Healthy teeth make you happy to share your smile with the world. But there’s more to your smile than its beauty! There’s a lot of hard work going on, as well.
Teeth Are Designed for Healthy Eating and Digestion
Because humans are omnivores, we can eat both meat and plants. That’s why our teeth have different shapes—they’re designed to help us process different types of food.
- Incisors, our front teeth, have sharpish edges to help cut through meats and other firm foods when we bite.
- Canines, the pointed teeth, help tear food into bite-size portions.
- Premolars are flat topped teeth with two cusps, raised points which help grind food.
- Molars are the flat-topped teeth in the rear of the mouth. They have four cusps to grind and crush food into a paste-like consistency.
So: Incisors and canines bite and tear food into smaller pieces, which molars and premolars then crush and grind into a paste. Bite, tear, crush, grind—why all this food aggression? Because that’s the key to healthy digestion!
Chewing is the first step in digestion. Effective chewing:
- Starts the process of breaking food down into digestible particles.
- Increases saliva production. Saliva binds food particles so that we can swallow easily.
- Expands the surface area of food particles, which allows the digestive system to extract nutrients more efficiently.
When gum disease causes bite pain, loose teeth, or tooth loss, it can be hard to chew food as thoroughly as you should. Swallowing can be difficult. Digestion can suffer. In fact, healthy teeth are essential to healthy digestion.
Teeth Have Other Important Jobs As Well
- Speaking
Our teeth work with our tongues and lips to form many of the phonetic sounds which make up daily speech. Try making a “th” sound, for example! Missing teeth can affect our ability to pronounce words clearly.
- Maintaining Bone Density
Eating and chewing stimulate cell-producing tissues in the jawbone, enabling them to rebuild and replace aging or damaged cells. When a tooth is lost, the bone directly beneath can no longer replace cells as effectively without the stimulating pressure of chewing. This section of the jawbone will shrink and lose density over time.
- Maintaining Tooth Alignment
A lost tooth leaves a gap. The remaining teeth can shift to fill the empty space, putting your teeth, and possibly your bite, out of alignment.
- Shaping the Face
Just like our bone structure, our teeth help give shape to our faces. Missing teeth can affect the appearance of chins, lips, and cheeks. Replacing lost teeth with dentures, bridges, or dental implants can restore facial symmetry.
Teeth Are Only Up to the Job with Your Help
You’re in charge! Daily brushing and flossing, eating a healthy diet, and regular visits to your dentist for exams and cleanings will help make sure your teeth are able to perform their many duties. And for our teeth to thrive, the structures which support them need to be healthy as well.
Gum disease is one of the leading causes of tooth loss in adults. Left untreated, gum disease causes gum recession, bone loss, loose teeth, and, eventually, tooth loss. If you’re experiencing gum disease, if you need a gum or bone graft to rebuild your tooth’s supporting structures, or if you’ve lost a tooth and are considering a dental implant, talk to your periodontist. You want your teeth working their best for you—that’s the secret to a beautiful smile!