Tips for the care of dental veneers
Although some types of dental veneers are extremely strong and durable, not all patients can opt for this type of dental aesthetic treatment. Likewise, many still ask us on a daily basis what is the best way to proceed in order to properly maintain their teeth and veneers with the aim of extending their lifespan as long as possible. That is why, below, we are going to give you some tips on how they should be cared for.
Tips on how to properly care for dental veneers:
- Limit consumption of coloured foods and drinks.
- Use caution when eating hard or sticky foods.
- Limit tobacco consumption.
- Avoid habits that involve biting objects.
- Wear a mouthguard if you are a bruxer.
- Consider mouthguards for sports.
- Attend recommended maintenance check-ups.
- Carry out proper oral hygiene.
1. Limit consumption of colouring foods and beverages.
One of the main reasons why many patients opt for dental veneers is to improve the aesthetics of their teeth, both in terms of colouration and to improve a defect in shape and position.
However, the abuse of coloured foods and drinks can affect the first purpose of this treatment. While porcelain veneers are not as seriously affected, composite veneers can be stained by the consumption of certain foods due to their material.
Thus, coffee, red wine, different teas, cola, dark chocolate, spices such as curry or turmeric, soy sauce or red fruits are foods that can cause a yellowish staining of these veneers, which is why it is advisable to limit their consumption.
In fact, it is important to clarify that dental veneers cannot be bleached. Therefore, if they were to darken or stain, it would be necessary to replace them with others to recover the desired lighter shade.
2. Use caution when eating hard or sticky foods.
Although the material of the veneers is resistant and can be repaired in one way or another, it is recommended that, to avoid breaking them, caution should be taken when biting and chewing hard and/or sticky foods such as nuts, carrots, apples, nougat, etc., especially when avoiding a lever movement.
3. Limit tobacco consumption.
Tobacco, in addition to other oral problems, can cause stains to appear on natural teeth. This staining will directly affect the aesthetic result of dental veneers. And although, again, it affects composite veneers more than porcelain veneers, limiting smoking will improve their lifespan.
4. Avoid habits that involve biting objects.
There are small habits such as chewing on pens, pencils, nails, or using your teeth to break shells, packaging, etc. that can fracture or cause dental veneers to become detached. This is why these habits should be avoided and other practices or tools should be used.
5. Wear a mouthguard if you are a bruxist.
Bruxism, the habit of unconsciously biting or grinding your teeth, can have serious consequences that affect both the temporomandibular joint (TMJ) and the teeth and gums.
For this reason, if you have undergone treatment with dental veneers, it is important to wear the splints during sleeping hours to avoid pain and to avoid putting too much pressure on the teeth, which can cause the veneers to fracture and, of course, premature wear of the rest of the teeth.
6. Consider mouthguards for sports.
Contact sports such as boxing or martial arts, football, basketball, rugby or hockey, etc. are activities in which you can suffer an accidental blow to the teeth causing a dental fracture or even, in the most serious cases, the fall of the tooth.
For this reason, it is advisable to use mouthguards, especially if you want to keep in good condition any of the dental treatments carried out, such as dental veneers, which can be more susceptible to being affected by this type of blows.
7. Go to the recommended maintenance check-ups.
In each case, the specialist in dental aesthetics should schedule regular visits to keep dental veneers in good condition for as long as they should last. For example, composite veneers usually need to be polished.
Although porcelain veneers do not require this maintenance, it is true that regular check-ups can help to maintain the health of teeth and gums in good condition and prevent oral diseases that end up deteriorating the tissues of the teeth, such as caries, or of the gums, such as periodontitis.
8. Carry out proper oral hygiene.
The oral hygiene routine is essential to keep both teeth and gums in good health, but it is also important for the preservation of the good condition of dental veneers. For this reason, it is recommended:
- Brushing teeth after every meal, including the use of dental floss or interproximal brush, as well as cleaning the tongue as it also accumulates bacteria.
- Also use mouthwash as it can help to complete the cleaning, although it can never replace the steps mentioned above.
- Visit the dentist as often as recommended by the dentist for professional cleanings to effectively remove the accumulation of bacterial plaque.
