Living With Your Dentures

If you have just received your dentures, avoid raw vegetables, fibrous meats and sticky foods for the first few months. Cut your food into small pieces. When biting, avoid using your front teeth. Instead, use your canine teeth (the pointed ones) and the teeth just behind them. Do not pull or tear your food in a forward direction; instead, push back as you bite. When you chew, try to have some food on either side of your mouth to stabilize your dentures. Do not expect the same eating efficiency you had with your natural teeth, even after you become experienced.

Eating a proper diet is especially important for people who wear dentures. As a group, denture wearers tend to have lower-quality diets than do people with most or all of their natural teeth. They may not get enough of certain nutrients, such as vitamin B6, vitamin E, and zinc, which are found in hard-to-chew foods such as fruits, vegetables, nuts and meat.

Speak slowly and quietly when you first get your dentures. You can practice by reading aloud at home in front of a mirror, repeating words that seem difficult.

You may notice more saliva in your mouth when you get your new dentures. When you sneeze, cough or yawn, your dentures may loosen. This is not an indication of improper fit. Also, the tissues under your dentures will need a rest every day, so you will be instructed to take your dentures out when you sleep.

Your mouth and the bone in your jaw that supports your dentures will continue to change. After years of denture wear, your jaws — especially your lower jaw, or mandible — become smaller as the bone wears away. This can make your dentures become ill fitting and difficult to use.

Regular visits to the dentist are just as important for people with dentures as they are for people with all their natural teeth. Everyone with dentures should visit their dentists at least every six months. People who visit their doctors more frequently — for example, diabetics or people with compromised immune systems — should also visit their dentists more frequently. Regular visits help ensure that your dentures continue to fit and operate correctly. In addition, your dentist will examine your mouth for signs of bone loss, oral cancer, infections and other conditions.

Rarely people are allergic to a common type of plastic used in dentures. In these cases, other plastics can be used instead. Also, some people have had allergic reactions to a component of the metal used in partial dentures. Most manufacturers have stopped using this component, so this type of allergy is generally not an issue.

Of the 36 million people aged 18 to 74 who wear dentures in the United States, about 21 million have some type of complication. Most complications result from poor oral hygiene or not following a dentist's instructions. For example, if you do not clean your dentures properly, the tissue can become irritated. If you don't eat a balanced diet, you may be more susceptible to fungal infections in your mouth.

If you follow your dentist's instructions, clean your dentures and oral tissues daily and contact your dentist if your dentures seem ill fitting or painful, you should have few problems. See your dentist at least every six months, even if you are not experiencing discomfort.

Dentures are not permanent fixtures in your mouth; you need to take them out at least once a day. Most people leave their dentures out at night when they sleep. Store them in water or in commercially available denture cleaning solutions in a covered container. Change the water or solution daily and wash the container.

Your dentures need to be cleaned thoroughly twice a day using specially designed denture brushes. The tissues in your mouth also need to be brushed and massaged to clean away debris. This also helps maintain good circulation in your gums.

Some people use denture adhesives, such as powders or pastes. Adhesives can be useful in keeping dentures from slipping or falling out, especially in people whose jawbones have shrunk considerably. However, they should not be used to compensate for poorly fitting dentures.

If your dentures start slipping or become uncomfortable, visit your dentist to see if your dentures need adjusting or refitting. Most repairs can be done right in the dentist's office, so you don't need to spend days without your dentures. Never attempt to repair or refit your dentures yourself because you could cause injury or affect the health of the tissues in your mouth.

Dentures usually need periodic alterations because the tissues and bone supporting the dentures change over time. Relining and rebasing are alterations that adjust the fit of your dentures to make them more secure on your gums. Rebasing involves making an entirely new denture base, while relining modifies the existing one. Both procedures maintain the denture's existing artificial teeth.

Relining involves resurfacing the portion of the denture that fits against your gum tissue. After teeth are extracted, the bone that once held your teeth shrinks (a process called bone resorption), and it is common to discover that your dentures no longer fit properly as the resorption continues. If the denture is otherwise in good shape, your dentist may recommend an office reline.

An office reline takes about 30 to 60 minutes. During the procedure:

Your dentist will clean the denture thoroughly and remove 2 to 3 millimeters of the surface that fits against your gums.

In some cases, a bonding agent is used to secure the reline material to the denture.

The reline material (an acrylic resin) is mixed and placed in the denture.

The denture is placed in your mouth while the resin is still soft.

An impression of your gum tissue is made inside the denture as it sits in your mouth.

The reline material hardens in a shape that conforms to your gums and enhances the fit.

Your dentist checks the new surface and polishes the denture.

There are two types of relines, soft and hard. Each uses different materials. The material for soft relines remains somewhat flexible. If you pressed the material with your fingernail, you would see an impression. Resin used for hard relines does not have this flexibility.

Soft relines are generally considered temporary. The material used is biodegradable and is not meant to last more than a few months. Soft relines can be repeated at regular intervals if your jawbone can't tolerate the force of a hard-reline material. The softer material absorbs some of the stress of chewing. Some people receive a soft reline if the gum tissue needs time to heal from the effects of an ill-fitting denture or other stresses that have caused injury. In this situation, after the gums are healthy, a hard reline would be done.

Rebasing, which is less common than relining, involves replacing the entire base of the denture, but keeping the teeth. It is a more complex process, involving two or three dental visits. You will be without your dentures for a period of time, perhaps one day, but sometimes several days.

If your dentures need rebasing, your dentist will take an impression of your gums within the denture. The denture will be sent to the lab and serve as a model for the new base. During this process, the teeth are maintained in the new base in their original positions. The rebased dentures usually need to be adjusted.