You can chip your tooth at any time. A chipped tooth can occur when you bite down on a hard piece of food, when you knock your tooth on something, or when you grind your teeth too hard. If your chipped tooth is so small you can hardly see it, it might still be a concern you should have taken care of by your dentist. Here's why a small chipped tooth should still be given dental attention.

Your chipped tooth can get worse

If you fail to see the dentist to have your chipped tooth looked at, you might make the chip even worse. The chip can get a crack in it and spread, or it can become susceptible to tooth decay. If your tooth is only suffering from a minor chip now, you should get it taken care of so you can get dental intervention before things worsen.

Another way that your chipped tooth can get worse is this: your chipped tooth can start to look bad. If your chipped tooth is left unattended, then it can start to become more noticeable to other people. Your affected smile can start to damage your confidence in your dental care, so have the tooth looked at to see if your dentist can repair it before it becomes easily spotted by other people.

Your chipped tooth can get expensive

A chipped tooth that continues to get worse will likely become more expensive to repair. You can save yourself money by having the smaller chip repaired early, which can be as simple as putting a small cap on the tooth or shaving away the sharper edges of the crack to smooth it out.

The longer your chipped tooth is left without care, the pricier your tooth repairs can be. If the chip spreads to the root of the tooth or kills the nerves, you risk having to have the tooth removed and then replaced with a dental implant, which can be expensive.

The best way to take care of your smile is to have your dentist give you a checkup as recommended. When you notice a snag or uneven feeling in your teeth, let your dentist know. You might have other chips that you are unaware of. You can help strengthen your tooth enamel by using a special toothpaste for enamel and doing other things that can improve your smile. Your proper oral hygiene efforts will help keep future chipped teeth at bay.