Important Points to Remember About Your New Dentures

Written By David Dixon

  • It may take 6-9 months to get used to wearing your new dentures

  • Lower dentures are much harder to adjust to wearing and will always feel more loose than the upper denture.

  • The suction will get better and they will become more comfortable the longer you wear your dentures.

  • You will be very aware of them for at least the next 2 weeks.

  • Rinse your mouth with salt water (1 teaspoon of salt to half a cup of water) morning and night for the first 2 weeks. You can do this as many times a day as you like and can continue indefinitely if you wish.

  • You may talk funny and may produce excess saliva. This is normal, and your brain will adjust.

  • You may also bite your cheek, lips and sides of your tongue. This will cease over time.

  • You may get a few sore spots and ulcers in the first couple of weeks, this is just your mouth adjusting to the new fit of your dentures. Give it at least 2 weeks and if they persist and do not heal, give us a call to rebook. Please put your dentures in 24HR before your appointment and leave them in so that I can see exactly where to adjust.

  • Always take your dentures out at night to give your mouth a break.

  • While out of your mouth, clean them with liquid hand soap or dishwashing liquid.

  • DO NOT USE TOOTHPASTE TO CLEAN YOUR DENTURE. This will remove the shine and will cause more food and bacteria to stick to them. Over time this will also make them harder to clean.

  • If you wish to soak your dentures, you can use denture soaking tablets.

    • Or 50/50 water and white vinegar mix till the dentures are fully submerged

    • Or fully submerge the dentures with water and add 1 teaspoon bi-carb soda

  • Start off with small soft meals. Rice, omelette, pasta, noodles, fish, and work your way up to the tougher meats like steak.

  • When eating, its best to have a little bit of food on BOTH sides of your mouth and chew up and down at the same time keeping the dentures balanced. If you have food just on one side of the mouth, they will lift, food will get under them, and the likely hood of food getting underneath, sore spots and denture breakages will increase.

David Dixon