We aim to provide you with information that helps you make the best treatment decisions. In this section, we provide useful articles to answer the questions we are often asked, and tell you more about the award-winning TDC team.
Can you damage your dental implants?
01 Aug 2016
For many of our patients at TDC, having dental implants gives them a second chance. Perhaps they neglected their natural teeth to such a degree that eventually they had no choice but to replace them with implants. Or perhaps a bad experience with dental treatment at an early age was so scarring – physically or mentally –that they have avoided the dentist ever since.
Plus, there are plenty of less severe ways to damage your teeth – there are many habits that can harm your teeth. Coffee can stain natural teeth, for example, while very acidic drinks can cause lasting damage too.
No need to worry with implants?
Dental implants are still susceptible to damage if not cared for properly. We recommend visiting your hygienist regularly to polish away any discolouration caused by wine stains.
Teeth grinding can still be problematic if your natural teeth have been replaced by implants. Whether it’s because of stress, sleep apnoea, a side effect of medication or just the fact that you naturally grind your teeth, you will still need to protect your implants. We recommend using a night guard, as they are far easier to replace than your new teeth.
No replacement is as strong as your own original natural teeth, so it’s important to remember that dental implants don’t give you a superhuman bite. Chewing on paperclips, stripping wires with your new teeth, chewing on ice and nail biting can all still damage implants- and opening bottles with your teeth is definitely not recommended!
Can cleaning damage them?
Using almost any toothpaste is fine to use with implants. However, some pastes designed for smokers can be quite abrasive, so they are best avoided. They won’t cause major problems, but using abrasive paste could mean losing some of the surface texture on your implants, and this can spoil the natural look.
Which all means that dental implants are very much like natural teeth – they are vulnerable to many of the same things but if looked after well they can last a very long time.
To find out more about our Smile in a Day same-day dental implants treatment, get in touch for your free consultation*, or call 020 3553 6415.