Spring Into Summer With A Whiter Smile!

Cosmetic dentistry in Canterbury to make the most of your smile

After a few minor hiccups, it appears as though spring has finally arrived, along with the promise of a more sustained period of sunshine ahead. Generally though, most of us will be looking forward to getting out our summer clothes and feeling the warmth of the sun on our backs. We are also likely to attend more social gatherings with others, such as barbeques and garden parties.

After months of looking at the weather and deciding to stay indoors watching box sets, the time has come to venture out and mingle.

What better time to take a look at a few of the ways that you can make the most of this by improving the whiteness of your teeth?

Home maintenance

Before we take a look at the treatments we have available at Bradley and Partners Dental & Implant Clinic, it is worth reminding patients that they can help keep their teeth looking brighter at home as well. This will also help to maintain any new whiteness gained from a cosmetic dental treatment.

You should, of course, brush your teeth well. This goes without saying and not only will this help to remove some surface staining, but will help to keep your teeth and gums in good general health. There is little point in having attractive white teeth if you are suffering from gum disease. Try also to avoid eating and drinking too many products that contribute to staining of the teeth. Tea, red wine and dark berries are just a few examples of this. A quick internet search will help you with this.

Finally, please avoid any ‘teeth whitening tricks’ that you might find online. Whilst some of these are simply ineffective but harmless, some can be incredibly damaging to the teeth even though they may appear to be innocuous (the use of lemon juice to whiten teeth is a case in point).

Teeth whitening

The teeth whitening procedure is one of the most popular that we provide at our Canterbury dental clinic. There are many good reasons for this. Not only is it effective for most people but it is also a non-invasive treatment and also affordable for many.

Unlike for example, a scale and polish treatment that should be part of your general oral health regime, this treatment not only helps to remove surface staining but also lightens the colour of the inner part of our teeth. This is a problem that naturally occurs when we get older no matter how well we take care of our teeth. The dentin part of the tooth starts to darken and this shows through the enamel, leaving our teeth looking dull and even yellow for some people. When this happens, no amount of brushing will change things and a teeth whitening procedure is a highly effective way of reversing this discolouration.

Although the effect of this treatment is not permanent, it does last for quite a long time and the procedure can be repeated often with minimal risk to your teeth. Whether you want to maintain whiter teeth or would simply like to give them a boost for a one off special occasion, this treatment is a great way to go.

Dental veneers

Whilst a teeth whitening procedure is the best solution for most people when it comes to discoloured teeth, there are still a significant number of people for whom this might not be as effective as they would like. This is more likely to be the case where people have heavily stained teeth. This would apply to those who eat a lot of teeth staining foods and also to smokers or ex smokers, for example.

Although a teeth whitening procedure may still improve the colour of their teeth, the improvements might be more limited and for these patients, we often recommend that they consider dental veneers instead. Whilst this cosmetic dental procedure does usually require some minor invasive treatment, it is a great way of having a whiter smile and also replacing any enamel damaged by chips and cracks that can also spoil a smile.

The veneer is usually made from porcelain and is used to replace a fine layer of the discoloured or damaged enamel on your teeth. To do this, we typically remove a fine layer of the natural enamel and then take impressions from which the porcelain veneers will be made. These will then be attached to your teeth using a special adhesive and then trimmed and polished to give a natural appearance.

Whilst a teeth whitening procedure can whiten your teeth for a good number of months, veneers offer a more permanent solution which can last for around ten years if you look after them well.

If you are interested in finding out how we can help you have a whiter smile as part of your ‘look great for the summer’ campaign, why not arrange to have an initial consultation with one of our cosmetic dental team? To arrange your consultation, please call Bradley and Partners Dental & Implant Clinic on 01227 463529.