3 Ways Dental Care Keeps Growing

The dental implant and prosthetic market is projected to reach $6.4 billion this year. With a growing number of Americans feeling uncomfortable with the look of their teeth, it’s easy to see why. From cavities, to replacing missing teeth to removing wisdom teeth, the dental care industry will be kept busy in the future as Americans use different methods of dental care to restore their smile.

Cutting off the cavities
Cavities often take months or even years to form, but by age 17, 78% of people have been affected by at least one. Even with such a high number of cavities, they are often left untreated by one in five people. The number could get even higher in the fall when candy and other treats with high sugar content fly off of store shelves. According to CNBC, Americans could spend in excess of $800 million on emergency dental visits because of Halloween.

Flossing regularly and brushing twice a day are two good forms of dental care to help prevent cavities and tooth decay. More than 20% of people say they floss every day. When it comes to brushing your teeth, dentists recommend short, back-and-forth strokes with the toothbrush held at a 45-degree angle toward the gum line.

Rather than scheduling a follow-up appointment right away, people often wait three years before scheduling another one. While some may be wary of a trip to the dentist, it’s important to visit the dentist regularly to avoid major dental issues and to ensure the long term health of your teeth.

A demand for dentures
Nearly 18% of people hide their teeth in photos and missing teeth is a big reason why. Most adult Americans are affected by partial edentulism (lack of teeth) and in 15 years that number could grow as high as 200 million. In fact, nearly 15% of those who are edentulous have dentures made each year and tooth replacement is a problem that isn’t going away anytime soon.

The number of people with dentures is growing as nearly 30 million Americans are missing all their teeth in at least one of their jaws. As more and more people have a tooth extraction or tooth removal, the number of tooth implants is expected to grow as well. Three million people have implants already and that number continues to rise by 500,000 by the year.

The removal of wisdom teeth
Another area where the dental care industry is growing is in the removal of wisdom teeth. Wisdom teeth removal is common in adults as the average mouth only has room for 28 teeth. Those getting their wisdom teeth removed are typically having third molars removed from the back of the mouth that aren’t able to develop like normal teeth. Five million Americans have wisdom teeth removed every year and the removal of these teeth is an outpatient procedure.