Receding gums don’t grow back on their own, but you can stop the process from getting worse and, in many cases, restore lost tissue with professional treatment. What you should do depends on how far the recession has progressed: mild cases often respond well to changes in your brushing habits and a professional deep cleaning, while more advanced recession may need a surgical graft to cover exposed roots. The first step is understanding what’s driving your recession so you can address the right problem.
Why Gums Recede in the First Place
Gum recession happens when the tissue surrounding your teeth pulls back or wears away, exposing more of the tooth or its root. The causes fall into two broad categories: things that damage the tissue mechanically and things that destroy it through infection.
On the mechanical side, brushing too hard is one of the most common culprits. Using a firm-bristled toothbrush or scrubbing aggressively wears the gum line down over time, even on otherwise healthy teeth. Teeth grinding (bruxism) puts constant lateral force on teeth and gums, especially at night when you can’t control it. Lip and tongue piercings can also irritate and erode gum tissue through repeated contact.
On the infection side, periodontal (gum) disease is the primary driver. Plaque and tartar build up below the gum line, harbor bacteria, and trigger chronic inflammation that breaks down both soft tissue and bone. Once bone is lost, the gum tissue that sits on top of it recedes with it. Tobacco use accelerates this process significantly. Smoking reduces oxygen in your blood, making it harder for infected gums to heal, and weakens your immune system so your body struggles to fight off gum infections in the first place.
Some people are simply more prone to recession than others. Genetic predisposition to thinner gum tissue is common and means less margin for error with brushing or plaque control. Crooked, tipped, or rotated teeth can also cause recession because the bone supporting them may be thinner on one side.
Gums Won’t Regrow on Their Own
This is the hard truth: once gum tissue has receded, it does not regenerate naturally. No toothpaste, mouthwash, or supplement will regrow gum tissue that’s already gone. Products marketed for “gum regrowth” can help with inflammation or sensitivity, but they cannot reverse actual tissue loss. What non-surgical approaches can do is stop further recession, which is critical, because the earlier you intervene, the more tissue you preserve and the better your options are if you eventually need surgical repair.
Fix Your Brushing Technique First
If aggressive brushing is contributing to your recession, switching your technique is one of the most impactful things you can do at home. Dentists most commonly recommend the Modified Bass technique: hold your toothbrush at an angle so the bristles point toward your gum line, make short back-and-forth strokes, then sweep the brush away from the gum toward the edge of the tooth. This cleans effectively without grinding the bristles into your gum tissue.
Switch to a soft-bristled brush if you haven’t already. Electric toothbrushes with pressure sensors can also help because they alert you when you’re pressing too hard. These changes won’t reverse existing recession, but they can prevent it from progressing further.
Deep Cleaning for Early-Stage Recession
When gum disease is the underlying cause, a professional deep cleaning (called scaling and root planing) is the standard first treatment. It’s the only way to remove plaque and bacteria that have settled deep below the gum line, where regular brushing and flossing can’t reach.
During the procedure, which is done under local anesthesia, your dentist or hygienist removes tartar from below the gum line (scaling) and then smooths the root surfaces (planing) so gum tissue can reattach more easily. This can stop bleeding gums, reduce pocket depth around the teeth, and prevent further recession and tooth loss.
One thing to expect afterward: your gums may actually look slightly more receded right after a deep cleaning. That’s because swollen, infected tissue shrinks back to its normal size once the infection clears. Your teeth might also feel a little loose temporarily, but this resolves as the gums tighten back up during healing. This initial appearance can be alarming, but it reflects healthier tissue, not more damage.
When You Need a Gum Graft
If recession has progressed enough to expose tooth roots, cause sensitivity, or put teeth at risk for decay, surgical grafting is often the next step. Dentists classify recession severity on a scale from Class I to Class IV. In Class I and II, where the bone between teeth is still intact, treatment can achieve full root coverage. In Class III, where some bone has been lost, only partial coverage is possible. Class IV, with severe bone loss, has a poor prognosis for coverage. This is why earlier treatment matters so much.
There are two main types of traditional gum grafts:
- Connective tissue graft: The most common option for covering exposed roots. Tissue is taken from beneath a small flap on the roof of your mouth and stitched over the exposed root. This protects against sensitivity, plaque buildup, and decay on the root surface.
- Free gingival graft: Tissue is taken directly from the surface of the roof of your mouth to add structure and thickness to the gum line. Because it uses a smaller piece of tissue, it allows more precise modifications and can produce strong cosmetic results.
Recovery After Gum Graft Surgery
Traditional gum grafting takes four to six weeks for full recovery, though most discomfort peaks within the first 48 hours and improves noticeably after a few days.
In the first 72 hours, the graft is forming a new blood supply from the surrounding tissue. Expect mild to moderate swelling, slight bleeding, tenderness, and sensitivity when eating or drinking. During the first week, swelling decreases, and the graft may look pale or whitish, which is normal.
Between weeks two and four, the grafted tissue becomes more securely attached and starts to look more like the surrounding gum. The pale color fades as blood flow improves, sutures dissolve or are removed, and the graft feels stable. Early recovery wraps up within a few weeks, but the tissue continues maturing for several months afterward.
The Pinhole Technique: A Less Invasive Option
For mild to moderate recession, a newer approach called the Pinhole Surgical Technique skips cutting and stitching entirely. Instead of transplanting tissue from the roof of your mouth, a periodontist makes tiny holes in the existing gum tissue and gently repositions it to cover exposed roots.
The advantages are significant: less pain, faster recovery (most patients feel back to normal within about two weeks), and many patients see an immediate improvement in their gum line. The results are often comparable to traditional grafting and tend to look natural because the tissue is repositioned rather than replaced.
The limitation is that it’s not suited for severe recession where large amounts of new tissue are needed. For those cases, traditional grafting remains the better option.
Stopping Further Recession
Whether you’ve had treatment or are managing early recession on your own, the habits that prevent further loss are straightforward but non-negotiable. Use a soft-bristled brush with gentle pressure. Floss daily to keep plaque from building up between teeth and under the gum line. If you smoke or use tobacco in any form, quitting removes one of the strongest risk factors for both recession and treatment failure, since smoking slows healing and doubles the effort your immune system needs to fight gum infections.
If you grind your teeth, a night guard can absorb the forces that would otherwise stress your gum tissue and bone. Crooked teeth that contribute to recession may benefit from orthodontic correction, which allows bone and tissue to distribute biting forces more evenly. Regular dental cleanings, typically every six months but more frequently if you have a history of gum disease, let your dentist catch new recession early, when the most treatment options are still available.