I have dental bonding to repair a gap in my teeth. It has started picking up stains, which makes my front teeth look odd. I have been told that teeth whitening won’t work for them. I’m curious if the Supersmile toothpaste will do better. It has been advertised as being specific to cosmetic work.
Jared
Dear Jared,
You didn’t mention how long you’ve had your dental bonding, but they should last you several years. They are not as stain resistant as porcelain veneers so I would expect to replace your bonding periodically. That doesn’t mean you can’t prolong their life. One of the things that can do that is Supersmile Toothpaste.
You are correct that teeth whitening will not improve your dental bonding. Supersmile will remove surface stains on them. In fact, it is the only whitening toothpaste which I would recommend for cosmetic dental work. Over the counter whitening toothpastes use abrasives, which will cause damage to both your natural teeth as well as your cosmetic work. Instead, Supersmile removes it chemically in a way that is completely safe to both natural tooth structure as well as dental work.
There are a number of ways that bonding can pick up stains. If the stains are more than just on the surface level, but have gotten into the bonding itself, then not even the toothpaste will help. In that case, you will want to replace it. As I mentioned earlier, this is something I would expect to do several times over your lifetime.
When You Want More Out of a Smile Makeover
If all that you wanted to improve with your smile was the tooth gap, then sticking with your dental bonding makes complete sense and I would do that. Just make sure if you want some whitening done, then I would do the whitening before you have the bonding replaced so that they can match perfectly.
However, if you have other issues that bother you with your smile, you may be better off with porcelain veneers. This is the go-to for celebrity smile makeovers and can completely transform anything you want about your smile, including the shape, size, and color of your teeth. The additional benefit to these is, when well cared for, they can last a couple of decades instead of just a few years.
This blog is brought to you by Lexington, KY Cosmetic Dentist Dr. Fred Arnold.