Adults can lose a tooth for a variety of reasons – trauma, tooth grinding, or poor nutrition (too many acidic or sugary foods, too little calcium). Serious illness like diabetes and cancer can also lead to tooth loss. Serious gum disease is a common cause of tooth loss, as the disease damages jaw bone that supports the tooth.
When you lose an adult tooth, your remaining teeth will gradually start shifting to fill the void. This makes it difficult to clean teeth, which means food debris stays between teeth. Bacteria and tooth decay develop, which compromises the remaining teeth. Plaque builds on teeth, and bacteria leads to gum disease – which puts more teeth at risk for loss.
Therefore, it is critical to take care of a lost tooth immediately. This prevents expensive complications later.
