When food gets trapped between these false teeth, it can cause a foul odour and potentially stain the denture. Besides brushing this artificial arch, there are a few other steps you’ll need to take.
How to Clean Dentures?
Maintaining optimal denture health begins with cleaning false teeth and your mouth thoroughly.
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Rinse Your Mouth After Eating
After a meal, remove your dentures and rinse them. Because of the porous surface, food is more likely to stick to your dentures than the soft tissues in your mouth. Food can also become trapped between your palate and your upper denture or between your lower denture and the bottom of your mouth.
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Brush Your Dentures Daily
Remove your dentures and clean them daily. After soaking them in water or denture cleaner, brush them with a soft-bristled toothbrush and a denture cleaning solution. Doing so removes food, plaque, bacteria, and other deposits from your dentures, ensuring they remain stain-free.
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Let Your Dentures Soak Overnight
Besides cleaning your false teeth, the soaking process also removes food particles missed when brushing and rinsing. Ensure when you put the dentures in your mouth the next morning, they are rinsed of any cleaning solution because it contains chemicals.
You should discard your cup of cleaning solution after a single use, as the liquid contains the bacteria that was previously on your denture.
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Keep Up with Your Dental Care
During regular visits to your dentist, have your dentures examined. Your dentist will assess the fit of your dentures and adjust them if needed to make them more comfortable.
It is essential to see your dentist regularly to check for signs of wear and ensure your dentures’ shape is still appropriate to your mouth. In case of gum recession or bone loss, your dentures may become too large over time and require replacement.
What Not to Do With Your Dentures
It is vital to handle your dentures carefully because they are delicate. When you have dentures, you should not:
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Eat Hard or Sticky Foods
It’s difficult to eat certain foods with dentures, such as sticky foods, which can stain and cause discomfort. Hard foods like nuts can crack dentures if you bite down with too much force.
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Sleep With Them In
It’s essential you remove your dentures overnight, every night. Sleeping with dentures puts pressure on your gums and jaw. It can also be harmful to the denture if you have a habit of grinding your teeth in your sleep. Wearing a denture overnight when your mouth is dry promotes bacterial growth and dries out the denture as well, reducing its longevity.
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Use Hot or Boiling Water
You should not submerge your dentures in boiling water or drink very hot drinks while wearing them, as this can affect their shape.
Boiling water kills bacteria, but it can also damage your dentures if it warps the plastic. Instead, use room-temperature water when you rinse and soak your dentures.
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Avoid Abrasive Dental Products
Regular toothpaste and toothbrushes do not work well for cleaning dentures since they are abrasive and can damage them. Your dentist can recommend brushes and denture care products that are suitable.
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Never Use Whitening Products
If you use whitening products regularly on your remaining teeth, you should know that whiteners and bleaches can weaken dentures. Bleach can cause the parts of your dentures to break down, whiten the gum-like areas, and leave your mouth smelling bad.
Maintaining Healthy Teeth & Dentures
Although cleaning your teeth before and after dentures requires a unique approach, both treatments include a regular oral care routine that uses appropriate products.
You should still visit your dentist regularly even if you are wearing dentures or no longer have any natural teeth left. Dentures need to be checked periodically to ensure they fit correctly.
If you need more guidance about caring for your dentures, our dentist at MyHMDentist can answer questions and teach you more about how to clean your dentures. Call us for an appointment on (02) 9158 6379.
