How To Best Use & Maintain Your New Dentures

What are Dentures?

Dentures are man-made appliances used to replace missing teeth.
- They are custom-molded in plastic to fit your mouth but can often feel uncomfortable and awkward for several weeks as you are getting used to them.
- You will produce more saliva during this adjustment period, causing the denture to slip around just a bit.

Adjusting to life with dentures can take time as your facial muscles adapt to changes in your bite and the altered position of your tongue, lips, and cheeks.

How to Care for Your Dentures:

Brush Your Dentures Daily.
- Just like you would with teeth, you must thoroughly clean your dentures every day. Make a habit of daily brushing and denture cleaning with a soft-bristled brush and water.
- Gently brush them in circular motions, focusing on each area.
- Before putting dentures in your mouth, rinse them thoroughly, especially if you use a cleansing solution.
Dentures are very delicate and can break easily if they are dropped.
- When handling your dentures, always hold them over a soft towel or fill your sink up with water.
- Make sure not to bend or damage the clasps or the plastic when cleaning the dentures.
- If your denture or partial breaks or is damaged, call us to set up an appointment.
NEVER wrap your dentures in a paper towel.
- They could easily be mistaken for trash and thrown away.
- Store them far out of reach of kids and pets. Kids love to play with dentures and dogs love to chew them up.
- Make sure if they are not in your mouth they are in the proper case for dentures.

Until your gums better adapt to the denture plate, take it easy and follow these simple self-help tips:

Start with a soft diet.
- Pureed foods like applesauce, puddings, cooked cereals, scrambled eggs, and mashed potatoes provide the nutrition you need without compromising your gums or stressing your jaw muscles.
Check the temperature.
- Be careful with hot foods that can burn your mouth. You won’t be able to judge temperatures as well due to the insulating effect of the dentures. Test hot foods on your lips before putting them in your mouth.
When Eating Solid Foods.
- When you’re ready to move on to solid foods, be sure to cut your food into tiny pieces. You should also be cognizant of how you chew and how fast you eat. It is generally best to eat sitting down and to allow yourself plenty of time for a meal.
- Take smaller bites.
- Chew on both sides.
- Distribute your food evenly on both sides in the back of your mouth when you chew, this will help keep your dentures more stable while you eat.
- Chew slowly and thoroughly before you swallow.
- Drink with your meals. Whole grain bread and cereals are good for you, but they may stick to your teeth. Eat them with liquids to make them easier to chew and swallow.
- Avoid hard-to-chew meats. Replace tough red meats with poultry, fish, eggs, and legumes, or choose stewed or slow-cooked meats.
Be sure to remove and rinse dentures after eating.
- After each meal, run water over your dentures in order to get rid of any loose particles and remove food debris.

Whatever you do, take things slowly and remember that a little soreness is to be expected as the muscles in your mouth and cheeks get used to keeping your dentures in place.

But be sure to let MFD know if pain and other problems do not go away. We like to see our denture patients every six months. At that time, we can do an oral cancer screening and make sure that your overall oral health is still good.

If you need us – we’re here!