People who have suffered gum disease, gingivitis or periodontal disease may be given dental treatment to prevent further infection, such as root canal treatment and replacement teeth, including dentures, dental implants or crowns.
Wearing dentures, whether part or full, as teeth replacements that slot onto your remaining teeth to support your teeth structure can sometimes bring certain challenges, particularly if the dentures slip.
Why use denture fixative?
Denture fixative can be used to secure the dentures to your own teeth, and for:
- Giving you a sense of greater confidence when wearing dentures – not fearing that the denture may fall out or wobble when you speak
- Reducing denture movement when you eat or talk
- Preventing gum irritation and pressure if dentures do slip, particularly during physical games or sports
- Filling gaps where food may lodge and cause a build-up of dental plaque
How is denture fixative used?
There are a range of denture fixatives available, from strips to powders and creams. You can use the following steps to apply denture fixative to secure your dentures and prevent them from moving around in your mouth:
- Clean your own teeth and dentures using brushing with toothpaste and denture cleaning solution.
- Then make sure you have dried your dentures.
- Now apply small amounts of the denture fixative where it is needed – do not let it ooze out!
- Rinse your mouth and insert your dentures, holding them down to adhere to the dental fixative.
- Keep holding and allow the dentures to seal to the fixative for about 7 to 10 seconds.
- Try not to eat or drink for about 20 minutes afterwards.
- You can remove excess fixative by brushing it and your dentures with warm water.
What if denture fixative still doesn’t work?
If you’re still having challenges with movement of your dentures, even when you use dental fixative, speak with your dentist about solutions such as dental implants. With dental implants, titanium “roots” permanently hold replacement teeth like crowns, bridges and dentures in place, so that you don’t have to worry about clumsy restorations any more!
