An elder won't remove dentures or brush says they are his natural teeth and are naturally clean. How do I get them out?

The only thing I can think of is tell him he has to remove them so he can use mouthwash to rinse his gums to keep them healthy. Then you can sneak and clean his dentures. I know he will appreciate the fresh feel of his mouth.

I was not surprised to look at your profile and discover that your loved one has dementia. I don't think reasoning is going to get you very far. Sigh.

Will he use a mouth wash?

Could you persuade him to put his dentures in a cleaning solution without discussing whether they are clean or not? "Here a really cool tablet that turns the water blue. And if you put dentures in it they turn it clear again. I'd really like to see if that really happens. Could we try it with your dentures?" or "Yes, I know that your teeth are natural, but they are removable. I think that is so cool! It must be really special to be able to take them out and look at them. Can I see how it is done?"

Maybe his dentist would have some suggestions for alternate ways to improve his oral hygiene.

It is possible that this will pass. He will resist cleaning them for a while, and then forget about and agree to do it without fussing. We can hope!

Good luck. And if you find an approach that seems to work, please share it. We learn from each other.

Had the same deal with my Mom. By the time she got out of rehab (6 weeks) I had to get the dentures to a dentist for professional cleaning to get the BLACK off of them. But here is what has worked for my Mom. She is more willing to let go of the dentures in the morning or early afternoon than at night. It could be before a shower "let's give your teeth a chance to get clean while you take a shower". Or after breakfast while you are doing shaving or similar stuff. My Mom is now in AL and I think they get the dentures cleaned about 5 days out of 7. I can live with that. Hope this helps.

My dad can't take his dentures out himself and I don't know how to get them out. I tried pulling on them but my fingers just slip off. Tried from the top and i wound up cutting his gum. Please help

Carefor, dentures are designed to grip tightly or else they wouldn't be able to do the job. The key is to break the suction seal, with my mom's uppers I grab the front teeth and lever the back of the plate down off the roof of the mouth. Her lowers are attached to her remaining front teeth, so I usually push up on the wire clips to pop them off. If you are using a denture adhesive you may need to wiggle them a little to break the seal first. And when it comes to adhesives, a little goes a long way, don't over apply!
If you are still having trouble you may want to visit a dentist or denturist for a demonstration.

Thank you cwillie! Will give that a try. Not using any adhesives but still there is suction

What you say why he is to see if the person issued the dentures can advise you on this. This is what I would do if I could not remove the dentures myself. You really don't want to hurt your self or your loved one, and you definitely don't want to damage the dentures either. What I'm wondering is whether or not the dentures might have created a vacuum. This is something to consider as long as nothing is holding them in.

My mother in law has Alzheimer's and here lately she does not seem to understand when I tell her she needs to take her teeth out so they can be cleaned so I try to take them out and you screams and hits me saying and my hurting her. I assure you that I am not hurting her but since she is having a had time understanding what I am wanting her to do she just gets really combative with me. I am open to any suggestions that may make it easier when removing her dentures

SweetAngeal, do you happen to have a pain pill or some kind of sedative that she takes already on a regular basis? That may be the best time to remove her dentures. Sometimes, the mind works in strange ways. If she thinks she is taking a pain pill, she won't feel any pain when you remove them. Even an aspirin or vitamin if she doesn't know what it is can be taken and tell her it's to help with the removal of the teeth. What might also work is a cup of chamomile tea. I can drink 2 cups of that stuff and feel like laying down and going to sleep. If it helps, make that a morning ritual to get the teeth out to soak. Might work.
Have you tried telling her that she needs to let the teeth soak in the solution all night. She needs to give her gums a rest so she can use a sponge on them to clean the gums in the morning before putting the clean teeth back in. She's probably had problems getting the adhesive and teeth to adhere to her gums before and she doesn't want to experience it again. Maybe she can help you by "demonstrating to you how to do it." Removing the dentures that has adhesive is a lot trickier than just taking a partial out. Cwillie explains it well though. You can put a thumb and finger on each side of the mouth high up on the upper denture and press down in the back by the jawbone. Once they loosen, move the finger and thumb to the front and the denture should come out easily. Same with the bottom. Good luck in getting it done so that battle is over.

Besides allowing the denture adhesive to wear off, you can also consult with the person who provided the dentures. They will know what to do and how to help you so that you don't cause injury to the person's gums.

Run
To
the
Dentist
Immediately!
This happened to us, and he could barely remove the uppers.
Chewed me out... mom had told me that THEY WEREN'T REMOVABLE. How would I know?......She had just arrived from México.
Dentist upset, mom too, me three!

M88

Hi Mulata88, are you sure they were really dentures and not implants? Implants would not be removable like dentures are. Dentures must sometime be removed for cleaning, and cleaning is very important in oral hygiene, and proper oral hygiene is a great contributor to good health.

Yes, she came tu USA with 4 real teeth, and a partial upper, with hooks for the fit around the 4 teeth.

Lower plate is a full one.

She's so shy, private, ... she wouldn't let me know, much less see what or how they are, or how she looks without them. Honest truth.

One eye tooth got loose... pulled out.

One other tooth fell off by itself while she was doing dishes. She ran to find me and show it to me.............

I said, are you bleeding? No.

Jumped into the car, dentist took impressions, tooth replaced by 10am next day.

Mom asks me: So, now what do we do with my tooth? I said, give it to the lady, she'll put it away. I felt so sad. Mom, in her younger day, knew more about medical care, life, and what not. Now, as we wait at the doctor's office she says:
"Why are we here"?------------------top of my iceberg.
M88

That's pretty odd that dentures won't come out for cleaning. I once knew someone who had dentures, and he was always able to remove them for cleaning every night. He used Polident adhesive, and sometimes the adhesive wore off, often while he was right in the middle of eating! Imagine having your dentures come loose while you're trying to chew your food, and having to get up from your meal and glue your teeth back in just so you can finish eating. I witnessed this many times with my foster dad, which is why I find it odd to hear of dentures that won't budge for cleaning. Yes, this is very odd and definitely very puzzling because it would definitely leave you scratching your head on that one

A stranger told me to give my mom a piece of honeycomb. Its super sticky and sweet. He said I should be able to pull on the end piece of the honeycomb and the dentures will be stuck to it. Haven't tried it yet.