AFRAID TO SMILE? HERE’S HOW YOU CAN PROFESSIONALLY MAKE YOURS GLEAM. 

by Michael Darden and Makael Newby for Life-Enhancing Dentistry

Linda Strating was "afraid to smile."  No one should be, and certainly not a senior executive at a graduate school, especially when it’s her job to speak at exhibitions and to the press as well as mingle with dignitaries at formal dinners and--yes--smile. 

But Strating kept her mouth closed because she didn’t like what was revealed when she showed her not-so-pearly whites. 

The good news: Today’s dental practices employ cutting edge technology to create the picture-perfect smile. 

Teeth whitening is the number one requested cosmetic dental procedure according to a 2005 national survey by the American Academy of Cosmetic Dentistry.  Dr. Bruce A. Matis, professor and clinical research director at Indiana University School of Dentistry says consumer demand for teeth whitening has been the biggest boost dentistry has seen. In 2004, consumers spent $277 million on over-the-counter whiteners alone. 

The WOW Smile 

To discover the best ways to improve your smile, we went to Lynn Locklear, DDS, a nationally renowned cosmetic and neuromuscular dentistry expert, who is founder, president and chief executive officer of Washington, DC's Life-Enhancing Dentistry. (www.lifeenhancingdentistry.com) 

Dr. Locklear says that "dentistry used to be an issue of what people need; now it's an issue of what people want." Some patients come in toting photos of Halle Berry or Brad Pitt and want to know if having their smile is a possibility. Others just want to have the best grin possible. Many choose to see a digital smile-makeover before they ever commit to treatment. With only a simple digital photograph of your smile, your teeth can be edited to show what you would look like in the smile of your dreams.  If you like what you see, the following procedures are some of the ways to make your dreams come true. 

Bright White 

Tooth whitening has become big business in the District and around the nation. “Anything that stains your carpet, stains your teeth,” says Locklear. Think red wine, coffee, tea and dark colas. During in-office whitening procedures the patient sits for 2.5 hours while a hydrogen peroxide gel and a laser light is applied to teeth, lightening them up to several shades. Patients then bring home customized dental trays and bleaching solution to continue lightening to the desired shade. In-office whitening is excellent for patients looking for immediate results. Patients can also choose just the take-home trays by themselves and proceed with whitening at their own pace. Touch ups depend on your diet and your personal biology, but once you have home trays, you can lighten up whenever you choose. 

Metal Mouth No More 

If crooked teeth are what keep you awake at night, Invisalign(R) or lingual braces might be for you. These are not your childhood braces, bringing on nicknames like "brace face."  Invisalign(R) uses a series of custom molded, clear plastic aligners to gently reposition teeth. You remove them to eat, brush, floss, and ok, maybe for a hot date. Otherwise, they’re left in place and changed every two weeks. Results are quicker than traditional braces, too – results are usually completed in six months to a year. Invisalign(R) is typically for patients who need only minor teeth adjustments. The upside: People won't even notice you’re undergoing orthodontics… until they catch your new smile, that is.  

Call me Bond, Tooth Bond. 

For fixing minor chips and closing spaces, bonding may be an option.  A tooth-colored resin can be used to reshape the edges of teeth and fill in unwanted gaps. Downside: it stains, needs to be changed out every 5-7 years, and can chip off if there is any problem with the way your teeth fit together.  Benefits: it’s quick and relatively inexpensive.  Many people choose this route when they are not yet ready for veneers. 

This same resin material is also used to replace old metal fillings with tooth-colored fillings.  Not only does this remove the mercury present in those metal amalgams and create a stronger restoration for your tooth, but it removes the grey shading of your teeth, and allows your fillings to be your private business.  Now you can laugh loud and long with no worries. 

The Crowning Glory of Veneers 

To achieve Halle Berry’s smile, or the smile that is perfect for YOU, a mega-watt grin can be yours with the use of veneers and crowns. Perfect for stained, chipped or misaligned teeth, wafer-thin shells of porcelain are chemically bonded to your existing teeth. And since they allow you to change not only the color of teeth but the shape, size and position, people can essentially custom design their smile. 

Treatment with porcelain veneers can be accomplished with several office visits over a few weeks. Today’s dentists have the ability to give people a completely new smile within a month. What’s more, clinical studies show that after 15 years, 80-85 percent of veneers still look like they did the day they were placed.  

Bridge to a Fuller Smile 

If you are missing teeth from extractions or breakage, there are a couple of ways to fill the spaces. Partial dentures allow you to fill multiple spaces with one removable appliance. Bridges work like their namesake to “bridge the gap” by crowning two or more natural teeth connected to false teeth that fill in the spaces between. Although partials are less expensive, bridges are permanent. Either option will return you to a whole smile instead of a holey one. 

One Denture, Two Denture

Dentures are used when you are missing all of you upper or lower teeth.  In the past they often looked bulky or fake, but with today's dental technology they usually go unnoticed.  Dr. Locklear's denture patients often leave her practice looking ten or twenty years younger due to her use of Neuromuscular techniques to find the most harmonious and aesthetic position for the bite.  (see below)

If existing dentures that slip plague you, an implant-reinforced denture (which includes several implants on each side of the mouth to which a denture fastens) may be a more secure option than a traditional denture. It provides a sturdier foundation, is more comfortable to wear and doesn’t interfere with taste buds. Plus, denture adhesive isn’t needed. Not everyone is a candidate, but Dr. Locklear works with oral surgeons who do the surgical implants and can advise you if this is an option. 

Neuromuscular Dentistry: The Next Frontier 

Neuromuscular Dentistry is a comprehensive, state-of-the-art process that focuses on proper alignment of the jaw and bite (the way the jaws relate when the teeth fit together). This technique, which relaxes the jaw and neck muscles to determine where the muscular and nervous system is most comfortable, and then restores the teeth to maintain that healthy jaw position, requires significant post-graduate education of the dentist, as it is not taught in dental schools. As a result of Neuromuscular procedures, patients can benefit from a stunning smile, the relief of headache, migraine and TMJ pain, improved posture, AND an instant face-lift. 

After undergoing Neuromuscular dental treatment, Strating sports a giant grin.  “Not only have I got a movie star smile,” she says in wonder, “but I’ve finally got a bite!  Now, when I’m at the National Pres Club or one of the many public appearances I need to attend, I SMILE.” 

For more information on neuromuscular dentistry, go to www.lifeenhancingdentistry.com.