Most people are aware of the health problems
that can occur if you smoke or chew tobacco, but your lungs and heart are not
the only things that can be affected if you light up.
According to your Dentist in Chicago, Dr. Genaro Romo, smoking can have a lasting and distinctive impact on your oral health and
can lead to some serious dental issues including, but not limited to:
- Tooth discoloration
- Halitosis
- Salivary gland inflammation on the roof of your mouth
- Bone loss in your jaw
- Build up of tartar and plaque
- Increased risk of white patches, or leukoplakia on the inside of your mouth
- Gum disease
- Delayed healing after periodontal treatment or extractions
- Lower dental implant success rate
- Higher risk of oral cancer
Smoking, even with pipes
and cigars, can lead to gum disease as it affects the soft tissue around your
teeth. According to your Chicago Dentist, smoking will interfere with normal
gum tissue cell function making you much more susceptible to infections.
Smoking can also impair the blood flow to your gums.
Just like cigarettes, cigar and pipe smoking
can cause dental problems. A study
conducted by the American Dental Association, showed that cigar smokers experience bone
loss and tooth loss at the same rate as cigarette smokers. Pipe smokers and
cigar smokers are also susceptible to throat cancers even though they do not
inhale.
If you chew tobacco, you are not safe either.
Snuff contains at least 30 chemicals that can increase your risk of throat and
oral cancer. Your Dentist in Chicago will tell you that chewing tobacco
products contain more nicotine than cigarettes making it more difficult to
quit. Most people have no idea that one can of chewing tobacco has as much, if
not more, nicotine than sixty cigarettes. Smokeless tobacco will irritate your
gum tissue. This causes your gums to pull away or recede. Once this occurs the
exposed roots become more sensitive to irritants making drinking
and eating uncomfortable.
If that isn’t enough, your Dr. Romo will tell you that flavors are added to some brands of chewing tobacco in order
to improve the taste. Those flavors contain sugar that can drastically
increase tooth decay. In fact, a study by the ADA has shown that those who chew
tobacco are four times more likely to develop tooth decay.
Talk to your doctor about smoking cessation
and don’t forget to schedule an appointment with the best Dentist in Chicago,
Dr. Romo.
