Mike Ditka, NFL Hall of Famer, Super Bowl winner and nationally respected coach, had a painful secret. “Football has been my life,” says Ditka. “Throughout the years, I have watched people perform at their best. But once I left football, I was no longer performing at my best because I had a secret problem: my teeth were failing me. I was living at the dentist’s office. I had root canal after root canal—it was horrible. And finally, dentures…DENTURES! They weren’t for me—and they’re not for you, either.”

Once upon a time, when baby boomers were children, dentists were visited only annually for a checkup, there was fluoride in the water, the tooth fairy left something silver under the pillow in exchange for a bit of enamel and, if absolutely essential, awkward adolescents were awarded a mouth full of metal to correct crowding or an overbite. Or not. Braces weren’t quite the right of passage then that they are now. And many of our parents, who themselves succumbed to the ministrations of a dentist rarely, if ever, saw these appliances as a slightly frivolous and decidedly expensive expense

Dwaine Rembusch, of Washington, Mo., had spent a lot of money and been through a lot of discomfort with his dentures. “Basically, I was just suffering through” he said. So when he first heard about the alternative ClearChoice offered, he said to his wife, Jane, “That’s it. It can be done.” The two of them decided to wait until ClearChoice opened in this area. When Rembusch saw a local ad, he told his wife, “They’re finally here. Let’s do it.” 

At some point, nearly every adult will lose a tooth-and more than 35 million Americans have lost all their teeth. Dentures and bridges have long been the solution for these adults, but dentist Roberto Velasco believes that these methods only substitute new problems for old ones.

For some of us, smiling comes as natural as taking a breath. But for others, even the slightest grin brings pain and humiliation. When you’re dealing with gum disease, rotting or missing teeth-there’s not much to smile about. And it’s more than how your mouth looks to the rest of the world-the pain is psychological and physical. But all of that can change practically overnight with ClearChoice Dental Implant Centers. What used to take months (or even years), ClearChoice now accomplishes in a single day.

When correcting or replacing missing or damaged teeth today, specially trained periodontists, oral surgeons and dentists are increasingly performing dental implant surgery. Price notwithstanding, this is preferred over using removable dentures and fixed bridges.

Thirty-four million Americans rely on dentures to replace their missing teeth. But a small number of denture wearers have had difficulty with balance and walking -- a medical mystery that some experts have linked to their denture creams.

When it comes to the definition of beauty, nothing beats a great smile. But for many Americans, hiding their smiles has become a part of their daily lives. Because of gum disease, rotting or missing teeth, many people feel the need to cover up their mouths so no one can see their teeth. In fact, it’s estimated that nearly every adult will lose at least one tooth in their lifetime, and more than 35 million Americans have lost all their teeth. 

Gail Kenning had grown tired of seeing her dentist. She had such a long history of gum and teeth problems that, according to Kenning, she and the dentist saw each other so often it felt like they were dating.

"I had trouble with the whole top of my mouth," Kenning said. "I was always in the dentist's office and I was constantly in pain."

After three gingivitis surgeries, numerous trips to the dentist and thousands of dollars, she knew dentures were probably the next step.

Principals of ClearChoice Dental Implant Centers hope to take a bite out of America's dentistry sector with a new tooth-replacement process they say is faster and cheaper than methods used by traditional dental practices.