Steps to Properly Care for Your Dental Implants
Nov 19, 2020
If you are ready to acquire dental implants, it is important to understand exactly how to properly care for them after your treatment is complete. Dental implants do not require special care beyond your regular oral hygiene routine. However, there are additional steps dentists advise you to take in your daily life. Knowing exactly how to care for your dental implants and your smile can help ensure the longevity of your investment.
Brush and Floss Daily
Brushing and flossing your teeth daily removes bacterial plaque from your teeth. If dental health is neglected, plaque solidifies into tartar and releases dangerous toxins that lead to gum tissue disease. Specifically, when you have dental implants, not maintaining good oral hygiene can cause peri-implantitis, a condition similar to gum disease where bacteria infect the gum tissue and bone surrounding a dental implant. Brush twice daily with a soft-bristle toothbrush and nonabrasive toothpaste, and floss once daily to help prevent dental implant failure.
Eat a Nutritious Diet
Eating a healthy diet provides your body and mouth with the nutrients needed to stay healthy and helps boost your immune system. A healthy diet includes foods rich in vitamins and minerals, proteins, fiber, and calcium, with minimal sugars, carbohydrates, and starches. In your diet, it is also advised that you avoid hard and sticky foods to prevent damaging your dental implants. Though rare, there is always a risk your dental implant can become damaged when biting and chewing these types of foods.
Minimize or Quit Smoking Cigarettes
Many scientific studies provide evidence of a link between smoking and an increased risk of gum disease. Nicotine in cigarettes decreases blood flow to the soft tissues and weakens the immune system. This makes it harder for the body to heal after surgery and for the bone and implant to integrate. Cigarette smoke can also burn tissues inside the mouth and block salivary glands, increasing the risk of dry mouth and the development of gum disease.
Schedule Your Consultation
If you have an interest in dental implants or are worried you might have peri-implantitis, get in touch with our doctors, Dr Jig Patel and Dr Muizz Merchant, in our office in Schaumburg, IL today by scheduling your appointment online or calling (847) 348-8673.
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