This is a collaborative post
While most dental work is carried out with the intent to fix particular tooth and gum related health problems, in some cases, individuals will approach their dentist to provide them with cosmetic work to improve their smiles, helping to reduce anxiety and concerns about their self-image. Broken, discoloured, or missing teeth, as well as unaligned ones can significantly impact ones self-confidence. There is no shame in asking for help here as out mental health and wellbeing is just as important as our physical, however NHS dentists solely focus on immediate health issues. If you wish to have cosmetic work done, you’ll need to find a private dental practice, for example, that is prepared to help you, and this can cost significantly more. We have listed the most popular cosmetic dental procedures to give you an idea of what you could benefit from.
Composite Bonding
This procedure involved affixing a composite material of porcelain and resins to your teeth to build them up when parts have broken or worn away over time. This material can help to reshape the tooth and is very sturdy, allowing the patient to eat normally and feel confident in the appearance of their smile again. The process of bonding is incredibly straight forward and doesn’t take long at all making it a very popular option among patients who have suffered with a broken or chipped tooth. The only downside to these is they don’t necessarily last a long time, especially for those that grind their teeth at night, unless there are further preventative methods put into place.
Sleep Guards
One way to prevent further damage to teeth at night is a thing called a sleep guard. Similar to a clear brace, a sleep guard is worn at night to prevent subconscious damage to the teeth from grinding. This is a common problem today, in fact, one in ten of us grind our teeth at night. This is called bruxism and comes from the Greek word brukhein which means ‘to gnash the teeth’.
Sufferers will clench, grit, or grind their teeth during their sleep wearing them down faster than usual, breaking away enamel and causing long-lasting damage to the teeth. There are a number of things that can cause bruxism, but it tends to be stress and anxiety related for most people. To prevent this damage, sufferers can be provided with a protective guard that fixes around the teeth before bed and removed on awakening.
Clear Braces
When someone’s teeth grow crooked or overlapped, it can take time to rectify this problem. This tends to require some form of brace that is worn on the teeth, gently manipulating them into alignment. Metal braces are the most common remedy for this, but for many this can cause embarrassment and anxiety, especially children in school. Instead, to sort this issue while also not feeling self-conscious about having metal braces fixed to your smile, there are some alternatives.
First, there are clear braces that, while working in the same way as metal ones are much less obvious. There are also removable invisible teeth braces like those available from Straight My Teeth. These are much easier to maintain as they can be taken out during mealtimes and for cleaning. This also means that you don’t have to be as careful with your choice of food like you would with permanent braces.
Veneers And Crowns
This is where a porcelain shell is created to fit around the front of your teeth to hide unhealthy or damaged teeth. People with stained and worn teeth often have veneers fitted but it’s worth noting that this procedure is not reversible. You natural teeth must be worn down, removing a layer of enamel to better fix the shell to your teeth. It’s recommended to think this through before deciding on having veneers fitted. Although, you should remember that these can last for a significant time and can be replaced in the future too. Crowns are similar to veneers but act as a sort of cap over the tooth when it’s been damaged with a break or tooth decay.
Teeth Whitening
Probably one of the most popular choices among those searching for an improved smile is teeth whitening. This can be done in many different ways from shop-bought toothpastes that claim to whiten your teeth, to full bleaching treatments done by a dental hygienist or therapist. Either you’ll need to have an impression made of your teeth and a mouthguard created which you then wear at home after applying a bleaching gel to it.
There is also a procedure called laser whitening which involved adding a bleaching chemical to your teeth which is then activated using a bright laser. Whichever option you choose, teeth whitening, as well as any other treatment above will need to be suggested by your dentist, of course. Even if you decide to go elsewhere for treatments, it’s highly recommended you speak to your dentist beforehand to make sure it’s the right choice for you.
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