Can New Dentistry Really Make You Look Younger?

Last week we discussed deteriorated silver fillings and how they can age you.  Today, let’s look at dental crowns.  Even if you don’t break or “pop” a porcelain crown, it won’t maintain its original appearance forever.  For example, the gums often recede with age.  This can produce a thin gray or black line between the crown and the gum.  Also, the materials and laboratory procedures for making porcelain crowns have evolved and improved over time, resulting in crowns that look more natural than crowns made in the past.  The solution is easy if there is a gray or black line between the crown and the gum.  In some locations of the mouth, it’s easy enough to use a low-cost option of using tooth-colored filling material to fill the gap.  It isn’t as durable or as attractive as a new crown, but it’s a good choice for patients with limited funds, or if the dark line is not in the front of the mouth.  The best solution is a new crown using the wonderful new porcelains available.

Have you heard of the gummy smile?  A gummy smile is when the gums are disproportionately prominent.  Changes in the shape and health of the gums can make the teeth appear longer.  Or they can make the gums disproportionately prominent.  Either of these changes can compromise your appearance and make you look older.  You can have a “gum lift,” which is a procedure called a gingivectomy or gingivoplasty.  In dentistry, we can use a laser and/or scalpel to give your gums a more even appearance that’s in harmony with your face.

Poor denture fit can age you, too.  Even if your partial or complete dentures fit perfectly when they were new, they tend to become loose or misaligned as your mouth changes.  It’s normal for the gums and underlying bone to change over time.

Poorly fitting dentures can sometimes give you jowls and wrinkled skin as your muscles work overtime to keep the dentures in place.  Also, as the dentures wear and the bone that supports them deteriorates, the lower third of the face decreases in height.  Making new dentures can sometimes have the effect of looking like you’ve had a facelift, because of the transformation that is possible by increasing the dimension of the lower third of the face.  Most people find that it is worth replacing dentures every 5 to 10 years.

We hope you enjoyed this journey to explore looking younger with dentistry.  For more information about other dental topics please visit www.TavorminaDentistry.com