What are Receding Gums?
Are you finding that your gums are slowly starting to pull back from the teeth? This gingival gum recession is one of the first signs of gingivitis and gum damage. As the problem progresses, you get into gum decay and other problems with your teeth. Finally, you could lose your teeth completely.
Want to avoid that?
In severe gum recession, erosion of your gums causes pain and other problems. Things like periodontal pockets, gum scaling, and even holes in the gums can occur. And of course, you're going to feel pain as your gums are quite sensitive.
No, you don’t want to feel pain or lose your teeth.
Fortunately, it is possible to reduce the gum damage of your receding gum line. Both dental procedures and natural cures work to help reverse this gum damage. As a last resort, specific surgical procedures can aid the gums to replace themselves and reduce gum erosion. Let us show you how.
Recession Risk
One of the most significant factors in having receding gums is oral hygiene. People who do not brush their teeth often as they should, floss, or visit the dentist regularly are plagued with problems much more than people who do. And just because you are often brushing and doing what you’re supposed to, doesn’t mean that it can't happen to you. There are other risk factors involved with receding gums.
Your age is one of the highest risk factors. As you get older, your teeth go through an awful lot. The wear and tear do damage to your teeth and gums. Many people also find their appetite decreasing as they age. This can lead to reduced saliva production and higher chances of food and bacteria sitting on your teeth and gums. This can increase the risk of gum recession and periodontal disease.
Are Receding Gums Genetic?
Some genetic influences lead to a higher chance of having receding gums. According to the New York University College of Dentistry in 2007, a study showed Puerto Ricans, Haitians, and Indians were more likely to suffer from periodontal disease, while other Hispanics were more likely to have dental caries (cavities).
Those of Caucasian descent, mainly from northern countries, and of African descent, especially the most southern countries, had the least likely incidence of oral health problems. Speculation has these people eating lower carbohydrate and high protein foods, which reduces the harmful bacteria in the mouth. This is unconfirmed, however.
We want you to remember that genetics is only a possibility. Using good oral hygiene and focusing on your diet to reduce high carbohydrates food naturally reduces your risk of any problem.
Are Receding Gums Hereditary?
This ties in with genetics and many people experience many of the same problems their parents do. But, several studies on the difference between hereditary problems and genetic problems show that culture and exposure to your family’s habits have more of an impact on your health than genetics.
If your family has been exposed to high carbohydrates traditional diets, such as beans or rice, chances are you're going to favor those foods in your diet. High carbohydrate food plays a significant role in the amount of damage done to your teeth and gums.
As a child, you will also have learned your oral hygiene habits from your family. If your parents and close family do not practice good oral hygiene themselves, you most likely will not either. If your parents have weak teeth and their receding gums comes from their oral hygiene habits, then following their habits will most likely lead you to experience the same problems.
Fortunately, many of these are habits are not guarantees of problems. You can change habits by making a conscious choice to do better.
Can Receding Gums Cause Pain?
In the beginning, you're receding gums should not cause any pain. It’s a slow progression that gradually exposes more of the tooth. As it progresses, you will start to feel pain. The pain comes from the tooth being uncovered to the sensitive dentin.
As the disease continues to progress and becomes severe, the pain will increase. Eventually, left untreated, you may lose your teeth.
Are Receding Gums Permanent?
Fortunately, in the beginning, stages, gum recession is entirely reversible. It requires you to practice good oral hygiene and frequent the dentist, plus change some lifestyle habits. By following the advice of your dentist, you will be able to stop the progression of the disease and rebuild your gums. When you first notice your gums are receding, this is the best time for your receding gums to be stopped.
For your receding gums to grow back, you need to take extra care to make sure you practice the proper oral hygiene. Brushing with soft/very soft toothbrush without excess pressure, flossing daily, and using some of the natural remedies below will help. This will allow your receding gums to fix themselves. It is a slow process, but any shortcuts may cause additional problems, and you can loss teeth.
Can Receding Gums be Reversed?
Reversing severe receding gums is a little bit more challenging. It may require surgery and advanced techniques as directed by your dentist to change the problem. Receding gums are treatable, but in the advanced stages, it might be a little bit more challenging to return to normal.
Once your receding gums cause tooth loss, it is difficult to reverse the problem. At that point, your receding gums will require surgery and implants. Before this stage, receding gums can heal without surgery, but we want to remind you it will take time and work.
Receding Gums Symptoms
As you go through life, you should examine your teeth thoroughly on occasion, so you know what your teeth look like and feel like under normal conditions. That way, you will know when to worry about possible signs of receding gums.
The first signs of this problem are your gum swelling. Your receding gums will look like they are pinker than usual, even bordering on red. There may be a white line of flesh between the pink gum and your tooth.
It is only as receding gums continue that pain will set in. At that point, your receding gums will feel like they are very sensitive and even casual brushes cause shooting pain. It will be more prominent when you were chewing, and pressure is placed on your teeth.
Here's a list to look for when dealing with receding gums:
Receding Gums Causes
As we mentioned before, the causes of receding gums typically center on for oral hygiene like too intense tooth brushing, tooth displacement or bruxism and age. There are other factors, like certain diseases and your doctor will discuss with you risk factors when you have these diseases. Typically, obesity, diabetes, cancer, and autoimmune issues cause problems in the mouth.
You should visit your dentist frequently so they can monitor your oral hygiene health and warn you about what you're doing wrong. They will recommend brushing or flossing right and more often and using various products and treatments. They will also be able to discuss your receding gum line causes, so you know the actions to take to prevent it.
We recommend brushing your teeth at least twice per day, flossing once per day, and drinking plenty of water. This should be the minimum recommendations from your dentist. If your dentist requires more than this, you should follow the advice of your dentist.
Age is another factor. As we age, our body is not as able to handle the damage that is done to it as well. Children and teenagers can take a hit to the mouth and recover quickly, but in our forties and fifties, the mere bump of a toothbrush could cause bleeding. It’s another reason why your dentist is essential for maintaining your oral hygiene. If you start off early in life, you can avoid many of the problems later in life.
If you notice gum recession on one tooth, it could be caused by an injury. Something could have struck that tooth or a piece of food may be stuck in the gum. If there is no bleeding and no pain, your gum should repair itself in short order. However, if it does not, you see bleeding, or there is a sharp pain, you should visit your dentist immediately. These are signs of injury or something stuck between the gum in the tooth.
Many people find their gums receding on the bottom teeth first. That's very common as our lips cover our bottom teeth more than our top teeth period of when a person smiles and talks. Allowing air to touch the gums helps improve circulation, the flow of saliva, and the proper enzymes to move around the teeth. It can reduce future problems. Plus, many people focus on brushing their top teeth more than their bottom teeth.
Various diseases can cause receding gums and other oral problems. If you have health issues, you should consult your dentist as to the proper method of taking care of your oral hygiene. People who have health issues need to take extra care, as oral problems are linked to what's happening within. Cardiovascular health, especially heart problems, correlate to sore gums and bad breath.
Receding Gum Line Treatment
The first step in helping your receding gums grow back is to follow the advice of your dentist. One of the first thing that your dentist will do is to give your teeth a good cleaning to remove any bacteria that cause infection. This cleaning for your receding gums is essential. Any treatment that they recommend will be less effective unless it can get to the place where it will do the most good. Typically, bacteria and plaque buildup create pockets of infection.
From there your dentist will recommend a proper gum recession treatment. Severe cases may be referred to a gum specialist or periodontist. This specialist will give you recommendations to stop your receding gums and possibly restore the receding gum line.
One of the most popular methods for reversing receding gums is using a recommended toothpaste from your dentist. There are several brands on the market that your dentist may prescribe to treat gum recession, depending on the cause, age, and level of recession. They may be simple, over-the-counter brands or special prescriptions.
Most dentists will recommend a toothpaste that has mild antibacterial properties to aid the healing of your receding gums. Once your dentist has a specific recommendation, we suggest following their advice.
Flossing is an essential part of preventing receding gums and being able to heal receding gums. Flossing removes many of the particulates that build up between the teeth and help break up plaque and tartar that brushing cannot reach in the various books and crannies. Just be careful you don't floss too hard. Flossing too hard that causes injury and bleeding in your gums can accelerate gum damage.
After flossing, make sure you rinse your mouth thoroughly. Opinion is beginning to change whether using an alcohol-based mouthwash is genuinely appropriate. Studies have shown that a mouthwash will help receding gums to grow back, but the alcohol is causing damage to the natural flora in the mouth. This encourages harmful bacteria to flourish, which can cause gum recession and bad breath. We recommend discussing with your dentist which mouthwash to use and what is appropriate for your situation.
Your dentist may recommend avoiding over the counter or at home treatments for whitening your teeth. These whitening treatments are very harsh and will not help reverse receding gums. In fact, because of the imprecise application of many at-home treatments, they may cause damage to your gums. On many of the packages, they will give a warning that health gums are required to use the product.
Fortunately, receding gums can be cured. Using the above techniques under the advice of your dentist and some of the methods we have below as natural cures, you can stop your receding gums fast.
Preventing receding gums incorporates all of these techniques we mentioned. Brushing with a good toothpaste and soft/very soft toothbrush, flossing often, and using mouthwash are excellent starts. Visiting the dentist and getting a thorough cleaning is essential.
Receding Gum Natural Treatment
​As we said before, you can fix receding gums without surgery. If it's caught early enough, you will be able to help stop the recession and repair the damage. We recommend combining what your dentist says for stopping you receding gums from getting worse with the techniques we have here that helps your receding gums heal naturally.
Like we said above, you’ll be able to stop your receding gum line, but you’re not going to be able to heal them fast. These natural treatments are safe and work well to prevent further damage and encourage your body to heal.
Tea
Some of the most flavorful teas are the ones that help stop your receding gums from getting worse.
Green tea * contains powerful antioxidants and antibacterial properties that reduce the cause of the infection that may be causing your receding gums. If your dentist recommends treating the gum infection, green tea is a safe and natural way to augment any recommended courses of treatment.
Sage tea * is another way to promote healthy gums. Sage has been known throughout history to help support a robust immune system, stabilize new tissue growth, and reduce inflammation. Sage also has a minimal reaction rate with most medications. Sage is often used as a mouthwash for people who are sensitive to alcohol-based mouthwashes.
Oil Pulling
This method involves using sesame * or coconut oil * swished around the mouth for several minutes to remove bacteria and buildup on the teeth. It is a practice that has been used in Ayurveda medicine for thousands of years with great success. This way to treat your receding gums naturally has virtually no side effects and nearly no interactions. Only people who are allergic to coconut or sesame oils have to use caution. In that case, olive oil * is often an acceptable substitute.
Vitamin C
Vitamin C * has been shown in various studies to help restore proper bacteria in your mouth and prevent the onset of receding gums and gingivitis. Vitamin C enhances the immune system and helps reduce inflammation in the body.
Drink More Water
Most people do not drink enough water to flush waste and toxins out of the body properly and to support healthy saliva flow. When the mouth dries out, bacteria can build up and cause your gums to begin receding, and small pockets of infection push the gum away from teeth. Drinking water will help naturally flush out food particles and bacteria away from your teeth, and your mouth can be healthier.
Surgery
Surgery is a last resort, only undertaken when other methods have failed, and a quick resolution is needed. There are two different kinds of surgeries performed to help replace the gums: a gum graft and laser gum surgery/ pinhole surgery.
A periodontal gum graft is a tissue graft that replaces some of the gum that has been lost over the teeth. It is an invasive and often painful procedure. During the gum graft procedure, your oral surgeon will graft gum tissue onto a section of the gum that they are looking to replace. It works well, as the gum reduction surgery does repair the lost tissue and can help prevent further damage.
The other method of gum graft surgery involves the dentist putting small holes in the remaining gum hoping to encourage scar tissue to grow and form a stronger gum line. This type of receding gum surgery is less painful and has a shorter recovery time. It’s often called pinhole surgical tea technique or pinhole gum rejuvenation.
The typical cost of the gum surgery is several thousand dollars, depending on your area. Some insurances will cover it, while others will not. You will need to speak to your dentist on your insurance companies know the final cost and coverage.
Conclusion
If you’re experiencing receding gums, now is the best time to talk to your dentist about what can be done to prevent further damage and reverse the damage that has been done. By waiting and allowing the problem to proceed, you risk pain, damage to your teeth, an unsightly smile, and even tooth loss. However, by catching it early and working with your dentist to reverse the damage, you can enjoy a happy and healthy smile well into your old age.
If you liked our article, please share it and use the comment section below to tell us about your experiences or ask any questions. Thank You!
