Your Dental Age

By Claudia Cotca, DDS, MPH

Part Two

Teeth, Gums in Your 40's Once you enter your 40's, you may notice significant wear on your teeth, restorations (fillings) which may have failed already, movement or migration of your gum line, possible bone loss, spaces between your teeth, crowding, and your mouth seeming to collapse, muscle soreness, yellow staining, and sensitivity.

Here you may consider restorative intervention, periodontal treatment, occlusal (bite) rehabilitation, and muscle deprogramming as your choice of treatment. More aggressive care is necessary to complement the dental therapies recommended for balanced dental oral health.

Teeth, Gums in Your 50's Age 50 and up tend to be more pronounced stages of your 40s.Numerous treatments are recommended here combining prevention and intervention oral and dental treatments.

Here some perceived notions of what is health, play a misleading role in making you think oral healthand a young smile is not an achievable goal. Custom treatments involving periodontal treatment, custom teeth whitening and conditioning, replacing old corroded crowns, bridges, and implants are options you may need to consider.

Teeth, Gums in Your 60's Age 60 may have brought on loss of dentition in addition to all the nuances already mentioned in your 40s and 50s. Implants, bridges, and other restorative prosthetics will allow you to be able to regain chewing capabilities you may have lost to various degrees.

Dry mouth, a phenomenon associated with some medications, history of radiation therapy, or diminished salivary gland function may have altered the composition and flow of your saliva, which in turn may affect your oral microflora, the strength of your teeth, and the susceptibility to caries.

Diabetes, radiation and other cancer treatments have shown to have an impact on your oral health and appropriate preparation for undergoing oncologic treatmentis recommended for keeping your teeth healthy. While many systemic conditions present with manifestations in the oral cavity, many of the same conditions also cause imbalances that can affect your mouth.