Dental implants can not only improve the appearance of your smile but also your quality of life and your health. Dental implants are a long-lasting, stable, strong alternative to dentures or dental bridges for replacing one or more missing teeth. Our Naperville dental implants patients can attest to the life-changing benefits of the treatment. While we’ve talked before about the cosmetic perks, today we’re discussing the ways dental implants can improve your oral and overall health.
What Happens if You Don’t Replace Missing Teeth?
When you lose a tooth, the teeth surrounding the empty space have a tendency to shift and fill in the gap. This will leave you with crooked teeth and spacing, which doesn’t just impact the appearance of your smile but also makes teeth harder to keep clean and can result in uneven wear of the teeth. It can also weaken the surrounding teeth and cause further tooth loss. You may experience difficulty with chewing and speaking clearly when a tooth or teeth are missing as well.
Another consequence of a missing tooth is bone resorption. If the tooth isn’t replaced, there is nothing stimulating the bone and gum tissue where it once was. This causes the jawbone and gum tissue to deteriorate, leaving you with a sunken face that looks older than it really is, as well as discomfort.
How Do Dental Implants Work?
Dental implants, both titanium and zirconia, are surgically placed in your jawbone. They fuse with the bone and act as the tooth’s root. Once your bone heals following dental implants surgery, a permanent, lifelike replacement tooth, called a crown, is attached to the implant. Your new tooth functions and looks just like your natural tooth. We can replace just one or even all of your teeth with dental implants.
What are the Health Benefits of Dental Implants?
Many of our Naperville dental implants patients seek us out because they’re worried about the appearance of their smile. The cosmetic benefits of dental implants are not something to overlook. Replacing missing teeth with a titanium dental implant or zirconia dental implant will truly revitalize your smile and make you look healthier and more youthful. This leads to a huge increase in self-esteem and self-confidence that will have a positive effect on all areas of your life. Yet, as we mentioned, there are also important oral health and overall health benefits of dental implants, including:
- Allowing You To Chew Properly – With missing teeth or dentures, you may find yourself skipping certain foods because you have a reduced ability to chew. Fresh, crunchy vegetables, nuts and seeds are among the healthy foods you may forgo. Since dental implants fuse with your bone, they act like natural teeth and you can chew with confidence. This means you can eat a more varied diet, which can improve your health.
- Preventing Jawbone Shrinkage – Dental implants stimulate your jawbone just like your natural teeth do. This is a huge benefit of dental implants vs. bridges or dentures. While dentures and bridges are useful for replacing missing teeth and restoring the appearance of your smile, you’ll still experience bone resorption and deterioration. This causes a shrunken, shriveled appearance to your face and can cause pain and discomfort. Dental implants keep your jaw healthy and strong and this is essential to your oral health.
- Avoiding Malocclusion – Malocclusions, or issues with the positioning or alignment of the teeth and jaw, can occur when missing teeth aren’t replaced. When you lose a tooth, the teeth around the gap tend to shift in an attempt to fill in the space. Because teeth are harder to clean when they’re crooked, you have an increased risk of tooth decay and gum disease. Additionally, when teeth aren’t in their correct places, they’re susceptible to excessive wear of the enamel.
- Boosting the Health of Gums When You Choose Zirconia Dental Implants – The two main types of dental implant materials are titanium and zirconia. When comparing zirconia dental implants vs. titanium implants a great perk of zirconia implants, sometimes called holistic dental implants or ceramic dental implants, is the fact that zirconia resists plaque. This helps prevent gum disease. Your gum tissue is a barrier that wards off inflammation. Gum disease introduces bacteria into the bloodstream and this bacteria result in inflammation. This is likely why gum disease is tied to a number of health problems including heart disease, stroke, diabetes and, in women, premature birth. Therefore, keeping your gums healthy isn’t just good for your oral health but it also benefits your overall health.
If you’re ready to improve your health and smile with either titanium or zirconia dental implants, schedule a complimentary consultation with our Naperville prosthodontist Dr. Anthony LaVacca. He has the experience and knowledge to help you decide on the best type of dental implant procedure for your smile and needs. Book your visit online or by giving us a call at (630) 848-2010 today!
