Teeth whitening
A film star smile is not a natural one, in our adulthood we all suffer from discoloured teeth, it’s a fact of life. In the distant past the treatment carried out by cosmetic dentists was often too prohibitive for most people. Today that has all changed and with new techniques and technology there are more ways to make your teeth shine like a film star. Let’s look at the top end of the market that method is called a veneer and like your furniture at home it involves a thin covering on top of an inferior base. The base in this case being your discoloured tooth or teeth. The dentist will need to gather information for the orthodontist to be able to make a veneer that will not just fit your tooth perfectly, but will also blend in colour wise with your teeth either side. This will involve taking measurements, colour coding and digital photos. The advantage here is also that one tooth or a whole set can be covered over. Once the veneers are made the dentist will call you back and numb your tooth, then they will need to shave a layer off your tooth to make a good adhesion surface and also to blend the veneer in to make it look more natural. It is finally sealed to prevent infections. They last for 3-5 years for a thin one, and for a thicker one 10-15 years. If they become damaged in between they are easily replace, at the end of their life span they will become discoloured and can be replaced to carry on the job. In some cases they can also be used to cover up cracked and chipped teeth, but these days veneers are usually purely a cosmetic method of giving you back your best smile. Another more economical method is an intense light treatment, this is carried out by a trained technician in a salon or you home. You can only have it if you don`t suffer from advanced gum disease, but assuming you don’t the technician will do all the work. First they will put a gum shield on your mouth to protect the fleshy parts around your teeth. Then a gel is coated onto the enamel and the light is shone on the gel to agitate it into reacting with the enamel, this will blend the natural whiteness of the enamel. You have to have three fifteen minute treatments to complete the exercise, but the results are instant.