Smile with Confidence: A Comprehensive Guide to Dental Health and Care

Tag: cosmetic dental procedures

cosmetic dentistry
person getting cosmetic dental work by dentist in office

Top Cosmetic Dentistry Procedures

Originally posted on: https://www.smore.com/t63mu-top-cosmetic-dentistry-procedures   Cosmetic dentistry refers to the different dental procedures that improve the aesthetics of the teeth.…

dentures, smile makeover, teeth whitening

What Are Dentures?

Dentures are replacements for missing teeth that can be taken out and put back into your mouth. There are many reasons why people lose their teeth, the most prevalent being dental disease that results in tooth decay. Tooth loss can happen at any age, but it doesn’t have to mean living without an attractive smile.

Signs You May Need Dentures

• You don’t visit the dentist every six months.
• Gums are red, swollen, tender, or bleeding.
• Teeth are loose shifting, or the gaps between your teeth are wider.
• Toothache
• Missing a couple teeth
• Having trouble eating hard or chewy foods
• Indigestion
• Self-conscious about smiling

How Do Teeth Age?

Teeth are not quite as unique as snowflakes, however, they do vary in size, shape and location in the jaw.  These differences in the teeth are what give our face shape and form and how we chew, speak or smile.  Did you know that we are born with 20 baby teeth (a/k/a “primary teeth”) that will begin to “erupt” or break through at about 6 months, and, by age 12, all 32 of our permanent teeth have usually erupted?

A Child’s Smile

There are many gap-toothed photos of you in your parents’ family albums.  Face it, all of a sudden your “cuteness quotient” goes down substantially when you begin losing those baby teeth.  The first teeth to go are the lower center teeth (a/k/a the lower center incisors) at approximately 6 to 7 years old.  Next are the top center pair.   It’s scary looking when you resemble a Halloween pumpkin, but, at least the Tooth Fairy helps make this time bearable.  Happily, a baby tooth typically doesn’t loosen until the permanent tooth below pushes it up to take its place.

When Do Teeth Start to Age?

Does A Dental Implant Work?

In the past, the usual fix to the missing tooth dilemma, was to be fitted with a dental bridge, an often ill-fitting wire which was hooked onto your existing teeth, wherein a false tooth (or teeth) filled in that gap in your smile.

Today, however, the preferred method of tooth replacement is a dental implant.  Dental implants have many superb qualities, among them: they replace missing tooth roots and form a stable foundation for replacement teeth that look, feel and function like natural teeth. Additionally, dental implants help preserve the remaining bone by providing the stimulation previously provided by the natural tooth roots.  There is a 95% success rate for dental implants.