Ways To Effectively Reverse Dental Bone Loss

To maintain good oral health, various aspects of dental hygiene must be followed by us. Having healthy bones is a must to have strong teeth, and we must strive to prevent loss of bone density. Brushing twice and flossing once daily, along with regular visits to the dentist for professional cleaning, are some steps we all must follow. 

But despite all efforts, various other salient factors affect the density of osseous matter, which can be hard to identify. A diet rich in nutrients and a more thorough oral care regime also play a significant role in your oral health and are required to prevent or even reverse the issues related to bone density loss.

Loss of bone around your teeth can impact your speech, self-esteem, and confidence. When the osseous matter supporting your teeth shrinks, your teeth become loose in their pockets. If this density loss is not treated, you are in danger of losing your teeth.

But luckily, bone loss is both preventable and reversible. With modern dental techniques and a few lifestyle changes, you can stop bone loss and also regrow lost tissues. If you want to know more about dental bone loss and how to reverse it, this article will provide you with all the details.

What is Dental Bone Loss?

When your oral region is infected, or you have gum disease, the osseous matter around your teeth becomes less dense. 

• Your teeth start getting loose and spreading once the supporting structure around your teeth has shrunk.
• This also affects the underlying jawbone, which could lead to shrinkage of gums and jawbone.

How Do We Lose Bone Density Around Teeth

In simple terms, when the bone resorption outpaces the growth of bone, then you lose the tissues. Resorption is the process through which minerals in the tissue (such as calcium) get reabsorbed in the blood, which erodes the tissue’s density.

• A child has rapid bone growth where the osseous matter increases in length as well as thickness.
• The bone growth slows as you age.
• By the age of thirty, most people attain the peak bone mass, and beyond this, people start losing skeletal tissue.
• Though our bones do not grow after we reach adulthood, we can still grow their density. Higher density can make our tissues strong and more resistant to damage.

Why Do We Lose Osseous Matter Around Teeth?

• Periodontal disease (gum disease) is the number one reason for losing bone density. This disease occurs when plaque (a thin film of bacteria in our mouth) deposits on our teeth due to improper brushing and flossing.
• If the plaque is not treated, the bacteria in the plaque gradually destroy the tissues around our teeth which leads to rotten or loose teeth.
• Certain conditions, such as osteoporosis, Type II diabetes mellitus, peri-implantitis, etc., can also cause tissues supporting your teeth to waste away.
• With age, it is normal that the density of osseous matter decreases.
• You may lose teeth due to accidental impacts, which increases the chances and rate of loss of density in the tissue holding your teeth. The structural integrity of your jaw and mouth depends heavily on your teeth, and if you lose them, the area of osseous matter around the gap where your teeth used to be can become weak and start to degrade.
• An improper diet lacking key nutrients, which are essential for bone growth, can also cause loss of density.
• Smoking is also a major reason for anyone being prone to gum diseases. Smoking not just increases your chance of getting gum disease and losing tissue, but it also critically affects the damage that gum disease can do to your teeth.

How To Prevent Dental Skeletal Density Loss

We can take preventive measures so that the precious tissues holding our teeth together remain strong and do not whittle away. Some of the ways to prevent dental tissue density loss are:

• Maintain impeccable oral hygiene – If you want to avoid expensive procedures to restore your tissue density, prevention is the best option. All you need to do is practice excellent dental hygiene with the following steps:
  • Brush your teeth thoroughly after every meal – To keep gum diseases away, you must brush your teeth twice a day. Plaque is the main culprit for causing periodontal diseases and loss of osseous matter, and brushing can remove this plaque.
  • Floss once a day – Brushing does not remove plaque which can get in between your teeth, so flossing is also a necessary part of good oral habits. You must floss a day so that the nooks and corners of your mouth, which your toothbrush’s bristles could not reach, can be cleaned properly.
• Use a toothpaste that has fluoride in it – Loss of skeletal teeth can be avoided by using fluoride-based toothpaste as it provides the required minerals to your tooth enamel and tissue surrounding it.
  • Other than toothpaste, avoid excess use of fluoride as it is associated with other health problems.
  • Use fluoride-based toothpaste only once a day for brushing teeth. At other times use normal toothpaste.
  • For kids below the age of ten years, it is advisable not to use fluoride-based toothpaste.
• Pay regular visits to your dentist – All of us need a professional cleaning every six months or so. Meeting your dentist at regular intervals keeps any type of gum disease in check as your dentist can take necessary measures and also suggest an appropriate oral regime to prevent tooth decay.
• Increase intake of calcium – Calcium is a critical element in your nutrition necessary for strong bones, including the ones in your mouth. You should add calcium-rich foods along with calcium supplements to your daily diet to increase the density of osseous matter in your body. Some foods that are rich in calcium are yogurt, low-fat milk, soy milk, spinach, etc.
• Get enough Vitamin D – Getting some sun and taking vitamin D supplements will help in absorbing the calcium that you intake. This, in turn, helps in maintaining the density of osseous matter in your body.

How To Reverse Dental Bone Loss

In case you have lost a substantial amount of dental tissue, then your dentist can perform some procedures to restore bone density.

• Dental bone grafting – In this technique, the doctor takes osseous matter from strategic places in your body or uses synthetic material to replace lost tissue surrounding your teeth.
• Hormone replacement therapy – If you have lost osseous matter due to osteoporosis, hormone replacement therapy can rebuild the lost tissue.

Losing dental bone density is a critical as well as expensive affair. It is best to maintain good oral habits so that you do not suffer from gum diseases and the eventual loss of density of tissue around your teeth.