Unfortunately, it happens. Whether it?s a physical accident, injury or symptom of a lack dental care. While it may be seen as just a cosmetic issue that does not need attention, especially for those back teeth, a missing tooth can lead to damaging consequences for your entire mouth and overall health. Here are some of the reasons why it is important to replace missing teeth:
1. Keep your gums healthy
When our teeth shift, it is harder to maintain the health of our gums and surrounding teeth. When a single tooth is lost, more of our gums are exposed, which increases our susceptibility to gum disease which can ultimately lead to us losing more teeth through a dangerous domino effect. Dental implants help by protecting our sensitive gum tissue and decreasing susceptibility to gum disease and tooth loss.
2. Keep all of your teeth straight
When one tooth is lost, neighboring teeth lose their partner in structure. Our other teeth will start to shift and drift out of alignment in order to compensate for the gap. These crooked or shifted teeth not only impact how your smile looks, they also can lead to issues with your jaw, pain and tooth-grinding that can hurt other teeth. Maintaining the structure of your smile and bite with a dental implant will keep your teeth from succumbing to the gap.
3. Maintain your facial structure and jaw mobility
Your smile does a lot more for the structure of your face than just adding some sparkle. A healthy and full set of teeth supports your jawbone and the roots of your teeth also allow for enough blood to flow through the entire area. If blood flow is cut off due to a missing tooth, the jaw and gums start to recede and weaken, shifting the structure of our entire face. Our jaw can also lose mobility as it weakens due to the change in blood flow and internal structure. A dental implant works to maintain the blood flow, supporting the internal structure and overall strength of the face.
So, while it may seem like one tooth missing is no big thing to miss, a dental implant to restore the tooth makes a mighty difference in your overall hygiene and health. Have a missing tooth that needs replacement? Don?t worry- your Krengel Dental team has your gap (and back)! Call us now (952-888-1311) for information on dental implants and tooth replacements or to schedule an appointment.
