When it comes to looking young, there's a lot that goes into preserving the appearance of your face. Maintaining collagen, preventing wrinkles, and staying moisturized all have a part to play. However, all of those efforts could be useless if you have missing teeth. Keep reading to learn how one or more missing teeth could potentially age you prematurely, even if the missing tooth isn't visible when you smile.
How Lost Teeth Affect the Jaw
Most people know and understand that if you lose all of your teeth, the look of your face changes dramatically as a result. However, as little as a single tooth lost could still have a major impact on your jaw.
The teeth and the jaw work together to maintain optimal health. Your jaw supports your teeth, and in turn, your teeth help to send pressure down into the jaw every time you bite. That pressure keeps your jaw bone strong and healthy, helping you to maintain a chiseled jawline. Unfortunately, with as little as one tooth loss, the jaw can begin to weaken and lose bone density. As a result, your jaw may look less noticeable and defined.
Weak Jaw = Sagging Jawline
To make matters worse, a weakened jaw bone can also cause you to develop jowls or a sagging jawline. The jaw bone is part of what creates the structure of your face, just like your cheekbones and chin. When the jaw bone weakens substantially, the skin that was once taut over your jaw may simply sag beneath it. While surgery to remove the excess skin and tighten it can help, keeping it from happening in the first place with good dental care is a better choice.
Preventing The Problem
If you're missing a tooth, you don't have to panic; you can still prevent your jaw line from weakening. This can be achieved just by seeing a dentist and discussing dental implants.
Dental implants are designed to take the place of a tooth and look almost exactly like a tooth. However, it's what dental implants do beneath the surface that's the most important. Dental implants have a titanium peg beneath them that's installed directly into your jaw bone. This allows dental implants to transmit pressure just like a real tooth would. As a result, your jaw bone won't lose density and will stay strong and attractive.
If you want to look young for as long as possible, you should do everything you can to maintain your oral health. However, if you're already lost a tooth, it's not too late to protect your looks. Talk to a dentist to begin the process of having dental implants installed.
Contact a dental office like Carolina Forest Family Dentistry for more information.
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