Do You Have Confidence In Your Teeth?

Are your teeth unhealthy or don’t look good? Here are the solutions….

As we get older, and perhaps even more so if we haven’t always taken good care of our teeth in our earlier lives, some of us will be aware that our teeth are not functioning quite as well as we would like.

Teeth that have been filled can remain reasonably strong but there is little doubt that some teeth with larger fillings may feel more vulnerable than a healthy natural tooth would.

Teeth that have worn away over time, perhaps due to tooth grinding or enamel erosion, or teeth that are a little wobbly, may also not feel as strong as we would like them to be and we may find that we are conscious of them and feel insecure when we are eating.

As food offers one of the pleasures in our lives and provides important nutrients for good health, it is a little worrying that we might find ourselves avoiding eating certain foods because we find them ‘challenging’ or that the difficulty we find in eating them removes the enjoyment.

Restoration of damaged teeth

At the Foxhall Dental Clinic in Ipswich, whilst we do believe in treating problems in as minimally invasive way as possible, there does come a time when patients might want to explore more advanced options to resolve an ongoing problem. An example of this might be a tooth whose filling keeps coming out. This can be caused by a number of things including size, age and location of the filling. If a filling does come out a couple of times, we are likely to wonder when it will happen again and it can make us a little nervous about eating.

A filling is a common and relatively straightforward dental treatment, and this is why it is most often used where decay or a breakage to the tooth has occurred. It is not the only available solution though and if it is causing you problems, there are opportunities to have other treatments that, whilst slightly more invasive, offer a stronger and longer lasting alternative.

Dental crowns

Where a filling is causing a problem, either because it has come out or you don’t feel that it offers the strength that you need to eat properly, we may look at using a crown instead. These may not be appropriate for all types of broken or decayed teeth though and an examination will be necessary to determine if this is the best route to take. Crowns are also sometimes referred to as ‘caps’ as they are used to ‘cap’ a tooth. This usually involves the dentist preparing the tooth so that it is shaped in such a way that the crown can be attached securely using a strong clinical adhesive.

If you have a crown fitted, you should find that this provides the additional strength you require. Crowns generally last for around ten years before needing to be replaced, although this will vary from person to person.

Dental implants

If a tooth is very badly damaged and leaves you lacking in confidence about its ability to function properly, you may decide to opt for a permanent and long lasting solution – namely a dental implant. There are advantages in removing a damaged tooth in order to place an implant, a primary one being that the surrounding bone structure is likley still intact and with sufficient density to anchor the implant. As we have mentioned before, bone loss is common in areas where teeth have been lost so placing an implant soon after extraction can be beneficial.

Whilst it is true that having a new tooth placed requires quite advanced surgery, it is an excellent solution that will provide you with a replacement tooth that offers the strength to eat whatever you want with confidence.

There are many reasons why some of us have teeth that we are not confident about, whether caused by neglect in the past or even damage caused by an accident. But it’s good to know that our Ipswich dental team can help you to restore this confidence and to enable you to enjoy eating your food again without worrying if your teeth will cope.

If you are lacking confidence in your teeth and would like to find out what we can do to help, why not arrange a no-obligation appointment to discuss this with one of our treatment coordinators? You can reach us to make an appointment by calling the Foxhall Dental Practice on 01473 258396.