Cannabis is destroying young mouths faster than cigarettes

Your twenties should be carefree and dreamy, not spent watching your teeth fall out one by one because of a drug habit. But dentists are increasingly having shattering conversations with young people who have become hooked on smoking cannabis.

According to a Department of Health NI survey of young people, cannabis is the most commonly used drug amongst teens.

The popularity of cannabis has been boosted by cannabis vapes coming onto the scene.

Dentists are seeing shocking levels of bone loss around teeth in 20-year-olds, of the sort typically associated with elderly people.

This gum disease, triggered by daily cannabis smoking, is eating away at the jawbone at an alarming rate – even faster than if someone were smoking cigarettes. Some studies suggest that smoking cannabis triples your risk of developing gum disease.

It’s thought that the bone-destroying capabilities of cannabis are so potent because it has additional effects compared to cigarettes.

Cannabis joints dry out the mouth, leaving it exceptionally exposed. Saliva is the greatest protector of our mouths; it not only lubricates, it’s also full of marvellous chemistry that restores balance after the acidic chaos that food and drinks leave in their wake.

On top of that, cannabis heightens cravings for sugary snacks and saps the energy cells that would normally be deployed to brush the teeth. Dry, sugary, plaque-engulfed teeth – a perfect storm for harmful bacteria to take hold and feed on the jawbone.

People tend not to realise the upshot of losing teeth, especially at a young age. It’s not just an appearance issue, although no-one particularly enjoys a gappy smile. It’s the other effects that can take a while to surface, like air escaping through the gap, making speech difficult, saliva spitting out at inopportune moments, and other teeth shifting out of position, causing bite discomfort.

Never mind the fact that the remaining teeth loosen faster as they have been lumbered with doing the extra work of the missing teeth.

Yes, but who cares, you cry – teeth can be replaced with dental implants! With severe cannabis-related gum disease, replacing teeth with implants can be somewhat challenging and comes with risks. The best case is to reduce how often cannabis is smoked to give the mouth a chance to heal itself.