Discover the Fountain of Youth

Discover the Fountain of Youth with a Beautiful Smile

While it may be a stretch to call it the Fountain of Youth, it is true that a healthy, radiant smile can erase years from your face. People often want to maintain or re-gain their healthy, youthful appearance. The problem is that normal wear and tear, combined with the subtle (and not so subtle) changes caused by aging, can steal the sparkle from your smile. Whether you are a thirty-something or a great-grand parent, cosmetic dentistry can give you the opportunity to look years younger than your actual age, and give your confidence and self-esteem a big boost!

Teeth that have worn down, chipped, stained or shifted from a proper alignment create what is termed an “elderly smile.” As we age, teeth become thinner as enamel, the outer layer of the tooth, is worn away. This thinner enamel chips more easily, which causes teeth to look shorter or broken. Thinner enamel also allows the gray and gold colors to show through from the deeper parts of the teeth. Elderly smiles tend to be flat on the edges and dark/dull in color.

What Can You Do to Improve Your Smile?

A skilled and well-trained cosmetic dentist can offer you choices to create a brighter and more youthful smile. These include:

Teeth Whitening – This is usually the simplest and fastest smile enhancement. Year of smile-dulling foods and beverages darken the enamel. Tooth whitening is a fast, inexpensive and proven way to brighten the teeth. Usually, impressions of the teeth are taken and special plastic trays are made. The whitening gel is placed into the trays and then the trays are placed over the teeth. These trays are worn for a few hours each day or overnight. In a few short weeks, your teeth are as bright as they can be.

The only problems with teeth whitening is that it will not change the color of large fillings or crowns. If some of your teeth have restorations, they will not change color while the other teeth will change. This is not an attractive result. If you have some large restorations or crowns that show in your smile, tooth whitening is not a good choice for you.

Bonding – Bonding is using a tooth colored material to fill in gaps between the teeth or to fix chipped teeth. This can usually be done in a single office visit and can last several years. Bonding is more susceptible to staining and chipping than other restorative choices.

Crowns – Crowns (also known as “caps”) cover a tooth completely, right down to the gum line. Crowns are made of porcelain and sometimes utilize a metal core for added strength. Teeth that are significantly broken down or decayed do not have enough strength for bonding or a filling. A crown holds the tooth together and makes it less likely to fracture apart. Crowns can last a long time with proper care.

Veneers – Veneers are thin shells of porcelain that are attached to teeth with special “glue.” Veneers are used to improve the appearance and function of teeth that are discolored, uneven, chipped, oddly shaped, unevenly spaced or crooked.

Smile Makeovers – To create a beautiful smile, veneers or crowns are used on all of the teeth that show when you smile. In this way, all the teeth can be made to have the same bright color, proper shapes and youthful contours. Each patient can decide on his/her individual desires to make a positive change. Patients tell us how wonderful they feel about their smiles and how happy they are that they had their smile made over. It is not only looking good, but also feeling good about yourself. A radiant smile helps to show off your inner beauty as well.

What Should I Look for in a Cosmetic Dentist?

In order to make sure your dentist is skilled in cosmetic dentistry, the American Academy of Cosmetic Dentistry (AACD) recommends that you ask your dentist for the following items before undergoing treatment:

-       Before and after photos – These photos will allow you to examine the results of other patients that have been treated by this dentist to be sure that his/her work fits your dental needs and expectations.

-       References – References allow you to get a sense of the quality of care the dentist provides.

-       Proof of continuing education – Be certain that your dentist has taken continuing education courses to keep him/her up-to-date with the latest techniques in clinical cosmetic dentistry.

Nothing can make you look and feel younger than a beautiful smile. It is a fact! Plastic surgeons always comment that they can get rid of wrinkles and make the skin look tighter, but the patient’s teeth always gives away their age. A youthful smile is the true way to the Fountain of Youth!