What is the Problem with Missing Teeth?
Losing a tooth is common, and the older people get, the more likely they are to have lost one or more teeth. In fact, more than half of adults in the US are missing at least one tooth, and the number of missing teeth rises as people age. You may think the only drawback of missing one or more teeth is the appearance of your smile, but losing teeth can actually have adverse effects on your oral health as well as your overall health. Losing teeth can lead to bone loss in the jaw, problems with the bite and the alignment of the teeth, and increased risk of disease. Each of these issues can lead to other issues, resulting in a significant diminishment of quality of life, and the problems worsen the longer the teeth remain unrestored.
Your teeth depend on your jawbone for support and to secure them where they belong, and teeth also help support the strength and health of the bone. Chewing exercises the jaw, stimulating the tissue and promoting the growth of healthy bone, but when there is no tooth in a specific area, the bone in that area lacks stimulation and begins to deteriorate. The longer the space remains in the jaw, the more damage afflicts the bone; as more and more bone is destroyed, the more the surrounding teeth are threatened. This weakens the surrounding teeth by compromising their foundation, causing the teeth to shift. As the teeth adjacent to the missing teeth begin to shift, this makes the teeth crowd together crookedly, and when the teeth are crowded together, they are much harder to clean effectively. Bacteria and debris accumulate on the crowded area of the teeth can cause gum disease, which leads to further degradation of the bone and increases the likelihood of the loss of even more teeth.
Shifting teeth can also lead to other problems. When adjacent teeth shift toward one another, this changes the way your teeth align with one another when you bite and chew. This improper bite, also known as malocclusion, can lead to jaw disorders like TMJ or bruxism, which is the chronic clenching or grinding of the teeth. Both bruxism and TMJ can cause increased tooth sensitivity, damage the structure and appearance of the teeth, and can lead to painful headaches and general discomfort in the jaw, head, and neck.
Leaving a tooth or row of teeth alone and not replacing them can also increase your risk of certain health issues. Missing teeth can lead to gum disease, as bacteria can gather in the open pocket in the gum where your tooth is missing. When bacteria colonize in the gums, they cause gingivitis and periodontitis, diseases that wreak havoc on the gums, bone, and other oral tissues by causing inflammation. This inflammation leads to more tooth loss and more bone loss, and periodontitis has also been connected with increased risk of such systemic conditions as diabetes, dementia, heart disease, and even cancer. If you think you can’t afford to replace missing teeth, talk to a dentist; you may find that the long-term costs are far greater than you’d realized, and a prompt investment in your teeth might fend off far greater problems.