The Importance of Dental Care As We Become Older

Dental care is something that most of us probably take for granted. We probably had it drilled into us how important it was to make sure that we regularly visited the dentist when we were younger. Sadly, as we get older and approach the later years of our lives, we probably stop attending so regularly, sometimes because of mobility issues and perhaps sometimes because we feel that our teeth are 'past it'. We look at our old and discoloured teeth and the teeth that no longer exist and feel that there is little that a dentist can do now anyway.

This may be true with standard dentists; however, the increase in the number of cosmetic dentists has also seen an increase in the number of older people that visit them. So what can a cosmetic dentist offer an older person that a general dentist can't?

Of course, many cosmetic dentists also offer the usual range of procedures such as fillings and extractions,however, they also offer a range of cosmetic dental procedures which are of great benefit as we get older.

On a purely cosmetic basis, as we get older, the molecules in our teeth naturally darken, and there is little that we can do to stop this. A tooth whitening procedure however, can make a significant difference to the whiteness of a persons' teeth and can take years off a persons age with a simple one hour procedure.

Perhaps more important for those older patients, even those into their eighties and beyond, are the procedures which bring greater functionality to their teeth. This is especially important as older people often have a tendency to reduce the number of foods that they can eat to the difficulty that they have in chewing them. This, in turn, can reduce the nutritional intake which they need to remain in good health.

For individual teeth, a straightforward dental implant is probably the best option available as this will provide a long term solution by replacing the missing tooth with a replacement artificial one which is strong and sturdy.

For many older people though, they already have dentures but often find that they have become loose and difficult to use when eating. Because of this, many cosmetic dentists are now recommending that either, the dentures are fixed into place by using an all on four procedure, using mini dental implants, or alternatively, the dentures are replaced by a fixed bridge which is held into place using the same all on four procedure.

This procedure has a number of advantages in that they teeth are fixed into place by the dental implants and do not have to be removed by cleaning. They are also tightly fixed to the jawbone and so means that the patient can eat whatever they like. In addition, because mini implants are used in this procedure, there is not the problem of thinning jawbone which can be the case in older people. Usually this would require a bone graft but using the mini implants avoids this process.

By having these cosmetic dental procedures, even very elderly people can benefit by not only improving their appearance in their later life but also by enjoying their food once more whilst at the same time, receiving the nourishment that they need for a long and vibrant life.