According to the World Health Organization, tobacco kills more than 7 million people a year. This figure is just the confirmation of something that practically everyone knows: that tobacco is a great threat to our well-being, and that smoking is among the most harmful habits for our health.
In fact, its negative impact is demonstrated in different pathologies and diseases. Some of them are, precisely, related to the teeth and is that smoking influences our oral health and is especially harmful when performing a surgical intervention.
This occurs because the toxic substances that make up tobacco directly damage the gums, teeth and tongue, thus contributing to the development of all kinds of problems in the mouth.
WHAT ARE THE TOXIC SUBSTANCES IN TOBACCO?
A single cigar contains up to 3500 substances harmful to health, but it is nicotine that is the culprit in most of the pathologies that tobacco leaves, it is not because this substance causes diseases, but because of its addictive component that makes the brain hook on tobacco. Some of the substances that cause lung, cardiovascular and cancer diseases are:
- Lead
- Hydrocyanic acid
- Arsenic
- Ammonia
- Formic aldehyde
- Carbon monoxide
- Radioactive elements such as uranium (Polonium-210 has been found in the smoke that smokers inhale when lighting the cigarette)
- Nitrosamines of tobacco leaf
In addition, all these substances not only affect the smoker, but the people around him when they smoke. Passive smokers are also at high risk for cardiovascular and respiratory disease.
HOW DOES SMOKING AFFECT AFTER A TOOTH EXTRACTION?
From a change in the color of the teeth to a yellowish tone to the reduction of the senses of taste and smell or halitosis. However, in smoking patients, tobacco also causes periodontal diseases such as gingivitis, increases the failure rate of dental implants, reduces the effectiveness of surgeries and complicates tooth extractions.
The latter is, precisely, one of the main concerns of many patients who come to dental consultations and who wonder what guidelines they should follow regarding tobacco before and, above all, after a tooth extraction. For this reason, although smoking is discouraged in any circumstance, in the case of exodontics, this should be fulfilled without condition, especially in the postoperative period.
AVOID TOBACCO 48 HOURS AFTER SURGERY
And it is that not smoking after tooth extraction is one of the fundamental care. Tobacco should be avoided for at least 48 hours after surgery. Cigarettes contain a multitude of toxins that can cause an infection in the treated area, in addition, tobacco is a bad habit that increases the temperature of the area which can end up dissolving the clot.
WHAT IS THE CARE THAT A SMOKER SHOULD HAVE AFTER AN EXTRACTION?
BRUSH THE AREA THOROUGHLY
If you are a smoker, in addition to avoiding tobacco, you should brush the area thoroughly. Always with caution and without touching the affected area with the brush.
RINSES
A mouthwash without alcohol can be a great ally to make mouthwashes and thus keep the wound clean.
PRE-OPERATION CARE
On the pre-operation recommendations, it will be the dentist who indicates what guidelines to follow, although in general these are usually based on avoiding heavy meals, taking antibiotics and not drinking alcoholic beverages.
