How To Keep Your Dental Implants Healthy
Dental implants are excellent solutions for replacing missing teeth and improving your smile and oral function. Since dental implants closely look and feel like real teeth, they allow you to enjoy your favorite foods without difficulty and smile confidently. However, like natural teeth, implants require proper dental for long-term success and health.
In this article, let’s explore nine essential tips for caring for tooth implants to ensure they stay strong and healthy for many years!
Tips for Caring for Dental Implants
- Practice good oral hygiene.
Excellent oral hygiene is vital for sustaining healthy teeth, gums, implants, and mouth. Dental experts suggest brushing your teeth at least twice daily for about 2 minutes at a time. It helps remove food debris and plaque trapped around the teeth and prevent infections. Brush gently, as vigorous brushing can damage your teeth, gums, or implants.
Flossing is also an essential component of daily oral hygiene. Flossing helps remove food particles, bacteria, and other debris trapped deep between your teeth and implants where a toothbrush can’t reach. It prevents plaque and tartar buildup in these areas, significantly lowering your risk of dental implant infection.
- Avoid abrasive dental products.
Even with regular brushing and flossing, you might still be at a greater risk of oral problems if you use the wrong products. For instance, a hard-bristled toothbrush can scratch and damage the implant surface and erode your teeth’ enamel. Similarly, abrasive toothpaste and mouthwash can wear down your implant and teeth, causing oral problems.
Dental experts recommend using a strong but soft-bristled toothbrush and non-abrasive toothpaste when brushing. If possible, use fluoride toothpaste or mouthwash, as it helps remineralize your enamel and fortify your teeth. When flossing, you can use water flossers or interdental brushes.
- Avoid tobacco products.
Tobacco products can significantly impact your implants, gums, and overall health. For instance, smoking affects your body’s ability to deliver oxygen and essential nutrients to various areas of the body, leading to poor implant healing.
It can also lower your body’s immune system, increasing the risk of infections around the implant and potentially causing implant failure. If you smoke, you should consider quitting to promote overall well-being and ensure the long-term success of your implant.
- Watch your diet.
Food is crucial for maintaining healthy teeth, gums, and implants. However, certain food items can damage your teeth and implants. For instance, hard foods like ice, raw nuts, and candy can damage your implant surface, gums, and teeth, making you susceptible to oral infections. Similarly, chewy and sticky items can encourage plaque buildup around the implant, causing infections.
To ensure the long-term health and condition of your implants, avoid or limit hard, chewy, sticky, acidic, highly pigmented, and crunchy food items, especially when the implant is still new. Once the implant has healed, you can introduce moderately tougher food, but be mindful as they can still cause damage to your implants.
- See your regular dentist for routine dental checkups and cleanings.
Regular dental visits are vital for keeping healthy teeth, gums, and implants. These visits permit the dentist to monitor your oral health and implants and address any issues early on before they worsen.
The dentist also cleans your mouth and implants to remove bacterial deposits, lowering your risk of tooth implant infections. Dental experts recommend having at least two dental checkups and cleanings every year.
- Don’t ignore implant complications.
While dental implants are safe and highly successful, side effects and complications can still occur. Contact our dentist near you right away if you experience the following symptoms:
- Severe and persistent pain around the implant
- Persistent gum swelling or redness around the implant
- Difficulty chewing or biting
- Wobbly or loose implant
- Sensitivity to heat, cold, or sugar
- Infection or pus from the implant site
Early treatment for these complications will alleviate discomfort and prevent further damage to your implant and surrounding tissues.
- Wear a mouthguard.
Do you participate in high-impact activities or grind your teeth at night? Wearing a custom mouth guard can help protect your teeth and implants against damage.
- Maintain a healthy lifestyle.
Many lifestyle factors can affect your oral health. Maintaining good lifestyle habits like proper diet, regular exercise, and avoiding damaging habits will promote excellent implant health. It also reduces your risk of serious oral and overall health issues.
- Follow your dentist’s instructions.
After placing your implant, your dentist or surgeon will give you aftercare instructions for caring for your dental implants and mouth. Following these instructions will help ensure your dental implants’ long-term success and health.
Are You Interested in Dental Implants in Andover, MA?
For more information about dental implant treatment and aftercare, contact Andover Cosmetic Dental Group.