Question: What are Veneers ( aka porcelain veneers, laminates )?

Answer: Veneers are thin pieces of porcelain or resin material that gets bonded (glued) to the front of your teeth. For teeth that are chipped, severely discolored, crowded, spaced, rotated or misshaped in any way, these veneers can create a durable and pleasing smile for many years to come. Veneers are difficult to stain, making them popular for people seeking a perfect smile.

There are two types of veneers:

Porcelain (indirect) veneers, which must first be created to custom fit your teeth in a dental laboratory and require two visits to your dentist. Porcelain veneers may vary from $900-2,500 per tooth and last from 10-15 years or more. While more expensive than other other alternatives, porcelain veneers usually offer a more precise, realistic color to match your surrounding teeth

Composite (direct) veneers, in which composite resins are bonded to your tooth in a single visit. Composite veneers cost significantly less, around $250-400 per tooth, but usually need to be maintained or replaced sooner than the porcelain version.

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As we get ready for the new year many of us take advantage of the new start to join a gym or vow to live a healthier lifestyle. Those benefits improve how we feel, how we function, and even cross over to your dental health too!

Question: What is the importance of Diet and Nutrition in Dentistry?

Answer:Any dental restoration will invariably have a better long term prognosis when built on a strong and healthy foundation. From a functional standpoint, inadequate nutrition will make the body (including teeth and gums) more susceptible to gum disease, resulting in increased tooth mobility, bone loss, and eventual tooth loss. From a cosmetic standpoint, it is essential that restorations such as porcelain veneers and crown and bridgework be performed in a healthy mouth (free of gum disease) as red and inflamed gums can distract from the overall appearance.

A mouth that is kept healthy will invariably lend itself to beauty.

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The composite resin (tooth-colored) fillings have come a long way in recent years. Their strength and longevity are now comparable to that of the silver fillings, but with much-enhanced esthetics. The dentist has the capability to match the filling exactly to the shade and color of your tooth such that no one else will ever know you had a cavity. Another advantage of these tooth-colored restorations is that the preparation is relatively conservative. Only decay is removed, and the filling is then bonded to the area that has been prepared.

Silver fillings do not have the same bonding capacity, and therefore rely on mechanical retention to hold the filling in place. As a result, good tooth structure is taken away to create the ideal depth and undercuts required to achieve adequate retention. Another advantage of composite restorations is that they are typically less sensitive to hot or cold, as metal tends to conduct temperature more readily. Since 1990, when “60 Minutes” ran a story on the alleged risks of dental amalgam (Silver-Mercury fillings), there has been a tremendous amount of media coverage.