Dentures vs. Implants

Ask your dentist for help choosing between dental implants and dentures. Think about comfort, appearance, practicality, and cost.
Ask your dentist for help choosing between dental implants and dentures. Think about comfort, appearance, practicality, and cost.

In days past, if you lost a tooth you were subject to living the rest of your life with a gap in your smile. Luckily, modern dentistry has given us options to replace missing teeth: dentures and dental implants.

Whether you are missing one tooth or many, your dentist can help you choose the right replacement for you.

While both options get the job done, you should familiarize yourself with the advantages of each so you can make your decision an educated one.

Advantages of Dentures

A denture is a removable dental appliance made of acrylic plastic (or sometimes porcelain) and metal that replaces missing teeth and tissues. Because of advances in dentistry, dentures are more natural-looking and comfortable than ever before. A denture can improve your appearance, help you chew properly and speak well again.

Depending on your situation, you may need either partial or complete dentures. Advantages to dentures include:

  • More cost effective than implants
  • Less time consuming
  • People who grind their teeth may not be suitable for dental implants

Advantages of Dental Implants

Dental implants are small dental appliances surgically inserted into the upper and/or lower jaws to replace one or more missing or diseased teeth.

Today, more people are choosing dental implants over removable dentures or fixed bridges. Dental implants offer several advantages for people who want to replace their missing, diseased or decayed teeth. For example, dental implants:

  • Stay in place. They don’t slip or cause clicking sounds when you eat or speak
  • Help with proper chewing
  • Promote “denture self-confidence,” as speech and appearance are often improved
  • Do not need to be removed each night for soaking and cleaning and do not require adhesives to keep them in place
  • Do not need to be replaced every 7-15 years

Make sure to speak to your dentist about the options you are considering. All mouths are different and your dentist can help you decide the best option for you.

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Leah Martinez
Leah Martinez serves as a social media analyst for Delta Dental of Arizona. In college at the University of New Mexico, Leah took the path of no return and majored in Chemistry with healthcare on her mind. After learning direct patient care was not her forte, she landed a job as the advertising manager at University of New Mexico's college newspaper “The Daily Lobo.” It was this job that turned her on to her skills in digital marketing. Since joining Delta Dental in 2012, Leah found her niche, as the constant education and learning in social media brings out the true geek in her. In her spare time, Leah enjoys snowboarding, snowmobiling and riding dirt bikes. (Did we mention she's based in Colorado?) [Editor's Note: Leah is no longer a current DD employee.]