4 Smart Lifestyle Changes for Denture Wearers

A well-made, properly-fitted set of dentures can give their wearers a new lease on life after years of painful chewing or cosmetic embarrassment. Even so, the adoption of some smart lifestyle and behavioral changes can make dentures that much easier to wear and use. Here are four such changes to consider.

A lack of teeth does not mean total freedom from the everyday practice of proper dental hygiene. Dentures require cleaning just as natural teeth do. The main differences lie in the specific approaches and tools used to keep your dentures and your mouth as clean as possible.

Get into the habit of removing your dentures after meals and rinsing them in clean water. This practice gets rid of food particles quickly and easily. Once a day, remove the dentures and brush them with a soft-bristled toothbrush, using a denture cleanser instead of conventional toothpaste (which can cause abrasion). 

Don't forget to clean any bits of denture adhesive out of your denture lining. If you neglect this phase of your denture cleaning routine, adhesive will accumulate within the grooves until eventually your dentures no longer fit comfortably.

Your gums also need regular cleaning to prevent bacterial infiltration, inflammation, and infection. Brush these tissues gently with a different soft-bristled toothbrush than the one you used to clean your dentures. The separate toothbrush prevents you from getting remnants of denture cleanser in your mouth.

If you remove your dentures overnight, you need to keep them moist until morning. Many denture wearers place their appliances in a glass filled with either clean water or a denture-safe cleaning solution. Our dentist can advise you on any specific products that your particular dentures might require.

Eating with dentures can pose some challenges for individuals not used to wearing them. Fortunately, you can learn to surmount or sidestep most of these issues and enjoy most of your favorite pre-denture foods. Ultimately, you should find chewing with dentures much easier than struggling with painful or missing teeth. 

The easiest way to get accustomed to eating with dentures involves starting with soft foods that require a minimum of chewing. From there, add other favorite items to your menu carefully. Rotate the chewing burden between each side of your mouth, giving both sides equal chewing time to prevent slippage and uneven wear. 

Biting into hard foods such as apples, steak, or corn on the cob may prove tricky long after you've gotten used to dentures. Even the strongest suction or adhesive has its limits. However, you can still enjoy these foods. Simply at your corn off the cob, slice your apples, and cut steak into small pieces for easier eating. 

The musculature of your mouth plays more of a role in comfortable and effective denture usage than you might realize. For instance, your cheek muscles not only help you form words, but they also help move food to the back of the mouth. Work on building strength in these muscles, and in the muscle at the front of your mouth.

When you first try to speak with dentures, your mouth may produce some unwanted clicking and hissing sounds at first. You can overcome these annoyances by practicing individual constants and vowel sounds slowly. Try singing slow, simple songs to improve your enunciation and confidence when you speak.

Good nutrition can help anyone enjoy better health, including denture wearers worried about bone loss in the jaw. You can help your bone density by getting plenty of calcium. Make sure that any calcium supplement you take also offers Vitamin D, which helps your body use that calcium effectively.

Denture wearers may run the risk of consuming too much zinc. Some adhesive products include zinc as a key ingredient. Excessive zinc exposure can lead to copper deficiency, which in turn can cause illness. Your dentist can recommend zinc-free denture adhesives.

Dr. Gregory B. Halls Denture Center can help you get the most useful and enjoyable experience out of your dentures for many years to come. Contact our clinic today to ask for advice or schedule an appointment.