Dentures – Las Cruces, NM

Effects of Missing Teeth

Tooth loss can detract from your daily quality of life in several ways. Not only might you feel self-conscious about the sudden changes to your appearance, but you might also struggle to eat or speak like you used to. After all, you rely on two complete arches to thoroughly chew food and clearly enunciate words.

According to the American Dental Association and other respected organizations, periodontitis (advanced gum disease) is the leading cause of tooth loss in adults. However, they can also be lost due to physical trauma or become destabilized or dislodged if you have untreated tooth decay.

What Qualifies You for Dentures?

Dentures are the standard method of rebuilding smiles after tooth loss because they’re a versatile way to replace some or all of your missing teeth. They’re ideal for patients who have:

• Suffered significant tooth loss.
• Overly sensitive teeth and gums.
• Severe tooth decay.
• Sufficiently healthy connective tissues.
• A firm enough jawbone to support your restoration.
• A consistent, twice-daily dental hygiene routine.

These replacement teeth also tend to be more cost-effective than alternatives, which can be ideal for patients on a tighter budget.

Alternative Tooth-Replacement Options

If our team in Las Cruces determines that you’re not a good candidate for dentures, don’t lose hope! There are other ways to restore your smile that you might still benefit from, including:

• Dental bridges. This is usually made from resilient, tooth-colored ceramic and contains the correct number of pontics (artificial teeth) with a dental crown on each side. These are cemented over healthy abutment teeth or dental implants in your mouth to replace one or several consecutively missing teeth.
• Dental implants. This is the only option that involves surgically embedding a titanium support rod in your jaw to anchor a more permanent restoration, which can be customized to look and feel as lifelike as possible.

Partial Dentures

Patients who still have some natural teeth remaining can enjoy a complete smile again thanks to partial dentures. This prosthetic attaches to these teeth with metal or plastic clasps, and contains a specific number of replacement teeth that seamlessly blend into your grin.

Full Dentures

A full denture can recreate an entire arch of teeth at once. The base sits on the gum tissue, and a natural suction force keeps it in place when you’re talking and eating. Adhesives can also be used for extra stability.

Implant Dentures

If you miss the strong, natural feeling of your real teeth, then you might be interesting in implant dentures. We can refer you to a specialist who places a small number of dental implants in your jaw. There, they fuse to the bone tissue, providing enough support for a full or partial denture. Implant dentures won’t slip around, they replenish more chewing force, and they keep your jawbone strong for years – even decades – to come.

Psychological Benefits

Missing teeth can impact more than ‘just’ your oral health. For instance, you might develop anxiety or depression, or avoid spending time with other people, if you’re overly worried about being judged for your dental condition.

With dentures in place, you’ll once again have two complete arches of teeth so you look and feel like the most confident version of yourself.

Clearer Enunciation

Many people experience changes in their speech patterns, such as developing a lisp or slur, after one or more of their adult teeth are lost. This is because you press your tongue to your enamel in certain ways to form various sounds and words, and you might struggle to enunciate “s”, “th”, “v”, or other consonants.

Dentures function as artificial teeth so that you can relearn how to position your muscles to speak more clearly, helping you feel more easily understood.

Improves Nutrition

Plenty of healthy foods, such as raw fruits and veggies or tough meats, that are good for your body can be difficult to bite into without all your teeth. This can contribute to malnutrition, especially if you try to stick to softer foods that are easier to chew but can be less nutritious. You might also swallow overly large pieces of food, which are difficult for your body to digest, leading to gastrointestinal concerns.

Your restoration thankfully restores a portion of your original bite force so you can eat a wider variety of wholesome foods to support your oral and overall well-being.

Preserves Oral Health

You might think of your teeth as immovable mounds in your mouth, but they’re prone to shifting out of alignment to fill in the empty spaces left behind by the ones that went missing. This can lead to dental or bite misalignments that wear down your enamel, increasing the likelihood of developing cavities or sustaining injuries. You might also develop temporomandibular joint (TMJ) problems.

Wearing your dentures helps ensure that everything remains in its rightful place to avoid potential issues.

Expands Opportunities

Did you know that, according to one study published in 2019, the probability of being employed is negatively associated with having poor oral health? One of the first things others notice about you is the quality of your smile, and gaps in your grin are less likely to make a favorable impression.

Rebuilding your grin with dentures can improve your self-esteem, which in turn can contribute to better professional achievements, deeper relationships, and a more active social calendar.