Is Smoking Putting Your Dental Implants at Risk?

Reviewed by Dr. Kerri Font, DDS

Reading time: three minutes

Smoking changes how your mouth heals, and that can have a direct impact on the success of a dental implant. Reduced blood flow, slower tissue repair, and higher infection risk make it harder for the implant to stabilize during the early stages of healing. If you smoke or have a history of smoking, understanding these risks now helps you make informed decisions and gives your implant the best chance of long-term success.

Table of Contents

The Impact of Smoking on Oral Health

Smoking gradually changes the health of your gums and bone, creating an environment that is less capable of supporting a dental implant. These effects begin long before treatment and make healing more difficult.

Here’s how it impacts your mouth:

  • Reduced blood flow: Nicotine constricts blood vessels, limiting the oxygen and nutrients your gums need for normal healing.
  • Higher risk of gum disease: Smoking reduces blood flow and weakens the body’s defense against bacteria, making the gums more vulnerable to inflammation and periodontal disease.
  • More severe plaque buildup: Cigarette chemicals change the balance of bacteria in your mouth, making plaque harder to control and encouraging harmful strains to grow.
  • Increased tooth loss: Research shows that smoking raises the risk of losing multiple teeth, and this risk decreases when someone quits.

Together, these issues weaken the tissues and bone that dental implants rely on, making it much harder for your mouth to support long-term implant success.

How Smoking Affects Dental Implant Success

Successful implants depend on healthy gums, stable bone, and predictable healing. Smoking affects each of these factors and can make it more difficult for the bone to fuse properly with the implant.

1. Higher Implant Failure Rates

Studies repeatedly show that smokers experience significantly more implant failure. With reduced blood supply and a weaker immune response, your body struggles to fuse the implant securely to your jawbone.

2. Slower Healing After Surgery

Tobacco smoke irritates tissues and reduces oxygenation, delaying normal healing. This prolongs tenderness, increases swelling, and raises the chance of postoperative complications.

3. Greater Risk of Infection

A suppressed immune system makes it harder to fight bacteria around the surgical site. Even mild infections can quickly compromise an implant’s stability.

4. Bone Loss Around the Implant

Smoking accelerates bone deterioration. Once the supporting bone begins to shrink, implants may loosen or fail, sometimes years after placement.

5. Compromised Long-Term Outcomes

Even if implants initially heal, continued smoking raises your risk of peri-implantitis (gum disease around implants), which can threaten their longevity.

Benefits of Quitting Smoking for Dental Implant Health

Quitting smoking is the best and most effective solution for improving the success rate of dental implants. Even short-term cessation can create a healthier environment for healing and reduce the likelihood of complications.

Patients who stop smoking before and after surgery often experience:

  • Faster healing and improved comfort
  • Lower risk of infection and early dental implant failure
  • Less inflammation in the gum tissue
  • Better long-term bone support around the implant
  • Reduced risk of additional tooth loss

Quitting helps the tissues stabilize and heal more predictably, giving the implant a stronger chance of lasting success.

Schedule a Dental Implant Consultation

If you smoke and are thinking about dental implants, we can assess your gum and bone health and help you understand how to create the best conditions for healing. 

Contact Highlands Ranch Periodontics & Dental Implants to schedule a dental implant consultation at one of our two Colorado locations:

FAQ

Is smoking bad for dental implants?

Smoking reduces blood flow, slows the healing process, and increases the chance of implant failure.

Can you get dental implants if you smoke?

Yes, but your surgeon will evaluate bone health, gum condition, and healing potential first. They may recommend steps to reduce plaque buildup, strengthen your oral hygiene habits, and optimize your dental care before surgery.

Is it worth having dental implants if you smoke?

Smoking doesn’t automatically disqualify you from getting dental implants, however, the risk of complications is higher. Since dental implants are a big investment, it is important to understand how smoking may affect healing and long-term stability before moving forward.

How long should a patient stop smoking before and after implant surgery?

We recommend stopping smoking 4 weeks before implant placement and avoiding smoking for at least 4 weeks after. This period supports early healing and gives the bone a better chance to bond securely with the implant.

What can smokers do to improve implant success?

Stopping or pausing smoking before and after surgery is the most effective step. Maintaining consistent oral hygiene, following all postoperative instructions, and managing health conditions such as diabetes also support more predictable healing and reduce the risk of complications.

Categories: Periodontics