Dental office near Lemoore, CA discusses the benefits of choosing dental implants

Dentistry plays an important role in helping people achieve improved oral health and a better quality of life. When it comes to missing teeth, it’s important to replace them as soon as possible. Leaving open spaces in the smile can lead to more problems in the future, including shifting teeth, bone degeneration, and a loss of self-confidence. Dental implants are considered as close as you can get to natural teeth. They are a strong, natural looking solution that functions and feels just like your natural teeth. At Hanford Family Dental Center near Lemoore, CA, we recommend dental implants because they have over a 98 percent success rate and are the only true long-term solution for missing teeth.

What happens when you don’t replace missing teeth?

Your teeth serve an important function in your day to day life. Without teeth, biting and chewing foods can be extremely difficult, but the issues don’t stop there. Without the stimulation from a tooth root, the jawbone will begin to deteriorate over time. As this occurs, there can be unnecessary wear and tear on remaining natural teeth, and the face will begin to appear sunken. Dental implants can protect the jawbone from this deterioration, restore oral health, and improve the appearance of the face. Here are some of the best reasons to consider choosing dental implants for tooth replacement.

Higher overall success rate – Implants do not require any special maintenance and are often easier to maintain than other restorations such as dentures or bridgework.

No impact on healthy teeth – Crowns and bridges require modification of natural teeth to properly support the restoration. Dental implants are placed directly into the bone and do not require any support from existing teeth.

Protect healthy teeth – With implants in place, there are no gaps left in the smile, so natural teeth are unable to shift out of place. No fear of embarrassment – Traditional dentures are kept in place with denture adhesive. While some adhesives work well, many patients still worry about the possibility of their teeth shifting out of place, or even falling out. With dental implants secure in the jawbone, there is no worry of teeth moving around while eating, talking, smiling, or laughing.

Ability to enjoy your favorite foods – Dentures can limit the foods you are able to eat. Eating things such as popcorn, nuts, steak, raw fruits and vegetables are nearly impossible. Since dental implants function just like natural teeth, you can eat normally.

Ability to speak naturally – Many denture-wearers notice that their appliance alters their speech, making it difficult to pronounce certain words. Speaking naturally is easy with dental implants.

Less maintenance – While good oral hygiene is still important with dental implants, they do not require as much maintenance as other dental prosthetics. Dentures require constant removal and care, while bridgework requires special maintenance to keep the space between the gums and bridge clean. With dental implants, patients simply need to brush and floss as they did with natural teeth.

Protect bone structure – After tooth loss, the jawbone will resorb due to lack of stimulation. Dental implants stimulate the bone to prevent this from happening.

Long lasting – Traditional dentures and bridgework need to be replaced, on average, every ten years. In many cases, dental implants can last a patient a lifetime, making that a durable, resilient solution.

Dental implants can be used for a single missing tooth, several missing teeth in a row, or an entire arch of teeth. Candidates for dental implants should be in good oral health and have sufficient bone density to support the implant. Patients who have already experienced bone resorption from missing teeth can still be candidates for dental implants, but may require a bone graft.

If you are ready to learn more about the only tooth restoration that can last a lifetime and give you the reliability, appearance, and comfort of natural teeth, it’s time to call Hanford Family Dental Center today for a dental implant consultation. Our team is ready to help you improve your oral health and quality of life with dental implant restorations. We proudly serve patients in the Hanford, Lemoore, Avenal, Corcoran, and Coalinga communities.