Health questions

[Pam O]

I have got a question that I hope the more experienced vapers might be able to answer.

My health in general has been getting worse over the past few years due to smoking but one of the main reasons for giving up is receding gums Basically I am going to start loosing important teeth very soon!!
Has anyone else had this problem and found that stopping the cigs to vape instead has either halted the process or have they found the gums growing back at all?
With nicotine being a vasoconstrictor I wonder how much that on its own has contributed to my problem or was it the cocktail of other nasties in the cigs.
Still not smoked a ciggie since Friday

Pam

[Karma]

I don't know

I lost a tooth a couple of years ago due to this problem and was warned by the dentist that more would go if I didn't stop smoking! I tried to quit that time and failed.

I've been off the nasties for over 7 months now and I don't think my gums are any worse, i'm not very sure if gum can regrow, the bones supporting the teeth certainly will not grow back if damaged!

I now have an NHS dentist. I asked his opinion on the e-cig back in April. He didn't seem to understand what I was talking about, his English wasn't too good

I'll be happy so long as my gum problems have stabalised and don't get any worse

[Malibu]

I stopped for the same reason. 1 is wobbling due to receding gums. I thought I read somewhere that the blood flow should start to return. I don't know if that will help.

My dentist was very odd, he asked if a dentist had told me that smoking would cause my gums to recede and teeth fall out. I couldnt remember why I thought that and said " I think so " he went on to say it's not brushing them right that causes it.
He seemed to think or convey that it wasn't smoking that did it. I think everyone has their own beliefs as to what causes what.
Either way I still think this tooth will go sometime in the next year or so.

[Mary]

I also have receding gums and was at the dentist only last week, he says its due to the way I scrub them lolI have now been informed I have to be more gentle. The hygenist was cleaning my teeth and said that due to me stopping smoking they were bleeding quite a lot but hopefully in time that will settle down..Well done Pam on stopping and keep up the good work

[padiho]

Well done on stopping since Friday That's a fantastic achievement
As far as the receding gums go I don't think the gum can grow back. I have also suffered from this problem and my dentist says that smoking doesn't help the problem but the main reason for this is a particular enzyme in your saliva. Some people are prone to it and it's just genetics.
My Father who was a non smoker lost all of his teeth at the age of 26, his brother was 52 so genetics seems to be a factor. I have lost a couple of teeth because of gum recession even though I attend the hygienist every three months for an half hour clean.
Smoking won't help but luck of the draw I think

[Pam O]

My dentist said it is the ciggies wrecking the blood supply.

As for brushing properly I use a soft brush and I don't scrub like mad, I use hot water to brush, floss once a day and mouthwash at least 4 times a day

Must be dodgy genes then

[Gordy]

one of the main advantages of stopping smoking is you wont be taking in the carbon monoxide from the ciggies.

in your blood you have haemoglobins that have 4 'hands' that grab onto oxygen to take it around your body... the carbon monoxide however attaches to the haemoglobins 'hands' preventing them from grabbing the oxygen and taking the oxygen around to where its needed in your body

[lobeydosser]

I don't know about the receding gums as my teeth are like the stars, they come out at night.
But, I was at the dentist for a check up two weeks ago and he asked me if I was still smoking and I told him No. That I had changed over to E-cigs.
His answer to that was, "Well done. Keep them up. All our staff and the receptionists are on them".
I was both surprised and pleased by this answer as it was the first time that anyone from the "medical profession" had made any comment on e-cigs to me.

[bennyboy]

I've got receding teeth lol

[kirsty0108]

Through vaping I've cut down from 25 fags a day to 4/5 , a couple of years ago the dentist referred me to hygeneist, who said I had early signs of gum disease but I was young enough to reverse it. I was on quarterly appointments until February this year, which was 3 months after starting vaping but I was still smoking about 10 a day when she said come back in 6 months as I really hated going to see her I didn't question it , when I went back in August after smoking 4-5 a day for at least 5 of the 6 months the hygeneist was seriously impressed with how improved my orally health is. This is despite me getting a bit lazier with the tepe brushes over the last six months. I had just seen on my dental records that the Dentist had me down as a non-smoker so I didn't tell her why my gums had improved but I know and I really need to work on cutting out those last 4 or 5 and not just for my oral health

[Pam O]

I think mine are gone beyond the point of repair to be honest :-[ I just hope they don't get any worse or mine will be like the stars too Lobey.

[booblay]

For me it depends entirely on ejuice. Some sugary ones really mess my gums up..espesh Grizwalds strawberry ice cream, which is a shame since it's lush....and vermillion river 7 blend...both make me feel like i've been gargling dr pepper all day...

i messed my gums up in my early twenties (student) days - too much booze, not brushing enough, and when eventually brushing, over-compensating by brushing too hard.

apparently the best you can do is use a soft toothbrush, floss every day, use mouth wash, and basically treat your gob like a shrine...............wish i could get a dentist's verdict, but alas, can't afford it (that's a lie - i could easily afford it - if i wasn't pissing all my money away on lavatubes and ejuice)

also, contrary to what everyone on here says, nicotine messes yer gums up, not just the carbon monoxide and etc from stinkies....but bear in mind, my googley internet source might be total balls, and this could therefore be wrong....apologies if so.

my grandmother had all her teeth taken out at 25 and replaced by dentures, and she said it was the best thing she ever did.

[Scylla]

Aug 28, 2012 23:59:36 GMT booblay said:

i messed my gums up in my early ... days - too much booze, not brushing enough, and when eventually brushing, over-compensating by brushing too hard.

That's my story too, Booblay, and I can't get out of the habit of brushing too hard. Quite a few of my (remaining ) teef are wobbly

New vapers need to know that bleeding gums are quite common at first, something to do with the restored blood supply - someone else with a less selective memory than mine will tell you. Anyway, it's nothing to worry about

[Karma]

Re - mouthwash

If you do use it, use it between brushing not straight after otherwise all you're doing is rinsing all the flouride off you teeth again. In fact, you shouldn't really rinse after brushing.
Flouride not only protects teeth from decay but toughens up exposed roots so therefore less sensitivity and it's also thought to have some kind of anti bacterial properties so is good for gums! So stop rinsing it all down the plughole

[ciar]

My gums started to receed down the bottom of my mouth a few years ago, last time I went to the dentist for a clean-up she did tell me it would get worse with smoking, since quitting I have noticed them improving in fact the gum has started to grow back, my teeth at the bottom feel stronger and my mouth in general feels better, i have also suffered from the bleeding gums, but in all honesty i know that's a side effect of quitting smoking, so next time I hit the dentist which is on October for another clean up, I will find out what she has to say and let you know