Guide on Caring for Tooth Fillings

Guide on Caring for Tooth Fillings Dental fillings are a wonderful form of restorative dentistry. They have come a long way. At one time, it was easy to see them in the mouth. With modern dentistry, fillings can match natural tooth coloring, so they’re virtually invisible. It’s no wonder that people often forget they have fillings in their mouth until they experience losing one.

Losing a Filling Losing a filling can be a painful experience. For starters, it’s alarming. But exposing the tooth can cause additional cavities to form. And there may be sensitivity to differing temperatures and air. Also, fillings don’t just “fall out.” Although, it often seems that way. What happens is that contributing factors cause a filling to slowly loosen. Chewing something hard or sticky, for example. But it’s usually when a person is doing something normal, like drinking water, that they notice their filling is no longer there. It’s essential to see a dentist immediately when a filling falls out.

Proper Oral Care Fillings don’t last forever. They can last anywhere between 7 and 10 years, but they may last longer. Proper dental care is necessary to maintain fillings. It’s always a good idea to brush teeth, floss and use mouthwash two to three times daily. From improper flossing habits and other factors, people can continue to miss removing plaque from their teeth in certain places.

This means a tooth that has a filling can continue incurring dental plaque. It can either cause the area around the filling or underneath it to experience additional cavities and dental issues. And it can cause problems for the existing dental filling. If a tooth fractures or experiences any other type of damage, the filling can come loose and fall out.

Eat a Proper Diet Eat a well-balanced diet. Plaque is a type of bacteria. It grows at an increasing rate the more carbohydrates and sugars are consumed. Eating a healthy diet naturally lowers the amount of plaque in the mouth. Additionally, certain fruit and vegetables help to clean teeth as they’re being chewed. Drinking an adequate amount of water also helps to reduce bacteria in the mouth. Water helps to rinse the mouth. But ingesting water increases the mouth’s saliva fluidity, which helps to prevent plaque from sticking to teeth.

Other Factors that Cause Fillings to Come Loose There are a few other ways fillings can become loose or fall out. Using mouthwash with alcohol or regularly drinking alcohol can decrease the durability of fillings. Grinding teeth also causes issues for fillings. It can slowly wear down teeth, cause teeth to crack or chip, and grinding teeth

can also work fillings loose. Opening packages or bottles with teeth can cause fillings to come out.

It’s important to maintain fillings to prevent them from coming out prematurely. It’s best to visit a dentist a minimum of twice a year. At-home practices of regular brushing and flossing help to prevent dental issues. But only a dentist can adequately discover potential and existing dental problems where they'd otherwise remain hidden. Promptly resolving dental issues, like losing a filling, helps with oral health, overall health and dental issues down the road.