How to Care for Your Teeth After Dental Bonding

Your entire oral health is in your hands. Even though dental experts have invested tons of skills and experience in bettering the oral health of patients, the choices you make affect the beauty of your smile and the healthy thereof. This is why, after any dental procedure, your dentist will walk you through different guidelines for which to follow in taking care of your oral cavity.

After a dental bonding procedure, how you care for your teeth makes the whole difference. Since the composite material used on your teeth is not meant to last a lifetime, you can increase their longevity by taking good care of them.

What Is Dental Bonding?

It is a procedure in dentistry performed to modify the appearance of teeth. If you are interested in cosmetic dentistry near you, the dental bonding procedure is one of the many treatments that you will find useful for the transformation of your smile.

Bonding for your teeth involves using a particular dental material, usually composites, to improve how teeth look. The nature of composite resin during application is pliable. This allows the dentist to create the desired effect on your teeth by molding the material into the shape and size that will meet the oral need presented.

When Is Dental Bonding Used?

In cosmetic dentistry, this simple and quick same-day service is used to achieve different effects on teeth. It can correct some of the following dental problems:

1. Tooth discoloration – as an alternative to professional teeth whitening.
2. Gaps and spaces between teeth – as an alternative to orthodontic procedures.
3. Chips and cracks on teeth – usually used as a means to restore the shape of teeth.
4. To repair dental cavities and tooth decay – as a cosmetic alternative to typical dental fillings like amalgams.
5. For smile makeovers – dental bonding is used to make necessary changes when improving the overall appearance of a smile. This includes lengthening teeth, smoothening them, or completely modifying the appearance thereof.

Tips for Caring for Bonded Teeth

One thing you must understand is that the composite material used during dental bonding procedures is not meant to last a lifetime. However, with proper care, you can get about 5 to 10 years’ worth of service. Some of the tips you can consider include:

1. Maintain excellent oral hygiene – your teeth need to be kept clean whether or not they have composites on them. The fact that you have composites, however, should motivate you to keep your teeth clean. Brush and floss, with a keen focus on the bonded teeth.
2. Avoid certain foods – with dental bonding procedures, there come some food restrictions. Such include eating hard foods that might crack the bonding material on your teeth. Further, sticky foods are not friendly with dental bonding treatment.
3. Quit bad oral habits – at your dentist’s office near you, you will learn that some oral habits are detrimental to dental bonding procedures. They include teeth grinding and biting your fingernails. Such habits can chip the composites on your teeth and make them ineffective.
4. Be careful with heavily pigmented foods – composites that are applied to whiten teeth do so effectively. However, the composites stain easily. If you are not keen on the foods you eat, you may discolor the composites. Be especially careful with foods like red wine, coffee or tea, immediately after the bonding procedure. After a couple of days, you can consume such foods, as long as you brush your teeth afterward to prevent staining.
5. Quit smoking and reduce consumption of alcohol – if your goal is to maintain the brightness of your teeth after a dental bonding procedure, you will have to quit smoking and cut down on the punt of alcohol you take.

Are They Worth It?

After any dental procedure, it is typical for one to question whether or not they have made a worthwhile decision. With dental bonding, the fact that it is a cosmetic procedure can leave you worried about the kind of decision you have made. However, you are not the first nor the last to get dental bonding performed on your teeth. dental bonding treatments have been proven as effective for different roles in transforming the appearance of smiles for patients. If you are particularly not fond of invasive dental procedures, then you will find that dental bonding is the most appealing treatment that would work for you.