Permanent teeth are designed to last a lifetime; however, this is not always the case. In order to keep permanent teeth for your entire life, you will need to provide excellent care for them and avoid any type of trauma to them, and even doing these things may not protect all of your teeth forever. If you end up with a missing tooth, you should understand the effects this gap can have on your mouth.

The causes of missing teeth

The first thing to understand is that there are a lot of different reasons people end up with missing teeth. For example, too much decay on a tooth could cause the person to need the tooth extracted. Trauma to a tooth could knock the tooth out as well. People who develop gum disease and do not treat it fast enough may also end up losing some teeth. Additionally, there are other factors that can lead to tooth loss, including age, smoking, and health problems.

The effects of a gap in your mouth

When you lose a tooth for any reason, it leaves a gap in your mouth, and this gap can affect your mouth in many ways. The first effect is shifting of the teeth. When your teeth sense that there is a gap, they will gradually begin to try to fill it by shifting in its place. If you had braces in the past, this gap in your mouth could destroy the effects the braces offered to you. Additionally, when your teeth shift, it can lead to bite problems and can cause teeth to rub together in ways they should not. If this happens, it can lead to broken, cracked, or chipped teeth. It can also lead to enamel erosion and plenty of other problems.

The gap from a missing tooth can also cause the jawbone below it to deteriorate, and this occurs from a lack of stimulation to the jawbone in this area. If your jawbone deteriorates, it could cause your face to sag in, or it could lead to losing more teeth. A loss of jawbone mass also makes it more difficult to replace the missing tooth with dental implants.

If you currently have a missing tooth that has left a gap in your mouth, there are ways you can fill the gap. If you would like to find out what your options are, talk to a dentist in your city. 

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