What causes gum recession and how can you know it?
Dr. D.Sendhil Nathan MDS, DNB Prosthodontics And Implantology
Gum Recession, also known as Gingival recession is a common dental problem and it is a symptom of gum diseases. Receding gums is the process that lessens or pulls back the gum tissue around the teeth. When the gum edges wear down, it exposes the inner layers of a tooth like dentin, root and others.
Oral bacteria take advantage of the receding gums and produce periodontal pockets between the gum line and the teeth. It eventually leads to tooth loss.
What makes our gum to recede?
Apart from gum diseases like Gingivitis and Periodontitis, various aspects are associated with gum recession. Some factors include:
Genetics – The gene you acquired from your parents is also linked to certain ailments. If your gene is the reason behind your thin gums and other gum disorders, then you have higher chances of gum recession even you maintain a flexible dental hygiene routine.
Tooth Grinding – If you have the habit of bruxism or tooth clenching while sleeping, then the chances for higher for your gums to recede. The force you apply on your teeth due to grinding makes the gums pull down from the teeth.
Teeth misalignment – The force caused due to misaligned teeth like crowded, crooked teeth is applied on the tooth bone and gums is also related to receding gums.
Inadequate Dental Care – If you do not clean your mouth properly, oral bacteria begins to deposit on the gum margins around the teeth. It is responsible for tartar build up on the teeth which lessens the gum tissues.
Overbrushing – Brushing our teeth vigorously will damage the teeth enamel and gum tissues. Too much of pressure applied on our teeth with toothbrush pulls back the gum edges from the teeth and causes gum recession.
Similarly, the hormonal changes occur due to health conditions like menopause, pregnancy is also responsible for gum recession in women.
Symptoms of Receding Gums
Few signs that will help you to observe that your gums are receding include:
- Teeth sensitivity- As the teeth’s inner regions are disclosed, it makes the teeth sensitive when the teeth are exposed to hot and cold drinks.
- Your teeth appear large in size more than actual they are. It is also because of the visibility of the inner portions.
- In general, a healthy gum appears light pink in color. If it appears reddish or has red spots, it may be affected by gum diseases which make the gum to recede.
- Receding gums are effective to regress the bone of a tooth if the gums are left untreated. In such cases, the teeth appear loose and unstable because of the weak bone support.
Gum recession treatments are not much tedious as many people think. Deep cleaning of the affected gum region alone is required to treat this. During the cleaning process, the Dentist removes the plaque and tartar build-up on the teeth. Similarly, the plaque build-up and bacterial deposits on the tooth’s inner regions beneath the gum tissues are also cleaned.
In contrast, if the infection is deep and it deteriorated the bone support, surgical procedures like connective tissue graft, open flap scaling are required to cure this dental issue.
Factors that make your gums prone to periodontal diseases and recession are innumerable. Hence it essential to assure your gums are clean as well as your teeth by maintaining an effective dental hygiene routine.
