Does Missing Teeth Mean Missing Nutrition?

It’s a fact — if you are missing teeth, you cannot chew food efficiently, inhibiting digestion and the absorption of important vitamins and nutrients. In addition, chewing breaks down food into easily digestible pieces — and bigger pieces entering the digestive tract hurts the normal digestion process.

Most dentists will tell you that missing teeth cause other issues as well, including the inability of nutrients to completely separate from the food and do what they’re supposed to do — keep you healthy. Also, undigested food particles can lead to bacteria growth in the colon, resulting in indigestion. So, the simple act of chewing remains one of the key ingredients for a healthy lifestyle.

And how much should you chew? Your dentist recommends chewing until you no longer can recognize the food in your mouth. So, a carrot should be mush and you should no longer be able to detect the shape of a mushroom or a floret of broccoli. That’s how much you should chew.

Equally as important — you may also be avoiding certain foods because they are harder to chew, thereby missing out on nutrients that are vital to your health.

If you find yourself among a segment of the population that has missing teeth, you will also find yourself among the malnourished. Visit your dentist and talk about options for filling those gaps. Then have a feast — it will taste good and satisfy your appetite. And as a bonus, you’ll add much–needed health benefits to your diet.

If you are interested in finding out more about missing teeth and our restorative dental services, contact our Westerville dentists through our website or call us directly at 614-882-1135. Westerville Dental Associates standard is to be the very best at providing our patients optimal care, while making them feel right at home.