When we maintain our teeth we also maintain the integrity of our facial structure. In the image above, we can see that this lady has all of her teeth and can see how the muscles in her face are properly supported and her facial height (distance from chin to nose) appears normal.
When the teeth are lost, we can immediately see the effects on the facial structure. The muscles in the face are not supported and as such, they sag and droop, creating deeper facial lines. The jaws move closer together, causing the chin to protrude, since there are no teeth present to maintain facial height. All these facial changes speed up the aging process, making the individual appear much older.
