There is no getting around it – smoking is bad for your teeth and it is bad for you. It is likely to give you bad breath and tooth discoloration and can cause various inflammations in the mouth. You are less likely to be a viable candidate for some highly restorative dental treatments like dental implants and the bone in your jaw is at more risk of deterioration. This means a decreased ability to support the teeth or implants. Smoking also contributes to the build-up of plaque and tartar on the teeth and increases your risk of developing gum disease, which puts you at risk of losing teeth. In the long run, it’s going to be easier all round if you can stop now.

Be free of smoking and its effects

You can be free of smoking in quite a short space of time and there is so much help available for smoking cessation. In Hammersmith, at Kings Dental Clinic, we want to be able to start to help you repair and reverse the effects of smoking. Once you have quit, there are things we can do to give you a bright smile again including teeth whitening and a good clean to remove plaque and tartar. The body is pretty great and starts to heal itself from the effects of smoking straight away. Any healing that you need to do from dental treatment or any other health problem will then be faster and more effective.

Oral cancer screening

If you are a smoker or have been recently then you can be at higher risk of cancer. One of the services we offer is an oral cancer screening programme, during which we check your mouth for any unusual lumps and bumps and check out what those might be. It is important that if you have anything you are concerned about including; lesions, a feeling of something stuck in your throat, or persistent pain that you see your doctor or dentist straight away.

A great way to reduce your risk is smoking cessation. In Hammersmith, at Kings Dental Clinic, we always do what we can to encourage our patients to quit and think it is an amazing thing to choose to do for yourself and your health.