When people think about their oral health, their minds tend to gravitate toward the teeth first. There's nothing wrong with that, but you have to think about all parts of your mouth when it comes to your health. That's because your gums, teeth, and jaw all play a role in keeping your oral health in good shape. Here's how they do it.

Gums Support Teeth

Gums play a big role in supporting teeth. They act as a literal support, helping to keep teeth in a standing-up and healthy position. This is why when gums become sick with gum disease the teeth can be at risk.

Teeth Support Gums

While the gums support the teeth, it's not a one-way street. The teeth help out the gums, too.

When you think about a tooth, you have to think about the entire thing, not just the visible crown. The root of the tooth goes way down into the gums. What this does is that when you chew using your teeth, the pressure of your bite travels down through the tooth and is dispersed through the gums. This helps to improve the circulation in your gums. This is part of the reason why when a tooth is lost gum disease often follows.

Jaw Supports Teeth

Your jaw plays a role in keeping your teeth intact and healthy, too. The teeth don't just extend through the gums, but also down to the bone of the jaw, too. The jaw bone keeps a firm grip on your teeth and helps to keep them in place with the gums acting as additional support.

Teeth Support Jaw

Just like with the gums, the support doesn't only go in one direction here. Chewing sends pressure into the jaw, too. This stimulates a process that builds new bone cells to help replace old and dying ones. In other words, chewing keeps your jaw strong.

When the entire mouth is healthy, all of these processes work together. However, as you can imagine, if just one thing goes wrong — like you get gum disease or you lose a tooth — other parts of the mouth start to suffer because of it. If you think that there's something wrong with your oral health, it's best to visit a dentist as soon as possible. They can help you to get back on track and improve your overall oral health, including all of the components seen here.

Reach out to a clinic like Milner Dentistry for more assistance.