If you have ever felt self-conscious about missing teeth, you owe it to yourself to ask our dentist about partial or full dentures. Dr. Maly and his team have helped countless patients smile with confidence. In fact, some new dentures may be just what you need to improve your quality of life after tooth loss.
What Are Dentures?
Dentures are removable false teeth that help you to eat and speak normally after major tooth loss. For more information about dentures, we recommend contacting our Novi dentist.
However, it does take about 30 days to fully get used to wearing dentures. If you’ve recently gotten dentures, here are 6 denture care tips that will help you make the adjustment and maintain good oral health over time.
1. Never Let Your Dentures Dry Out
You’ll need to submerge your full or partial dentures in a glass of water or denture soaking solution when they’re not in your mouth. Dentures that dry out are at risk for warping and cracking. Just like natural teeth, your lower and upper dentures need to be kept wet so they don’t fracture.
2. Brush Your Dentures
Brush your denture teeth like you would natural teeth. Dentures can give you bad breath if they’re covered in plaque and odor-causing bacteria. The best way to protect your oral health (and your breath) is to brush your dentures twice a day. Brushing your dentures will also prevent stains from leftover food particles.
3. Brush Your Gums
Your gums are just as important as teeth to your oral health, which is why you should make a habit of brushing your gums. Dental plaque on the gums is enough to cause gum disease. In fact, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, 47.2% of Americans age 30 and over have periodontitis (advanced gum disease).
Since your dentures sit on top of your gums, you’ll want to avoid having bleeding, swollen, or sore gums. Skip gum disease by brushing your dentures and gums every day. Soft toothbrush bristles not only clean plaque and food particles, but stimulate your gums.
4. Practice Speaking with Dentures
When you first get dentures, you may have difficulty saying certain words without a lisp. It takes a while for your lips, cheeks, and tongue to get used to speaking around dentures. Rest assured, you won’t always speak with a lisp. In the meantime, we recommend reading out loud from one of your favorite books to practice pronunciation.
5. Practice Chewing
Wearing dentures means you can eat steak again, but it’ll take some time for you to work up to eating any tough-to-chew foods. Since dentures can slip, we recommend cutting up hard-to-chew foods (like steak) into bite-sized pieces.
6. Know How to Correct Slipping Dentures
Before you leave the office with your new dentures, our dentist will make sure the appliance fits comfortably. However, don’t be alarmed if your dentures occasionally slip. Dentures slip when you make abrupt movements, usually when sneezing, coughing, laughing, or even smiling. To discreetly adjust your dentures in public, gently bite down and swallow.
If you notice your dentures slipping a lot, you’ll want to schedule an appointment with our dentist for denture repair. Our dentist will be able to slightly adjust the fit of your dentures so they fit comfortably without slipping.
Ready to Make an Appointment?
Our denture dentists in Novi, MI are accepting new patients! To schedule an appointment and learn if you’re a candidate for dentures, call R. Peter Maly DDS at (248) 347-3700.