How many 80 year olds still have their own teeth?

Keeping Your Smile As You Age

Getting older does not automatically mean losing your smile. While aging brings plenty of changes to our bodies, our dental health has been on a major upward trend over the last few decades. In fact, most seniors today manage to keep roughly half of their natural teeth well into their eighties.

This is a massive shift from past generations. If we look back to 1987, it was very common for older adults to lose all of their natural teeth completely, often leading to full dentures becoming a rite of passage. Today, that picture looks entirely different. Recent data highlights that only about 1 in 5 people over the age of 75 have lost all of their natural teeth.

Why are we keeping our teeth longer? A lot of it comes down to better daily hygiene habits, regular dental check-ups, and modern preventive care like fluoride treatments. Brushing twice a day, flossing, and catching minor cavities early go a long way in preserving your adult teeth for life. Taking care of your teeth now means you will have plenty of reasons to smile decades down the road.