Planning A Fantastic Smile For 2019

Burton dentist Mike Allen offers some thoughts on how you can improve your smile in the New Year (with a little festive humour at the end)!

Christmas is coming and the goose may be getting fat, but most of us will probably be too busy preparing for Christmas to think much beyond that. With the New Year upon us before we even know it though, now can be a good time to start thinking ahead if you are looking to do something to improve your smile in the new year.

There are now many cosmetic dental procedures that we have available at Mike Allen’s Dental Practice which can make significant improvements to the appearance of your teeth. Some of these are quite complex, such as dental implant placement, where teeth are missing. Most treatments that are generally considered to be components of a smile makeover though, are less invasive, but still very effective.

Your personalised smile makeover

Treatment for each patient will vary according to their needs. The one thing that every single patient will need to have though is a thorough examination, as it is important that your teeth and gums are in good health before we go ahead with any cosmetic treatment. Any problems that are detected will need to be resolved before your smile makeover treatment commences.

Teeth whitening

This is one of the most common cosmetic treatments that we carry out at our Burton dental clinic, and is often the only procedure needed by many people to bring out their best possible smile. Although procedures such as the scale and polish carried out by a dental hygienist can remove most surface staining, the fact is that, for many people, tooth discolouration stems from a darkening of the inner part of our teeth. This can only be reversed using a teeth whitening procedure which legally, must be carried out by a registered local dentist.

At Mike Allen’s Dental Practice, we use a custom home whitening kit to help you to achieve a whiter looking smile. We will, of course, make sure that this is designed specifically for your own individual needs and we will offer appropriate advice and instructions. We are also available should you have any concerns or questions about this treatment either before or during the treatment itself.

Veneers

Porcelain veneers are an alternative to teeth whitening for those who have severely stained teeth, or teeth with cracks and chips in them. Unlike teeth whitening, fitting dental veneers does require dental surgery, where a fine layer of the damaged enamel is removed and is replaced using a porcelain veneer. This is a highly effective way of having great looking smile and offers a very stain resistant tooth surface that should last for around ten years with good care.

Orthodontics

Some patients may wish to consider having their teeth straightened as a part of their smile makeover. Depending on your situation, this can take some time or may be achieved in just a few weeks. Only following a thorough examination will we be able to advise you of the length of the approximate treatment time and type of orthodontic that would need to be used. You may not wish to wear braces or teeth whitening trays over the Christmas period itself, but there is no harm in planning for your treatments now. The sooner you make an appointment for an initial consultation, the sooner you will be able to start your treatment in 2019. You can call our Burton practice on 01283 845345 to get the ball rolling.

And finally ….

As it is Christmas, a time of seasonal cheer, we thought that we would put our heads together and come up with a few Christmas dental limericks for you .. we hope that you enjoy them and apologise in advance 🙂

There was an old man called Boris

Whose teeth were truly horrid

They turned vivid green

And were best left unseen

And were capable of just eating porridge

**

There was a young girl called Mary

Whose teeth were terribly scary

When attempting a smile

Her friends ran several miles

At the sight of her gums which were hairy

**

There was an old man called Dave

Who wasn’t particularly brave

Having all his teeth out

He was never in doubt

That his mouth would look like a cave

**

There was a young man called Charlie

Whose teeth were especially gnarly

He never used floss

As he found to his cost

This was particularly harmful as it can lead to gum disease – (well, you try rhyming something with gnarly!)

Thank you and a very merry Xmas and a happy New Year to all of our blog readers this last year. We look forward to providing you with more in the year ahead.

From all at Mike Allen’s Dental Practice in Burton Upon Trent, have a great festive season.