For all those with dental phobia (me included) this is a cautionary tale! Today my dentist had to do deep cleaning under anasaethetic, as due to my 37 yrs+ of smoking my gums have receeded and the sensitivity is now too much for me to bear cleaning without pain relief.
I also have one or two loose teeth and again the bone loss is attributed to smoking.
The good news is the dentist and the hygenist feel that with regular deep professional cleans and my contributions in between the teeth can be saved and the gums may even recover.
They have removed all the staining and they look terrific even if they are incredibly sore at this moment and I am still numb in parts.
The cautionary part of this tale is the dentist and hygenist told me had I not stopped smoking they wouldn't have planned such an intense prevention programme as continued smoking would just make all this intense cleaning treatments a waste of both their time and mine.
And I, at just 51 yrs old, would have probably lost most, if not all, of my teeth to gum disease- what a frightening thought.
There are many other things to consider that are a direct result of smoking beside the obvious, teeth and gums being one of them.
My Milage:My Quit Date: 5/10/2008
Smoke-Free Days: 150
Cigarettes Not Smoked: 3,750
Amount Saved: $2,250.00
Life Gained:Days: 17
Hrs: 15
Mins: 44
Seconds: 5
