partial denture or even a bridge.
Dental implants are not a luxury or a splurge–they are, quite simply, the best replacement option, and investing in the best will pay you back many times over in many ways.
Why Replace Missing Teeth
Understanding why we want to replace missing teeth helps us see what makes dental implants such a good investment.
When you have fewer teeth, you may find it harder to eat certain foods. You may even notice other consequences to your teeth.
Teeth work best when you have a full set of teeth. That way, they divide the force of chewing up evenly, and they brace one another against sideways movement. This prevents the teeth from chipping and cracking. It also helps them avoid drifting so you will not develop crooked teeth or gaps between teeth.
Your teeth also stimulate your jawbone and gums. Without stimulation, your body thinks the bone might not be necessary, so it removes it. This can affect the appearance of your smile and may also put neighboring teeth at risk.
Dental Implants Are the Most Functional Replacement
If you are replacing missing teeth, you need to make sure that the replacement is going to be functional. Many partial dentures recommend that you remove the denture for eating. Even if you keep it in, it can cause problems with chewing. It may lead to discomfort when eating certain foods. Of course, it also needs to be cleaned carefully to avoid irritation and odors.
Dental implants work just like your natural teeth. Anchored in your bone, dental implants give you basically the same biting and chewing action as natural teeth. You can keep eating a full range of fruits and vegetables to maintain your health.
Dental implants are also good because they support themselves. Dental bridges and removable dentures rely on your natural teeth for support and anchoring. This means that the forces of biting and chewing are not distributed evenly–the supporting teeth bear more force and may be at increased risk for damage or even failure.
Dental implants are the only tooth replacement that can stimulate your jawbone and gums to minimize bone loss. Dental bridges do not put any force on the bone, which can disappear under the bridge, leading to an unattractive gap under the bridge. Dentures can be even worse. They might cause your body to remove bone faster under the denture.
Put More Years in Your Life, and Life in Your Years
Dental implants and implant dentures have been proven to increase a person’s quality of life. Their increased attractiveness, their better functionality, and their low maintenance all make people happier when they have implants.
Dentures and dental bridges can be attractive, but dental implants are the best. They are structured just like your natural teeth, so they look just like your natural teeth, complete with natural gums growing up around the base of the tooth. This makes you happier every time you smile: knowing that you have an attractive smile, one without gaps and without fake-looking replacements.
People love that with dental implants they can keep eating all their favorite foods. When you have dentures, you have to evaluate everything on the menu to decide whether you can actually eat it. With dental implants, all you have to ask is: does it look good? While eating your fruits and veggies might not seem like living the high life to you, you will definitely appreciate that a healthier diet helps you stay healthy and not get sick as often.
It is much nicer to have a tooth replacement option that just requires you to brush and floss without extra cleaning steps.
Do dental implants help you live longer? This is a question science has not answered yet, but there is some evidence that suggests they might. First, we know that people with more teeth live longer. Because dental implants are so much like natural teeth, we think they might also help you live longer. How? Well, other research shows that people with stronger bite force live longer–and dental implants give you the most bite force of any tooth replacement option.
You Deserve the Best
If you have lost one or more teeth and you are considering the tooth replacement options, ask yourself: “Do I not deserve the best tooth replacement?”
If you are looking for the best tooth replacement option in St. Louis, please call (314) 678-7876 (Downtown St. Louis) or (314) 678-7876 (Clayton) today for an appointment with an implant dentist at City Smiles.
