Smoking may cause failures in dental fillings

Indulging in drinking alcohol or smoking may not only damage your teeth but also lead to increased incidences of failure in dental fillings, warned researchers.

The findings, led by researchers from the University of Pittsburgh, showed that within two years of the dental procedure, fillings failed more often in patients who drank alcohol, while the overall filling failure rate was higher in men who smoked.
Furthermore, people with a difference in the gene for matrix metalloproteinase (MMP2) -- an enzyme found in teeth-were at increased risk of filling failure.
This could be because MMP2 might be able to degrade the bond between the filling and the tooth surface, potentially leading to failure, the researchers said.

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