Smoking and Tooth Loss

The new ban on smoking in all indoor places in Oregon is one of the many reasons to quit smoking in the new year. Studies find that smokers are more likely to loose their teeth than their non-smoking counterparts

A one-pack-a-day smoking habit can cost you the loss of at least two teeth every 10 years, reports the Academy of General Dentistry (AGD). Smokers are about twice as likely to lose their teeth than non-smokers, according to the results of two separate 30-year studies that investigated the relationship between smoking and tooth loss among males and females at Tufts University in Boston. Reports tooth loss due to smoking at the rate of 2.9 teeth every 10 years for men, while non-smokers lost an average of 1.3 teeth after 10 years. For women, there's an average of 1.5 teeth loss every 10 years, twice as likely as their non-smoking counterparts.

The good news is that, the risk of losing teeth will decrease by stopping the use of tobacco.