Dentures are a great way to restore the function and appearance of teeth after losing them for one reason or another. There are a variety of dentures available on the market, and they are widely available through most dental or orthodontic offices. To get dentures, you would typically first seek out an appointment with a dental professional, who would then work on designing dentures explicitly made for your unique needs. However, several companies advertise denture kits that you can use to construct your own set of dentures at home.
What are DIY Dentures, and How Do You Use Them?
DIY or “do it yourself” dentures are usually sent out as kits that contain materials and tools that can be used to construct dentures. These kits will typically include some type of synthetic teeth, synthetic gums, and tools that can be used to shape them to individual specifications. In addition to these things, some kits will also include impression kits, impression trays, or some other type of casting material to create impressions of your teeth.
You then follow the instructions that are included in the kit and use the materials and tools to create your own set of DIY dentures. The exact process that is followed is unique to each brand of DIY dentures kit, but you will essentially be relying on your own judgment and craftsmanship to create a set of dentures to wear.
Dangers of DIY Dentures You Make at Home
DIY dentures might seem like a cheap and convenient option compared to all of the different types of dentures, but they are not without their drawbacks and potential dangers. DIY dentures reviews are mixed, and there are multiple reasons to avoid these DIY denture kits, several of which will be addressed in the following section.
Should You Avoid Homemade Dentures?
DIY dentures, also known as homemade dentures, seem innocent enough at first glance. There are countless people who are suffering from the consequences of missing teeth, and while professionally crafted dentures are usually an affordable option, they might not be available to everyone. In theory, learning how to make homemade dentures could step in to bridge this gap and provide dentures to those who might not otherwise be able to afford the cost of dentures. If they were equal in appearance and function to professionally created dentures, this would be great, but in reality, even the best DIY denture kit is simply not up to standard.
Aesthetics
Aesthetically, do-it-yourself dentures are not going to have nearly the same level of quality as professionally designed and constructed dentures. Dentures are made by trained dental professionals who have spent years on an education that gives them the knowledge to create high-quality dentures. It is unreasonable to expect that the average person, regardless of their artistic ability, would be able to replicate the work of trained professionals with years of experience.
Functionality
Another key drawback of DIY dentures is their functionality, or rather the lack thereof. If the aesthetic quality of professional dentures is hard to replicate, then their functionality would be even more difficult for the average person to recreate.
Dentures allow people to regain the ability to chew food, speak with clear annunciation of their words, and otherwise restore the natural anatomy of the mouth to the greatest extent possible. These results, however, are reliant on the correct construction of the dentures. Professionals have the appropriate knowledge and experience to ensure that the dentures are created in a manner that does not disrupt the normal anatomy of the mouth- they must allow for natural patterns of muscle contraction as well as jaw movement and alignment. Snap-in dentures, in particular, cannot be replicated at home.
If you attempt to look into how to make dentures at home and design your own set of dentures, they might appear well-constructed to the untrained eye. But in reality, they might be disrupting the normal anatomy of the mouth, leading to discomfort and pain in the future.
Safety of Materials
The materials used to build DIY dentures or DIY partial dentures at home are another point to consider when evaluating their safety. This is something that is also more difficult to assess when simply looking at DIY denture kit reviews.
In professionally constructed dentures, organizations like the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) carefully regulated the materials used. You can have the peace of mind that the materials used are of good quality and will be able to withstand the daily wear and tear that dentures are subjected to.
But with DIY denture kits, the materials used to create the dentures might not be the most excellent choices. For instance, the material used to mold the artificial gums in some DIY denture kits is made with the intent of being easily re-molded in the event that an error is made in its construction. That is to say; if you mess up while making your DIY dentures, the material can be reset to its original form, typically via the application of heat. But this is a double-edged sword- if the material is so quickly returned to its original form, it likely won’t hold up well long term as a part of your dentures. Even if you take care of your dentures, they might not last long. The last thing you want to happen with your dentures is for them to start to fall apart entirely, so keep this in mind if you are thinking about going for the option of DIY denture kits.
In Conclusion
Broadly speaking, dentures are a safe and reliable option for teeth replacement. Even when only considering professionally made dentures, there is a range of styles and materials to choose from for your dentures. Additional variables are thrown into the mix when you start to think about DIY dentures, as these have several properties that distinguish them from their professionally constructed counterparts.
With dentures that you create for yourself, you might think that you can build custom dentures for a fraction of the price of what they would cost if they were made by a dental professional. But the reality is that this low price comes at the cost of other qualities of the dentures: including its aesthetics, functionality, and the safety of its materials. There are alternative ways to find affordable dentures: make sure you understand that homemade dentures are not an endeavor without risks, and proceed with caution.
