For those who are missing teeth, dentures are often a good option.
Not only do dentures provide aesthetic benefits, but functional benefits as well, helping individuals to properly chew their food and properly speak their words.
However, dentures can also cause problems, particularly if they’re not fitted correctly. For this reason, if you wear dentures, you need to keep a close eye on them, ensuring that they’re not loose. Failure to do so could result in long-term negative effects.
Without further ado, here are 7 negative effects of loose dentures.
1. Swollen Gums
When dentures are created, they are formed to fit the specific shape and contours of your mouth. This is what allows them to sit firmly in the mouth. Unfortunately, over time, as the mouth changes shape, the dentures begin to sit unsteadily.
This unsteadiness causes the dentures to rub back and forth against the gums. This is particularly true when the wearer is speaking or eating.
Eventually, the friction from the moving dentures will cause the gums to become inflamed. From there, they will become swollen, negatively affecting both the aesthetic and functional performance of your mouth. Not to mention, they become vulnerable to infection.
If your gums are swollen, you need to stop wearing your dentures immediately. Be sure to schedule an appointment with a dentist as soon as you can.
He or she will measure you for a new pair, and might even suggest permanent dentures. Check out this website for more information.
2. Oral Blisters
Another negative effect of wearing loose dentures is the development of oral blisters. These blisters can be very painful, and, if never given time to heal, can become seriously infected.
When it comes to ill-fitting dentures, oral blisters form for the same reason that gum swelling presents itself. The dentures move back and forth, creating friction against the inside of the mouth and wearing away the skin.
Truthfully, this symptom will probably be difficult for you to ignore. Oral blisters generally cause severe pain, and can often make it difficult for affected individuals to eat or drink.
3. Pooling Saliva
Loose fitting dentures don’t only cause problems because of the friction that they create, they also cause problems because of the way that they affect the bite. If dentures aren’t properly fitted, they will often cause the wearer’s teeth to sit in a state of misalignment.
This misalignment is a problem for a number of reasons, one of which is that it causes saliva to pool in the pockets between the teeth and the inside of the mouth.
While this might not seem like a huge problem, the fact of the matter is that it makes the mouth highly susceptible to infection. There are a number of bacteria contained within saliva, and the longer these bacteria sit in one place, the greater chance they have of being a detriment.
The particular condition associated with this problem is angular cheilitis, a condition which causes a crusty, irritating rash around the mouth.
4. Speech Problems
Another common problem caused by loose dentures is disturbed speech. When dentures can’t sit still against the gums, they affect the shape of the mouth and lips as they’re trying to form communicative sounds.
While wearers can often alter their mouths and lips to accommodate for their loose dentures, they are not always able to do so.
Many different types of speech impediments can be caused by ill-fitting dentures. Some wearers develop a lisp. Others have trouble enunciating specific letters in words.
The only way that these individuals can return their speech to normal is by being fitted for new dentures.
5. Ear Aches
As was noted above, loose-fitting dentures often lead to misaligned teeth. When the teeth become misaligned, they aren’t able to fit against each other without putting stress on the muscles in the mouth.
This, in turn, leads to mouth and jaw soreness.
Once the mouth and jaw become sore, the entire rest of the head is bound to become sore as well. This includes the ears. For this reason, if you sport loose dentures, you become highly susceptible to earaches.
The only realistic way to do away with denture-caused earaches is to be fitted for a new pair. This will help to realign your teeth, taking stress off of your mouth muscles and joints.
6. Headaches
Not only are the ears affected by the tooth misalignment brought on by loose dentures, but the head as a whole as well.
The tooth misalignment brought on by ill-fitting dentures places undue stress on the muscles and joints in the mouth. This stress transfers to the head, causing tension headaches.
In the short-term, this problem is usually just a sporadic one. You’ll have a headache directly after wearing the dentures.
In the long-term, however, this problem could become chronic. If the dentures permanently alter the alignment of the jaw and teeth, pressure and stress could be put on the wearer’s mouth for the rest of his or her life.
This is why a denture change is needed ASAP.
7. Pain When Chewing
One last negative effect of loose dentures is the existence of pain when chewing. This pain presents itself for two primary reasons: 1. the dentures create friction against the gums and mouth and 2. the dentures cause the teeth to become misaligned.
Generally, eating with loose dentures will create a sharp, burning pain in the gums and interior of the mouth. At the same time, it will create a dull, aching pain in the muscles and joints which exist within the face.
Dentures are supposed to assist you in chewing. They’re not supposed to make chewing a difficult activity.
Don’t Stand for Loose Dentures!
If your dentures are loose, it’s recommended that you deal with them as soon as possible. After all, continuing to wear loose dentures can result in all of the problems discussed above.
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