Tooth-Colored Fillings
Repairing decayed teeth with dental fillings is one of the procedures dentists perform most often. It’s no wonder, considering 90 percent of adults over age 20 have had at least one cavity!
At Desai Family Dentistry, we emphasize prevention as the best way to avoid cavities, but they obviously can and do occur. We use tooth-colored fillings exclusively because they’re mercury-free and create a more natural appearance than silver fillings.
How Tooth Cavities Develop
The most common reasons cavities develop are poor oral hygiene habits, the foods you eat, or a combination of both.
After you brush, your teeth feel slick and clean. As the day goes by, you’ll notice they start to feel a little fuzzy—that's plaque, a film of bacteria, saliva, and food particles that sticks to your teeth until you brush it away.
Bacteria in plaque feed off sweets and other carbs in the foods and drinks you consume and create acid that softens tooth enamel. If plaque sits on your teeth due to inconsistent brushing and flossing, the repeated acid attacks eventually create a hole in tooth enamel we call a cavity.
The Benefits of Tooth-Colored Fillings
When filling a tooth cavity, Dr. Desai uses a strong local anesthetic to numb the area he’s treating to ensure you won’t feel any pain. He then removes the decay and places a tooth-colored composite filling on the tooth to protect it.
There are several benefits to using composite resin for a tooth filling:
Creates an Invisible Repair
Tooth-colored fillings use a blend of materials, including resin and glass particles, that look similar to tooth enamel. Matching the shade of the material to your tooth color creates such an invisible repair that even you won't be able to detect it!
Due to its aesthetic nature, we often use composite material for dental bonding to make small cosmetic dental repairs. Chipped or broken teeth, wide gaps or uneven spacing, and even tooth discoloration can be improved with cosmetic bonding.
Preserves More Tooth Structure
Significant tooth structure must be removed to place a silver filling. With tooth-colored fillings, we only have to remove the decayed portion and bond the material directly to the tooth. This process preserves more of the healthy part of the tooth and creates a secure bond to help seal out bacteria.
Contains No Mercury
While the American Dental Association says mercury fillings are safe, most patients don’t want it in their mouths. Tooth-colored fillings are mercury-free and won’t darken the tooth like silver amalgam fillings.
How to Avoid Tooth Cavities
You can take several steps to avoid developing a cavity in the future, including:
- Committing to consistent daily oral hygiene, including brushing twice daily for two minutes and flossing once.
- Scheduling dental checkups and cleanings at our Hempstead, NY, dental office every six months.
- Including plenty of healthy fruits and vegetables in your diet and limiting sweets and high-carb foods.
Do You Think You Have a Tooth Cavity?
You may have a cavity if you see a dark spot on your tooth. A toothache is another sign that decay has penetrated the tooth and is close to the nerve. If you have a toothache, please don’t put off treatment—decay will continue to progress deeper into the tooth to the point where the only option is a root canal to save it.
Please call Desai Family Dentistry to schedule an appointment so Dr. Desai can check the tooth and place a filling if necessary. Our dental office is located in Hempstead, NY, and we are pleased to serve patients from nearby Garden City and surrounding areas on Long Island.
