Healthy gum is pinkish in color and firm. This is probably a positive indication that you are maintaining your oral hygiene. If your gums are anything other than pink in color and firm, however, it’s time to visit a dentist.
Unhealthy gums appear pale in color. It’s crucial to remember that while healthy gums are usually a vibrant pink, there may be some pale hues around your teeth, which is completely acceptable. Several causes for receding gums, including genetic predispositions, poor oral hygiene, hormonal changes, and even stress.
If you feel pale in the area around your teeth, it is an indication that your gums are receding.
Gum Disease:
Gum disease can cause bone loss which causes your teeth to gradually loosen up and eventually fall out. It can also cause gum pull. This is because if you brush too hard, you are removing the enamel layer that protects your teeth from further damage.
– The main thing that causes gum disease is plaque buildup on your teeth over time. Suppose you don’t maintain healthy oral hygiene habits, such as brushing your teeth twice daily with fluoridated toothpaste and flossing daily. In that case, plaque will accumulate on your teeth and irritate the gums surrounding them. This irritation leads to inflammation and swelling of the gums, which damages the bones and ligaments that hold your teeth in place.
Why Do Gums Recede?
Excessive brushing can cause receding gums as well. Brushing removes the protective layer of enamel that covers the teeth. Continued excessive brushing loosens this protective layer which can lead to receding gums. The constant friction of brushing may cause sensitive dentin, which is located below the protective enamel, to be exposed.
This is because if you brush your teeth too hard, you are removing the top enamel layer, leading to sensitive dentin being exposed, which causes receding gums.
The other reason for receding gums is grinding your teeth at night or during the day. Your teeth can also contact each other while grinding, which causes specific damages to your gums and bones in your mouth.
Periodontal Disease in gum tissue:
A common result of poor dental hygiene is the development of gingivitis and periodontitis, which causes receding gums. Gingivitis makes the gums around your teeth swell and become red and inflamed. While this sounds like a relatively harmless condition, it can lead to severe tooth loss if you don’t maintain good oral hygiene habits, such as brushing twice daily with fluoridated toothpaste and flossing daily.
Periodontal disease usually occurs when gingivitis becomes severe since bacteria can form plaque on your teeth enamel leading to bone damage around them or lost bone. This eventually leads to chronic inflammation affecting both your soft and hard tissue, which will cause your teeth to fall out.
The Warning Signs of Gum Recession:
Gum disease is a rather insidious and progressive ailment that can be hard to identify. If you notice any of the following warning signs, you may have gum recession:
– Redness or soreness in the mouth
– Gums that are receding or pulling away from teeth
– Persistent bad breath or bleeding while brushing
– Cracked or loose teeth
– Dentures becoming loose
– Sores inside your mouth
If you are experiencing any of these warning signs, it is advisable to consult your dentist immediately. They will be able to take samples for testing and determine the cause of the infection. Once you have been diagnosed with gum disease, then an appropriate course of treatment can be started.
It is very important to get gum disease treated if you notice any of the warning signs. If it is left untreated, serious health complications are produced.
Receding Gums vs. Normal Gums: How Do I Know Which Is Which?
It is important not to confuse receding gums with normal gums.
If your teeth are loose, this may indicate that you have receded gums, but if your teeth are always very tight in their sockets, they may be healthy. The best way to tell whether your gums are deteriorating is to look at them. Healthy gums are taught and do not recede from the teeth.
Diseased or infected gums will recede, exposing more of the root structure. This makes it easier for bacteria to grow and cause infection.
Gum Disease Symptoms: A Few Things You Should Know
– Gum disease can affect any tooth that has a gum line connection. This includes your front teeth, as well as your molars and premolars.
– The most common type of gum disease is known as periodontitis, which is caused by plaque buildup on the teeth along with tartar accumulation and advanced bacterial infection near or under the gum line
– Periodontitis occurs when serum fluid begins to accumulate between the base of the tooth and its supporting tissues. This condition is caused by a bacterial infection that causes your body to produce certain enzymes to fight the infection
– The worst form of gum disease is known as aggressive periodontitis, resulting in tooth loss if left untreated. Aggressive periodontitis typically only affects people genetically predisposed to this type of illness or other individuals who come into contact with certain environmental factors like smoking and diabetes (which leads to poor blood circulation).
How to Identify if the Gums Are Receding
The first thing to do is to check your gums. Color is the most common indicator of health, so it’s important to look for healthy pinkish gums. However, you may have some pale hues inside your mouth around the teeth, which are not necessarily unique to unhealthy gums.
To find out the condition of your gums, gently slide a finger along the gum line. Gently pressing with your finger will also help. If they’re firm, your gums are healthy; if they’re not firm or painful when touched, there might be an issue.
If you have healthy, pinkish gums but are having pain when you touch them or bleed easily, you might have some gum disease. Gum infections do not always appear around the teeth but can be located between your gum and tooth. While this is more common in people of old age, it still requires a visit to the dentist.
As with most medical conditions, it is important to consult your doctor before taking any steps towards treatment. This way, you will know exactly what type of infection you are dealing with and whether it can be effectively healed without causing further damage to your gums or mouth.
Tooth Sensitivity:
Sensitivity to hot & cold. Tooth sensitivity is a common symptom of inflammations in the tooth nerve or tooth decay. Pain that’s described as “stabbing” or “shooting” pain usually indicates significant damage to the tooth. The pain may be constant, but it may also only be felt when you eat something cold or hot, brush your teeth, clean your mouth after eating, drink acidic beverages, or chew on hard food.
Sensitive teeth are often due to dentin hypersensitivity, which means too many free radicals in the mouth. Other reasons for sensitive teeth include not getting enough vitamin C, Vitamin B2 (riboflavin), calcium, potassium, and phosphorus.
Notch at the Gum Line
When you place your finger along the gum line, and your finger disappears, that is usually a sign that there is not enough gum tissue. This could lead to receding gums and problems with oral health in the early stages. It may also lead to tartar buildup, plaque buildup, and many other dental problems.
Width of the Notch:
The width of the notch will be a big indicator in determining whether you have receding gums or not. If there is huge space between your teeth and gum line, then it’s possible that you could be dealing with this condition. Note that other factors can affect the space between your teeth and the gum line, like age, weight loss, or even diet preferences. While it may not lead directly to receding gums, professionals should still address it for precautionary reasons.
As you can see, healthy gums are usually a vibrant pink. If your gums have turned pale in color or if they’re not firm, you should visit the dentist right away to get this addressed before it evolves into something more serious. Healthy teeth and oral hygiene go hand-in-hand with maintaining good health – so don’t neglect yourselves!
