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Whether your new veneers are made of resin composite materials or porcelain, you’ll need to care for the thin, tooth-colored shells along with the rest of your chompers. Here, review tips for maintaining the shells covering discolored, broken, misaligned, misshapen, or worn teeth. With the right care, your veneers will last a decade or more.

How to Maintain Your Veneers

1. Keep Up With Oral Hygiene

Brush your teeth twice a day using a soft-bristled toothbrush and non-abrasive toothpaste that can scratch the resin or porcelain. Floss once a day or after every meal to dislodge food particles from between the teeth and gums.

Home dental care helps prevent tooth decay in remaining natural teeth as well as gum disease that can cause tissue recession. Excessive gum recession can expose too much of the veneers, creating appearance issues.

2. Don’t Chew on Foreign Objects or Grind Your Teeth

Keep the cosmetic dentistry materials intact by chewing food only. Ice, pens, and other foreign objects can cause the otherwise-durable resin or porcelain to chip and crack.

In addition to remaining mindful about what you chew, stay aware of tooth grinding habits to avoid wearing down your veneers and natural teeth. If you grind at night, talk to your dentist about a custom nite guard.

3. Wear a Mouth Guard When Playing Sports

veneersProtect your restored smile when you engage in sports, especially contact sports. As with custom night guards, custom sport mouth guards fit you perfectly, unlike stock options made of hard, often uncomfortable plastic that can rub your gums.

4. Avoid Staining Agents

Enjoy a brilliant smile by abstaining or at least limiting your intake of foods and beverages that discolor the porcelain or resin. Coffee, tomato sauce, tea, dark soda, alcohol, and beets are among the biggest staining agents. If you don’t want to stop consuming healthy foods that stain teeth, such as berries, sip water as you eat them.

5. See Your Dentist Regularly

Make biannual appointments with your dentist to check your veneers and natural teeth. Any issues are identified quickly to keep your smile attractive and healthy. You can also use your appointments to ask the dentist questions, such as what mouthwashes they recommend. Alcohol-based mouth rinses cause the tooth-colored shells’ bonding agent to break down. 

 

Maintain your veneers with services from Dental Clinic of Onalaska. The community-minded practice in Onalaska, WI, serves patients 18 and up, providing general and cosmetic dentistry solutions since 1993. Call (608) 783-3341 to make an appointment or learn more about cosmetic dentistry services online

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