In recent years, more dentists and oral surgeons have been suggesting dental implants for their patients. This is an option offered instead of bridges and dentures, which in previous decades had been the much more common suggestion.
Why are we seeing a push toward dental implants? Here are five primary causes.
- You can enjoy a wider variety of foods
Traditional dentures have limitations on the types of foods that the patient should eat. Implant-supported dentures, however, can allow you to eat all sorts of crunchy, crispy, “hard” foods like pretzels, peanuts, wasabi peas, carrots, and pita chips. Some denture wearers try to eat those harder foods without chewing as much, but this is potentially dangerous, as it puts more of a burden on the stomach to break down the food items. Thankfully, with dental implants, chewing fully is less of an issue.
- You can have the surgery even after significant bone loss
When people lose teeth, the jawbone surrounding those vacated tooth roots deteriorates as well. The bone recedes, and without a tooth to support, it diminishes and shrinks. For many patients, this has historically been considered a reason why dental implant surgery would be impossible. Without sufficient bone, there is not enough source material to drill into for the implants. Recent advances, however, have made these people viable candidates for the surgery, despite their loss of bone.
- You can have the surgery in one day
Dental implant surgery is a same-day procedure, and one which does not take long to heal from. The fact that this approach is so minimally invasive makes it an appealing option.
- You can speak more clearly
People who have lost teeth often suffer speech impairments, and self-confidence issues surrounding smiling and speaking openly. With dental implants, however, these speech issues cease to be a problem, and people smile bigger than ever before.
