How Diabetes Affects Your Teeth And Your Ability To Get Dental Implants

Posted on: 8 October 2015

One of the main challenges of living with diabetes is finding ways to control your blood sugar. This is often done by taking insulin, but it can also be accomplished through healthy lifestyle choices. Failing to control your blood sugar levels can lead to a variety of different health issues, including problems with your teeth. This can lead to cavities forming on your teeth, gum disease, and tooth loss. If you have had a hard time with maintaining healthy teeth, you should know that dental implants are an effective form of tooth replacement, even for people with diabetes.

How Does Diabetes Affect Your Teeth?

When your body is unable to process and breakdown the sugars you consume, they can have a negative effect on your teeth. There are several different problems this can lead to, but each may cause oral issues in your mouth. Here are several of the effects caused by uncontrolled blood sugar:

  • Your saliva glands will not work as well – Saliva is vital for the health of your teeth. It cleans your mouth and washes away bacteria. High blood sugar stops the saliva glands from producing enough saliva. This leads to dry mouth and bad breath, and it can also put you at a higher risk for developing cavities.
  • Your gums may bleed and swell – High blood sugar and a lack of saliva can lead to gingivitis. This is a condition that causes irritation with the gums and can lead to swollen gums and bleeding.
  • You have an increased risk of tooth loss – According to recent studies, people with diabetes are much more likely to lose teeth if they have high blood sugar levels often. While researchers are not completely sure why this is, they suspect it is caused by the failure for the gums to eliminate waste products.

Anyone with diabetes should take extra precautions to protect their teeth because of these high risks of problems. This includes good daily habits and regular visits to the dentist. It is also important to let your dentist know about your diabetes. He or she may be able to help you come up with extra steps you can take to protect your teeth.

Are Dental Implants Effective For People With Diabetes?

The good news for diabetics is that they can protect their teeth by controlling their blood sugar levels, and they can also get dental implants if they lose teeth. Dental implants are used to replace missing teeth, and they are considered a permanent option.

Dental implants are not always the best option, but they do have an overall 98% success rate. There have been so many studies completed on the subject of diabetes and dental implants. In the past, many dentists felt that placing implants in the mouths of diabetics was too risky. Fortunately, most studies that are now being done show that diabetic individuals can effectively get dental implants.

Most studies reveal that the success rate might not be quite as high for people in high-risk categories, such as those that have diabetes, but the success rates are still really good.

With uncontrolled blood sugar, the dental implant will have a higher rate of failure, and this occurs because of all the effects caused by uncontrolled blood sugar levels in diabetic people. Because of this, you will have to take extra efforts to maintain your blood sugar if you get a dental implant. A major factor that affects the success of a dental implant for a person with diabetes is how well the person controls his or her blood sugar level.

If you are living with diabetes and are missing a tooth, you may want to talk to your dentist about getting a dental implant. This is a great option for replacing a missing tooth, and your dentist can help you determine if this option is right for you. For more information, visit websites like http://www.vbandk.com/

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