The Importance of Removing Dentures at Night

Overview: Everybody needs a break at some point during the day - kids need to take a nap daily, and taking your shoes off after a long day at work gives your feet much needed relief. And if you wear dentures, both your mouth and dentures need time to recharge. Read the following blog to find out the health benefits of taking your dentures out nightly.

Soaking your dentures in a solution during the night helps prevent them from drying up, warping and keeps them clean. However, there are also health benefits for denture wearers to remove dentures during the night.

Researchers have found that seniors who don’t remove their dentures while sleeping (or during the day for a period of time) are at an increased risk of developing pneumonia. Recent studies of 524 men and women with the average age of 88 were observed for 3 years. In that time there were 20 deaths caused from pneumonia. 41% of the 453 denture wearers who didn’t remove their dentures while sleeping were twice as likely to develop pneumonia compared to people that took their dentures out at night.

The study also found that seniors that slept while wearing their dentures were more prone to having issues with their tongue, greater amount of plaque build up on their false teeth and inflammation of the gums. Denturist Vlad highly advises removing dentures at night, especially if you tend to grind your teeth when you’re sleeping. The movement of your jaw when you grind your false teeth creates unnecessary friction for your gums and increases the opportunity for developing infections.

While your dentures take a nice well-deserved soak in water at the side of your bed, the saliva in your mouth can rinse around in your mouth with no obstruction. With your dentures removed, saliva can do its job and clean your gums. If you find that not wearing you dentures while you sleep causes a level of discomfort, it’s best to consult with Denturist Vlad so he can offer alternate solutions to keep the circulation flowing in your gums. For seniors that need to keep their dentures in their mouth while they sleep, Denturist Vlad suggests to remove your dentures before sleeping and after waking up and to brush your gums with a soft bristled toothbrush. This will keep your gums as clean as possible on a regular basis.

Bottom Line: Removing your dentures at night while you sleep will increase your oral health and your gums will thank you for it! The Future Smiles Clinic highly advises that if you wear dentures to give your gums and dentures a well deserved break. Soaking your dentures will increase their longevity and will keep them clean, which in turn will prevent plaque build up. Additionally, your gums will have an opportunity to be naturally cleaned by saliva in the mouth, which will prevent infections from developing and decrease the chance of irritations your mouth.

To find out more about how Denturist Vlad Dumbrava can help you with full dentures, partial dentures and dental implants, contact the Future Smiles Clinic in Calgary today on 403.475.0016.