Make 2024 Your Year For A New Smile!

Cosmetic dentistry means that you don’t have to put up with a disappointing smile next year.

The current year is now winding to a close. Some of you will no doubt be glad of that and others will be wondering what the new year will bring. Some things are out of our control of course, but there are things that we can do to improve our lives and some of these will take the form of new year resolutions. The Foxhall Dental Practice team can’t help you get fitter or get a better job, but there is one area that we can help with, and that is to enable you to have a more attractive smile.

Our smile is important for a number of reasons. Perhaps the main one of these is our own self confidence, but others notice our smile too and a warm attractive smile can be a real boost for those seeking friends or partners, and even those trying to start a new career.  With this in mind, let us take a look at how our Ipswich cosmetic dentists can help you have a greatly improved smile in 2024.

Teeth whitening

Our teeth are generally white when we are young, but as the years roll by, this starts to change. There are two factors that can cause our teeth to discolour or darken. The first is through consumption of staining food and drinks such as tea, coffee and red wine etc. This can happen quite early in our adult years though it is dependent, to some degree, on our lifestyle. The second way that they can discolour is simply through age. The reality is that as we become older, the dentin of the tooth (below the enamel surface) starts to become darker in colour and shows through the enamel making the tooth appear discoloured. There are two ways in which we can improve this for you; teeth whitening and dental veneers. We will cover the latter in the next section, but teeth whitening is a popular choice for many good reasons.

Firstly, it is very effective and fast acting but it is also affordable for many people, making it a great way to give your teeth a boost without breaking the bank. We offer a one hour treatment within the practice that is painless and very effective. Once the treatment is complete, you will notice a significant improvement in the colour of your teeth.

Dental Veneers

We mentioned teeth veneers in our last section, but these aren’t usually the first option for people seeking a whiter smile as it requires some invasive treatment, unlike the teeth whitening procedure. Porcelain veneers are usually used where people have badly stained teeth such as you might find in those who smoke. They are also a great way to improve the appearance of teeth where they have been chipped or cracked over the years. Dental veneers are sometimes simplistically described as ‘fingernails for the teeth’ and while this is rather a crude description, they do have some similarities.

Veneers are essentially a fine layer of porcelain that is used to cover or usually replace an equivalent thickness of your natural tooth. This usually requires minor invasive treatment to remove the stained layer and then impressions are taken for the veneers to be made. Once this has been done, your new ‘tooth surface’ is reattached using a special clinical adhesive. With care, veneers can last for approximately ten years, sometimes more.

Orthodontics

Some people think that dental braces have to be worn for long periods of time to work. This is true in some instances, and where this is the case, modern orthodontics make this more convenient and discreet for the wearer. New style orthodontics use a series of removable transparent trays that fit over the teeth, gradually straightening them. These can be removed when eating and cleaning the teeth for convenience and are also much more difficult to see when being worn than is the case with traditional braces.

Not all orthodontic treatment has to take a long time though and some cosmetic improvements to the visible front teeth can be made in a matter of weeks, depending on the situation. An initial consultation will be needed to determine the best course of action should you wish to go ahead with it.

Facial aesthetics

Now that you have your new smile planned, why not consider making use of our facial aesthetic service to help you have younger looking skin as well? Through the use of wrinkle reduction treatments and dermal fillers to fill out thinning lips etc, we can help you look years younger. Our team of experienced clinicians will be able to guide you through these safe and popular treatments and will be able to answer any questions or address any concerns that you might have.

This will be our last blog for this year, so please allow us to wish all of our Ipswich dental patients a very merry Christmas and a happy New Year from all at the Foxhall Dental Practice, and we will be back with more blogs in the new year.