White Fillings

Decay can happen, even to those who never waver from their dental hygiene routine. If you need a filling, come see the team at Hutton Village Dental Practice. We’ll restore your tooth with a filling that blends into your mouth seamlessly.

Causes of Cavities and Tooth Decay

Cavities are a type of tooth decay that occurs when the hard surface of your teeth develops small openings. This damage to your teeth is permanent and caused by:
  • Dental plaque, a sticky film that coats your teeth. Plaque occurs when we eat lots of sugars and starches and don’t clean our teeth properly afterward. When sugars and starches combine with mouth bacteria, the bacteria release acids that are meant to break down carbohydrates.
  • Plaque acid removes minerals in your tooth’s enamel, creating small holes that are the first stage of cavities.
As tooth decay develops, bacteria and acid make a small hole larger. If left untreated, the decay can move to the inner tooth material, causing much larger oral health issues.

White Fillings Restore Teeth

If tooth decay is not too serious, our cosmetic dentist will remove all the decay and restore the tooth with a white (tooth coloured) filling. Patients also come to us to have their silver amalgam fillings replaced with white fillings. White fillings are made of composite resin, a ceramic and plastic compound. As the resin looks like the appearance of natural teeth, white fillings blend right in. Some benefits of white fillings include:
  • Good durability and resistance to fracture in small- to mid-size fillings
  • Since they blend in, they can be used on any teeth, front and back
  • Provide a natural look
  • Can be one in one appointment
  • Cost less than other filling materials, such as gold

Direct Fillings Vs Indirect Fillings

Fillings can be done in one of two ways. Direct fillings, including white fillings, go directly into the cavity once all the decay has been removed. Indirect fillings are custom-made and cemented into place. Instead of filling a cavity with composite resin, indirect fillings are covered with crowns, inlays or other restorative materials.

Getting a White Filling at Hutton Village Dental Practice

White fillings are a standard treatment at our UK dental practice. We can fill a few cavities in one visit, however, if there are many fillings required or a patient can’t sit for a prolonged period of time, we break up the treatment into a few shorter sessions.

The process for a white filling is typically quite straight forward:

  1. We make sure our patient is comfortable and give them local anaesthetic. Freezing the area ensures that you do not feel any pain during the dental treatment.
  2. The dentist uses special tools to take out all traces of decay from the tooth.
  3. We shape a hole and put bonding material, essentially a glue, inside the hole to attach to the composite resin.
  4. The dentist applies the composite resin in thin layers. The layers are hardened with a special UV light before we apply the next layer.
  5. Once the final layer hardens, the dentist shapes the filling to look and feel like your natural tooth. We will have you test out your bite to make sure it feels comfortable.

Eating After a White Filling Treatment

After we place a white filling it can take a couple of hours for the local anaesthetic to wear off completely, so be careful not to bite your cheek or tongue by accident. We recommend that you wait to eat for a minimum of two hours. When you do eat, bite and chew carefully and try to chew on the side opposite your white filling. Avoid hard foods, sticky foods and sugary foods. Your mouth may be sensitive, so it may be best to avoid hot or cold beverages that may trigger sensitivity.

Cavity Prevention

Preventative care is one of the cornerstones at Hutton Village Dental Practice.

While some people are more cavity prone than others (even with thorough dental hygiene), here are some things you can do to reduce your chances of needing a white filling:
  • Brush your teeth twice a day with fluoride toothpaste.
  • Floss at least once a day.
  • Reduce sugars and eat a balanced diet. If you are eating or drinking something sugary, try and consume it in one sitting rather than grazing or slowly sipping.
  • See us for regular check-ups. Some oral health issues, like crowded teeth make it harder to access areas with plaque and bacteria. We can help correct these issues with one of our dental treatments.

Talk to Us About Your Sensitive Teeth

Tooth sensitivity or pain may be a sign of tooth decay. Rather than ignoring these symptoms, schedule a visit at our Brentwood dental practice, so we can investigate further. As with any oral health issues, it’s best to address the problem early to prevent it from getting worse.