Tips for Living With Dentures

If you have several missing teeth, you may have difficulty speaking and eating. Why not take a step toward a better healthier future by asking your dentist about partial or complete dentures? Dentures are removable false teeth that allow you to smile, speak, and eat with confidence.

In this blog post, our Columbus dentist at Gibson Dental will give our best tips for how to adjust to living with dentures. For more information, we recommend scheduling a consultation with your family dentist.

Keep Dentures Wet

When you’re not wearing dentures, you’ll need to submerge them in a glass of water or denture cleanser soaking solution. Dentures that are allowed to dry out will crack and warp. Natural teeth are constantly bathed with saliva, which prevents them from drying out and fracturing. Likewise, you’ll need to make sure your dentures are never allowed to dry out.

Know How to Correct Slipping Dentures

Be prepared for your dentures to slip a little whenever you sneeze, cough, laugh, or smile. Abrupt movements may cause your dentures to slip. If you are out in public when your dentures slip, we recommend gently biting down and swallowing to ease your dentures back into place. Dentures that slip too much should be seen by your dentist for slight adjustments.

Brush Your Dentures

Care for your dentures like you would natural teeth. This means brushing your dentures twice a day to remove plaque and food particles. Just because you are missing several teeth, doesn’t mean you should start neglecting your oral hygiene routine. Dentures that aren’t cleaned regularly will start to smell and give you bad breath. Plaque buildup on your dentures can also increase your risk for gum disease. To maintain good oral health, you’ll want to make sure you brush your dentures twice daily.

Brush Your Gums

While you may not have many teeth, it’s still important to take care of your gums. Plaque can build up on your gums to give you gingivitis or the more serious periodontal disease. According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, 47.2% of Americans age 30 and older have periodontal disease. Make sure that you’re not one of them by brushing your gums daily. Soft toothbrush bristles help stimulate your gums and keep them healthy.

Practice Speaking Out Loud

It’s normal to speak with a lisp while you’re still getting used to wearing dentures. It will take time for your cheeks, lips, and tongue to get used to speaking around your new dentures. In the meantime, our Columbus family dentist recommends reading out loud as often as you can to practice pronunciation. Keep track of any words that give you difficulty so you can practice them individually. You may find that certain sounds give you more trouble than others.

Dr. Gibson DDS and his team at Gibson Dental work hard to make sure you maintain good oral health after tooth loss. If you are interested in whether you would be a candidate for complete or partial dentures, give our dentist in Columbus, OH a call at (614) 878-9562.