8 Tips to Keep Your Dental Veneers Looking Like New

A dental veneer is an excellent option to repair dental imperfections like chips, gaps, misshapen cusps, and stains to restore the beauty of your smile. A dental veneer is a thin custom-made shell or coating placed on the front of a tooth to camouflage dental imperfections. It effectively improves the tooth’s shape, size, and color.

While veneers contain strong and durable materials like porcelain and zirconium, they aren’t immune to staining, chipping, or degrading. Therefore, excellent dental care and habits are essential to keep your veneers bright and in good condition. Most veneers last 10 – 20 years on average with proper hygiene and care. This article highlights several tips on caring for and maintaining dental veneers.

8 Tips for Caring for Veneers

Proper veneer maintenance ensures your veneers last longer and keeps your mouth healthy. Common tips to keep in mind include:

• Brush and floss regularly.

Dental experts recommend brushing your teeth at least twice daily, for about two minutes at a time, for your veneers and oral health. You should floss daily to remove debris trapped deep between your teeth that your toothbrush can’t reach. It helps remove plaque, bacteria, and calculus from your teeth and around your gum line. Daily oral hygiene keeps your veneers healthy and bright, lowering your risk of tooth decay, gum disease, and other oral problems.

• Use the right dental products.

Using the wrong dental products can damage your veneers and teeth. For instance, hard-bristled brushes and highly abrasive toothpaste-like whitening ingredients can erode the veneer and weaken your teeth, making them susceptible to damage. Consider a fluoridated toothpaste, water flosser, and soft-bristled electric brush.

• Avoid hard and crunchy items.

Dental veneers may not be as strong as your natural teeth. Without proper veneer protection and care, your veneers can easily break or chip when chewing hard objects like nails, bones, ice, raw nuts, and pens. It’s best to avoid chewing on hard and non-food items to prevent dental trauma and extend your veneer longevity.

• Limit acidic and sugary items.

Although dental veneers can’t get decay or cavities, the underlying tooth can. A diet high in sugars and acids can erode your veneers and teeth, making them more vulnerable to stains and decay. If you must take these items, rinse your mouth afterward to remove the harmful debris.

• Limit staining ingredients.

While most veneers resist stains better than your natural teeth, regular exposure to staining ingredients like coffee, tea, berries, and soda can cause them to stain over time. Unfortunately, once stained, you can’t whiten them like your natural teeth. You may need a veneer replacement to improve your smile. Rinsing your mouth after taking highly colored foods and drinks can help wash away the staining ingredients and help in keeping your veneers looking new.

• Avoid tobacco and alcohol.

Smoking is a common cause of stubborn tooth stains. Besides staining your veneers and teeth, smoking puts you at a greater risk of oral and health problems like gum disease, oral cancer, lung cancer, and delayed wound healing.

Alcohol can dehydrate your mouth and soften the bonding material that bonds the veneer to the tooth, making your veneers and teeth vulnerable to damage and stains. Also, take care to avoid toothpaste and mouthwash that contain alcohol.

• Get a mouth guard for bruxism.

Teeth grinding and clenching cause significant stress on your teeth and veneers and cause them to wear down and chip. You can consult your dentist about a custom mouth guard to minimize damage to the teeth and veneers and maintain them.

• Schedule routine dental checkups.

While daily brushing and flossing can keep your teeth and veneers clean and healthy, routine dental cleanings are essential to remove bacterial plaque and tartar buildup in the mouth. Some deposits, like tartar, can’t be cleaned with regular brushing, so professional cleaning is necessary. If not eliminated, these deposits can cause your teeth and veneers to look dull and stained and put you at risk of oral infections.

Are You Interested in Dental Veneers in Edgartown, MA?

For more information about dental veneers and veneers aftercare, contact Edgartown Dental Group to book a consultation today.