A Root Canal

White Teeth Still Don't Look Right? You've Lost Your Luster

As you grow older, you might look to whitening products to improve the appearance of your teeth. After all, most people experience some level of staining on their teeth over the years, and whitening up your teeth can help to boost your ego. However, some people who use these whitening products feel dissatisfied even when their teeth end up looking white. This is often because whitened teeth in older age don't quite look like young teeth that are naturally white. Here's where the difference lies and what you can do to get back your youthful smile.

Luster

When you're young and your teeth are healthy, they're typically pretty white or close to white. However, that's not all: young teeth have a healthy luster to them that older teeth often lack.

The reason for this is that the luster is thanks to your tooth enamel. Unfortunately, tooth enamel is often worn down with age, due to hard toothbrushing, daily wear and tear, and things like drinking acidic beverages. While whitening products can give you the color of teeth that you want, they won't necessarily restore this luster.

Why Whitening Doesn't Restore It

Whitening products aren't designed to restore lost enamel. In fact, some at-home whitening products can be harmful for your teeth if you don't have healthy, intact tooth enamel. This is just another reason why it's always a good idea to talk to your dentist before reaching for an at-home product. While these products are typically safe, if you have personal circumstances like thin enamel, they may not be anymore.

Restoring Your Appearance

Tooth whitening could become a thing of the past for you if you're interested in getting back that luster that you've lost. That's because the best replacement for that luster is dental veneers.

Veneers are thin, tooth-shaped appliances that are attached to teeth. They're perfectly shaped and sized to match your real teeth or to provide you with enhancements if your teeth are naturally crooked or not symmetrical with one another.

Although veneers are artificial, they do a wonderful job of replicating lost luster. This is because they're typically made out of porcelain, the same material that many other dental replacements, like crowns, are typically made from. If you've ever seen porcelain, you already know that it has a natural shine to it like a pearl. This is what you want your teeth to look like, and it's also what healthy and young teeth look like.

By getting veneers, you can restore the appearance of your smile without having to resort to a full set of crowns that you don't really need. Talk to a cosmetic dentist about veneers and get the process started to get the smile you've lost over time.


Share