Yellowing of the teeth, bad breath: certain effects of cigarettes on the oral sphere are well known. Others, like the loosening of teeth (because yes, it can happen), are much less so. Overview.
Gums in danger
Know this: cigarettes are particularly harmful to your gums. “The chemical components of the smoke and its heat will promote periodontal diseases. That is to say the loosening of teeth”, explains Christophe Lequart. But that’s not all: tobacco also has the unfortunate tendency to hide the problem it creates. “One of the first warning signs of periodontal disease is the gum bleeding. However, nicotine causes a vasoconstriction of the vessels which will reduce this bleeding…”
Moreover, beyond a brownish hyperpigmentation of the gums (the smokers’ melanosiswhich affects 25 to 30% of them), the heat of regularly inhaled smoke can also cause their keratinization: “They will appear a little whiter and harder, and may be the site of a pre-cancerous lesion which can progress to mouth cancer.”
Wean yourself to heal better
If smoking therefore causes periodontal diseases, it also prevents your dentist from treating them: “Tobacco causes a poorer healing, and this is why treatments for loosening are less successful in smokers, due to poorer vascularization. In addition, it maintains inflammation. What pushes besides certain professionals to refuse to pose implants, rate of failure of 15% obliges. Not to mention, on the other hand, the cost of operations, mechanically higher among smokers.
The solution ? Stop smokingOf course. “We invite our patients to wean themselves off. Ideally, this stoppage should be permanent, but it must be at least temporary during the healing phase. And for that, we can help them, since dental surgeons are authorized to prescribe nicotine substitutes with reimbursement by health insurance. Well-informed teeth are worth two!
Operation Tobacco Free Month is an opportunity for smokers to join a collective movement to try to quit smoking. More info on tobacco free monthin this article.
