Okemos, Lansing and East Lansing Michigan
Dental implants are an excellent way to replace missing teeth and restore your smile. Since dental implants look and feel like natural teeth, they provide a natural feeling when you bite or chew and boost your confidence when smiling. But dental implants are an investment and with diligent care and maintenance, they should last a lifetime. So today on the blog, our Okemos implant dentist, Dr. Christine Tenaglia, shares four rules to live by if you have, or are thinking about getting, dental implants.
Avoid using a hard-bristled toothbrush
You may not realize that your choice of toothbrush would matter much in terms of your oral health. Dr. Tenaglia recommends everyone steer clear of hard-bristled toothbrushes for their teeth because they can do more damage than good. Pay close attention to the type of toothbrush you select. Avoid hard or medium bristled toothbrushes because they can be too abrasive and cause gum recession or wear enamel thin or cause micro scratches on the implant’s porcelain crown. Instead, opt for toothbrushes that are labeled as soft. If you brush for the recommended two minutes twice a day, a soft bristled toothbrush provides just enough abrasion to remove food debris and plaque buildup without harming your oral health or dental restorations.
Avoid abrasive toothpastes and oral rinses
Some toothpastes are too abrasive, and can could damage your natural teeth, gums, or dental implant crown. Ideally, choose a toothpaste that has the American Dental Association’s (ADA) seal of approval and avoid making your own concoctions of toothpastes at home without consulting your dentist. Additionally, be careful of the mouth rinses you choose because some ingredients like alcohol could cause discomfort to the inside of your mouth or damage oral prosthetics like dental implants over time. There are alcohol-free mouth rinses that you can choose to help freshen your breath and kill oral bacteria. You don’t have to feel the burn for a mouthrinse to be considered effective.
Avoid alcohol and tobacco products
Alcohol and tobacco products aren’t good for your health in general, and can be especially harmful to your oral health, including dental implants. Heavy alcohol consumption has been linked as a contributing factor of bone loss throughout the body, which could impact your jawbone health. It’s essential for the stability of your dental implant, as well as the health of your other natural teeth, to limit or avoid alcohol so that you have good bone health. Additionally, nicotine, an addictive chemical found in all tobacco products, constricts blood vessels, which reduces blood flow. Unfortunately, that reduced blood flow equates to slower healing time, which could harm the success of your dental implant or result in implant failure. Implant failure requires that the implant be removed, and you may have to start the process over again.
Avoid sticky or hard foods
Sticky food like caramel or taffy, as well as hard food like ice or hard candies could damage or crack the porcelain covering of your dental implant crown. While cracked or damaged porcelain doesn’t necessarily compromise the implant post, it could cause your bite to become uneven, and you may need to replace the dental implant crown. Additionally, these foods could be damaging to your natural teeth too. Dr. Tenaglia advises that everyone should take caution when consuming sticky or hard candy or ice or avoid them to prevent damaging existing dental work or teeth.
Implant Dentist in Okemos, Lansing, and East Lansing, MI
Dentists have used dental implants for decades to restore smiles and chewing abilities. Dr. Tenaglia has helped transform many smiles with the help of dental implants to replace missing teeth. If you would like to learn more about dental implants or find out if you are a candidate for this procedure, contact Tenaglia Smiles today at (517) 347-6733.