Tobacco use affects your oral health in many ways. Regular tobacco use can cause serious damage to your overall health (including cardiovascular and lung disease), which you likely already know about, but it also can cause serious oral health issues.

You should see the dentist twice a year for regular checkups and cleanings. When you use tobacco, this practice is extra important; here are just a few reasons why.

You Require More Intensive Oral Cleaning

Tobacco use exposes your mouth to harmful chemicals and bacteria that a non-tobacco user doesn't have to worry about. For ideal oral health, you should use a toothpaste and mouthwash designed for tobacco users. These products contain harsher cleaning agents to whisk away the bacteria and chemical residue that can lead to jaw bone density loss and tooth decay.

Everyone should floss and brush their teeth twice a day, but as a tobacco user, you require more intensive monitoring by your dentist to ensure you are caring for your teeth. Your dentist will prescribe a special mouthwash or toothpaste to battle bad breath and bone density loss caused by tobacco use and may require more than two cleanings a year to keep your oral health in check.

You Are At Higher Risk for Gum Disease

Tobacco users are at least three more likely to develop gum disease than non-tobacco users. Chemicals found in tobacco smoke or chewing tobacco juices cause inflammation of the gums and can even cause them to recede.

Signs of gum disease include:

• Bleeding gums
• Swollen or retracting gums
• Painful gums
• Dark red, purple, or black gums



Flossing regularly will help delay or prevent gum disease in addition to your regular teeth brushing habits.

You Are At Higher Risk of Oral Cancer

Although people who have never used tobacco can get an oral cancer diagnosis, the use of the substance increases your chances of the disease. Your dentist will check your mouth for signs of oral cancer, which often come in the form of mouth sores, white patches inside the mouth, or swollen tongue or lymph nodes.

Caught early, oral cancer is very treatable and often has a positive recovery rate. Without regular dental visits, however, if you develop mouth cancers, you may not know the signs to watch out for and may not be diagnosed with tobacco-related mouth cancers until the disease has progressed.

You Are At Greater Risk for Tooth Loss

Tobacco users are at a higher risk for tooth loss because of two main factors. The first is gum disease, which you now know tobacco users are more prone to get. Gum disease causes your gums to pull away from your jaw bone, which exposes tooth nerves (which can lead to tooth loss).

The second reason is loss of bone density. Your jaw bone holds all of your teeth in place, but the chemicals in tobacco leech your body of the nutrients it needs to keep your overall bone structure healthy. Weak bone density in your jaw makes you more susceptible to tooth loss.

Quitting the use of tobacco has almost immediate effects; if you are a smoker, for example, your heart rate returns to near normal after 20 minutes of non-tobacco use. Speak to your dentist about the oral benefits of quitting tobacco.

Taking care of your teeth is essential to having a fuller, healthier smile. When you use tobacco, you have to be extra careful to ensure the health of your teeth and gums to prevent tooth loss and other serious issues.

Your dentist will give you advice on how to properly take care of your oral health. See our team of dental experts at New England Dental Health Services PC today.