Millions of smokers have made the switch to vaping in order to pursue a healthier lifestyle.
Vape devices has been proven to be at least 95% less harmful than smoking cigarettes, and many people experience health improvements once they make the change from smoking to vaping.
However, whilst the big health benefits are being spoken about left right and centre, the more minor unpleasant side effects of smoking, and whether vaping can put a stop to them, are less often acknowledged.
How Does Smoking Affect Oral Hygiene?
Smoking tobacco is of course often associated with stained and yellow teeth, as it is also associated with the staining of your fingers and the walls of your home.
This is a result of the tar in cigarettes, which leaves behind a thin coating and over time this will build up to a yellow stain, sometimes even brown. Smoking however, can also lead to many other oral health issues that can cause far more serious problems than a less than perfect smile.
Smoking tobacco has been proven to increase the risk of oral cancer, gum disease, which can be linked to heart disease, and a decrease in the rate of healing for oral injuries. In addition to this, tobacco can decrease a smoker’s sense of smell and taste quite drastically.
Unfortunately, no matter how well you look after your teeth, or how much you floss, smoking will continue to cause damage to your oral hygiene, with smokers being twice as susceptible to tooth loss than non-smokers.
Can Vaping Decrease Oral Health damage?
As with many other health issues related to smoking, vaping has been proven to be far safer.
As e-liquids do not contain any of the nasty chemicals that are found in cigarette smoke, including tar, they do not leave behind a residue that will stain your teeth. Over time, and with a good teeth cleaning regiment, vapers may find that the discolouration that smoking caused can be lessened. They will often also find that the loss of taste and smell that they experienced due to smoking will decrease, and food will taste better (or worse, depending on the cook!)
However, although oral hygiene will improve once you make the switch, you will still need to be vigilant!
The nicotine in e-liquids, as with the nicotine in cigarettes, acts as a vasoconstrictor, which means it can decrease the blood flow to your gums and leaves you susceptible to gum disease.
As most vapers inhale less nicotine than when they were smoking, they are less at risk, and the lower the nicotine strength of your e-liquid, the less at risk you are.
Recognise the Signs
One way in which you can stay on top of your oral health, is to be able to recognise the signs of gum disease and act on them as soon as possible. If you are worried about your oral health, or can recognise any of these signs in yourself, we highly recommend you see your dentist as soon as you are able.
Recommendations suggest that you should visit your dentist for a check up every six months, and this is especially important if you are a smoker.
Some early signs of gum disease to look out for are swollen gums or bleeding after brushing or flossing your teeth. At this very early stage the gum disease is known as gingivitis.
If these symptoms remain unrecognised and untreated, then periodontitis, also known as periodontal disease, can affect the mouth. Some signs and symptoms to watch out for include:
- Persistent bad breath (halitosis)
- Persistently having a dry mouth or a bad taste in your mouth.
- Your teeth feeling a little loose.
- Abscesses on the gums.
These symptoms should not be ignored and can develop into an unpleasant and painful affliction.
For more vaping news, reviews and how to guides, head over to the Evapo Blog.
To speak to one of our expert members of staff about whether vaping could be the right stop smoking aid for you, pop in to one of our 30+ UK stores, or shop our full range on our online vape shop.
