Smoking, Drinking & Vaping Advice for Denture Wearers

Wearing dentures is a big step toward restoring your smile and confidence—but looking after your oral health doesn’t stop there. Here’s how smoking, drinking, and vaping can affect your dentures and your mouth—and what you can do to reduce the risks.

🚬 Smoking and Dentures

• Stains and Discoloration: Smoking can cause your dentures to become yellow or brown over time. Unlike natural teeth, dentures don’t respond well to whitening.

• Bad Breath: Smoking dries out the mouth, leading to bad breath and a higher risk of infection.

• Increased Risk of Oral Disease Thrush and even Cancers: Smoking weakens your immune system and creates a dry, warm environment ideal for fungal infections like thrush—especially under dentures. Tobacco is a major risk factor for cancers of the mouth, tongue, throat, and lips and smoking (especially combined with alcohol) increases the risk dramatically. It often appear as white or red patches, persistent ulcers, or lumps.

• Bone Loss: Nicotine can reduce blood flow to the gums and jawbone, speeding up bone loss that affects how your denture fits.

Advice:

• If you smoke, try to cut down or quit—especially after having new dentures fitted.

• Keep dentures clean by brushing them daily and soaking them in a denture-cleaning solution.

• Visit your dental professional regularly for oral cancer checks and to ensure a good denture fit.

🍷 Drinking Alcohol and Dentures

• Staining: Red wine, beer, and dark spirits can stain denture materials over time.

• Dry Mouth: Alcohol reduces saliva, making dentures less comfortable and increasing the risk of sores.

• Irritation: Alcohol can irritate the soft tissues in your mouth, especially under the denture.

Advice:

• Rinse your mouth and dentures with water after drinking.

• Never sleep in your dentures, especially if you've been drinking.

• Keep up with good oral hygiene to prevent buildup and staining.

💨 Vaping and Dentures

• Dry Mouth: Like smoking, vaping can reduce saliva flow, leading to discomfort and bad breath.

• Heat and Chemicals: Some e-liquids may irritate the mouth and affect the lining under the denture.

• Unknown Long-Term Effects: While vaping may be “cleaner” than smoking, it’s not risk-free—especially for denture wearers.

Advice:

• Stay hydrated to combat dry mouth.

• Clean your dentures daily to prevent bacterial buildup.

• Let your dental professional know you vape—they can monitor any changes in your oral health.

Final Tips

✅ Clean your dentures every day ✅ Remove them at night to let your gums rest ✅ Stay hydrated and maintain a healthy diet

✅ Regular dental check-ups are key

Your mouth deserves to stay healthy—and your dentures deserve to stay fresh and functional. If you’re struggling with any of the above habits, we’re here to support you without judgment.