Posted: 1/18/2007 12:15:44 AM EDT
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Like the title says. My teeth are really sensitive to cold and to sweet stuff. Ice cream or chocolate hitting the wrong tooth hurts, really damn bad. Breathing through my mouth when it is cold outside hurts pretty bad too. Is there something that can be done to fix this? I've been considering getting crowns on the teeth that don't show when I smile, but I don't even know if that will help. If this is going to be a lifelong thing, I think I'm going to save my money and get them replaced. |
Sensodyne toothpaste, worked WONDERS on my sensitive little emo teeth. |
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Like Hemi-Cuda has already stated, try Sensidyne toothpaste. You might also ask your dentist about applying a coating to your teeth to help protect them from the cold substances. I know thay can do this for children, but I'm not sure for adults. If the teeth in question have metal filings, get them replaced with the non-metalic filings. If that doesn't help, cut back on ingesting cold stuff or do the extreme and get your teeth extracted and get dentures. 
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I've cut back on cold stuff and sweets about as far as I am willing to go. I'm 25 now, and I'd like to think that I have quite a few years left. If this is going to turn into a 40 year problem, I may as well go ahead and get them pulled and replaced with implants or, God forbid, dentures. |
I have to admit though that it is a tempting idea when the pain gets particularly bad. |
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Dude, I'm 47 and in the same boat. I've had bad teeth all of my life despite constant rides in the dental chair. Bad teeth runs in my family on my mothers side. Yes, we do brush, floss and all that. The best thing that I ever done for myself (besides getting divorced) was to quit trying to fix bad teeth that would break apart a few months later, get them pulled and get a partial denture (on top). That left me with 6 natural God given teeth on top (3 on each side), the rest fake. Lasted several years. Implants are ok if you can afford say $2000 per tooth and roughly 8-9 months therapy time. Then, I had to get 4 more removed as those broke down.They has been repaired so many times, there was nothing left to fix. The remaining two, which were my "eye" teeth, were used to hold the new upper partial. Actually, it appears more like a full plate, but the two "vampire teeth" secures it very well. I can eat almost anything that I want to, I can even play my trumpet. No. I ain't worth a crap, but I can play the thing. I played in high school. It's just a part time hobby now. If you are not familiar with Brass Instruments, having front teeth is crucial to playing them. Anyway, dentistry is now more or less painless. They give good drugs to get you through it. Believe me, it's well worth a day or two of relatively minor discomfort and then no more worries about your teeth. Trust me on this. Scott |
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Try Biotene toothpaste and mouthwash. It saved my mouth from chemotherapy and radiation to the head. I use the dry mouth gel, but they have a product for sensitive teeth too. Biotene |
I went a few years between getting out of the Marines before I got some coverage, but I'm on top of it now. I went in to get some fillings and they sprayed some kind of stuff in my mouth so I didn't even feel the shots. I guess now that I have gotten started, I'm just ready to get it completed. |
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First off, go to the dentist. Stop eating candy and chocalate, don't drink soda all day. Use Sensodyne toothpaste. Dentures are a pain, imagine wearing thick leather gloves all the time. You have a thick layer of plastic in your mouth all the time when you have dentures. |
I understand how to take care of my teeth. I brush, floss, and do everything else I'm supposed to do. Until now, I have never been in a position that allowed me to dictate what was done to my teeth. That call was made by my parents until I was 17, the Navy until I was 22, and me from then on, although I have only recently become financially able to pay for whatever dental work is needed. I suspect that solving the problem is as easy as putting crowns on the teeth that are the source of the problem. I hope that it is. If not, I'm open to other options. My desire is not to get all my teeth yanked out at 25. If that is the only solution, I'll do it, but I sure as hell don't want to. |
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Oh yeah. Old age sucks. My memory is getting worse. I forgot to tell ya.... Most dentists will tell the you standard line that "any tooth can be saved with root canals, crowns, implants" and all that other high priced work. If you have the $$$ and time, not to mention, teeth, gums and bone structure that are strong enough to last a while, then go for it. But, the kind of work I just mentioned is real expensive and may take several months to fully complete. It will probably take 8 or 9 months to do one implant at a cost of $1500-2000 per tooth. If you need a mouthfull like I did, thats a lot of money and a lot of time sitting in the chair. I've had root canals/crowns. Expensive and then I had one fall off a week later. Crowns usually only last but a few years anyway and then need to be replaced again. More expense. Not good. They in essense glue a crown onto a post they build up. Like I said before, My partial, is almost a full plate. Yes, I know it's there, but it's not uncomfortable. It's stable, I don't need Poligrip as it secures well to the two eye teeth that I have remaining. I can remove it easily for cleaning. It looks fairly normal and I can now eat just about anything I desire. It works well for me. Dental insurance. If you don't have any, get some if you are able. Dentistry is not cheap. Besides my Blue Cross from work (which does not pay all that much for hard-core dental), I have a discount plan called Ameriplan. It's not really an insurance plan, rather it is a pre-negotiated discount plan. It's availible in Georgia, 15 pages of providers. I looked. Go to www.ameriplan.com and check yourself. The single rate for my state (Okla) is $11.95 a month. It gets me roughly half or more off of the usual cost. My dentist was already a member, thus was contract bound to accept their discounted price. My last ride in his chair would have cost me approx $4200 with the Blue Cross only. Having the Ameriplan and Blue Cross together knocked my cost down to around $1600. Mo' better !!!!!!!!!! Or, I do have a few pairs of pliers I could lend you for the "Do it yourself"  plan. Just kidding. Get those chompers fixed and feel no more pain Marine ! Hollar if you have any questions that I could answer.Got Teeth ????????? Scott |
I got the Tricare dental plan. The estimate I got for getting everything was about $400. Without insurance, it would be running about $3000, and I'd have to rob a store or something to pay for it. |
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I just noticed your age. I wish I had mine jerked out at 25. That would have saved me a few years of pain, lots of frustrations and tons of $$$$$$$$$$$. It don't get any better. Just do what you have to do, get it over with. Find a half way competent dentist. If you get falsies, I promise you, most people won't be able to tell that they are not natural unless you pull them out and show them. I have had to do exactly that to convince a few of my co-workers. I use this joke at work,,,,,,,,, "I still have my own teeth,,, In fact I still have the receipt for them at home" Hey, it works for some laughs. Scott |
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Sensodyne and similar types pastes work. Not being a dentist, I'll try to explain what my dentist told me. Although the tooth is hard and solid, it actually has many pores, especially where either the dentin has worn away, or where the gums have receded. This tends to become sensitive to heat/cold/sweets. The potassium nitrate in sensodyne plugs these pores and prevents the cold/heat/sweets from irritating the nerve endings. When first used, it may take a week or two of daily use to get all the pores plugged, but once that happens, using it once or twice a week after that will maintain the protection. I don't know how accurate my explanation (or his) is, but it works for me. This assumes the pain is not caused by cavities or other damage to the tooth. |
Interesting. I don't eat many sweets, but when I do it makes my teeth hurt. I'll give Sensodyne a shot. |
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The only way to really fix your problems is to visit a good dentist and begin a treatment plan. I'm old. I've had just about every sort of dental "procedure" done. Surgeries, crowns, bridges, implants...blah...blah...blah. I really like my six implants. They are damn pricey...but they are better than a bridge. Good luck...and get down to that dentist's office! 
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Sensodyne and flouride rinses after brushing (the ones made for kids, like ACT) were my dentist's recommendations. He also said some of my sensitivity was due to overly rigorous brushing at the gum line. Told me to get an automated toothbrush because then IT does all the work and not YOU. I use the Oral B one. Since I started, I HAVE noticed that the sensitivity has decreased and that the gumline is in better shape...and my teeth are cleaner (not so much tartar to deal with). Good luck |
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my buddy had artificial teeth put in about 5 years ago, artificial teeth are pretty interesting, first they rip out your bad tooth / or dont do anything if your missing a tooth. Then they take a drill and go up into your jaw bone, and start drilling! yummy! Now they take a fake tooth that looks realistic, and start screwing it up into your jaw bone. then about 3 years later the tooth begins to loosen because the jaw bone weakens apparently and on the 4th year you have the thing ripped out and get dentures! my buddy was pissed cost him 6 grand to have a couple implants put in, and then they start getting loose. |
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Go see a competent dentist. Sensitivity to cold is somewhat normal for a lot of people, but sensitivity to sweets is a textbook indication of caries, aka decay. Sweets change the concentration gradient of ions in the dentin and the tooth interprets this as pain. If dentin is exposed (the layer of tooth under the enamel) it needs to be restored. Gingival recession and subsequent exposure of the cementum (the covering of the root surface) can cause this type of sensitivity, however, its not often that this results in sensitivity to sweets. Don't listen to others telling you to have yor teeth removed. Dentures are a whole new set of problems and are NEVER as good as your own natural teeth. Believe me. They need to be replaced every 5 years or so (depending on the wear of the teeth) and your bone, especially of the mandible, resorbs leaving no surface for the dentures to rest. The lower denture will always be loose and, most likely, always be uncomfortable. DO NOT go this route. FWIW, implants are a great restoration when your natural teeth are in such a condition as to not be restored using conventional methods. They have about a 95% success rate (at least with the periodontist to which I refer), and they are the most like your own teeth that you can get. They run about 3000-4000 a piece for the implant and the asociated crown, depending on if extraction, grafts, etc. are necessary. So, long story short, keep your own teeth as long as possible. You'll be thankful later. |