Embarrassed about the look of your teeth…with all of the silver that shows when you laugh, smile, or just open your mouth? Replacing silver amalgam fillings with natural-looking white, composite fillings is an excellent cosmetic dentistry option, one that’s a part of many smile makeovers.

 

What are the problems with silver fillings?

For over 150 years, amalgam was a common filling material. Made of silver, tin, copper, and mercury, amalgam proved to be a durable and strong material for fixing cavities. However, silver  fillings were never an attractive option, and some people have suffered ill effects from having these metals placed into their mouths, such as:

 

• Aesthetically they are unappealing, with some fillings becoming black with age.

• They contain mercury, a potentially noxious metal to humans.

• More of the tooth structure must be removed to accommodate the filling.

• The filling is stronger than composite, but it weakens the tooth.

• Fillings can expand or shrink in size resulting in cracked or broken teeth, which leads to leakage and secondary decay.

• As they are not bonded, silver fillings will corrode and leak overtime leading to decay.

 

Should you change your silver filling?

Some patients choose to have all their silver amalgam fillings removed at once, while others prefer to stagger the dental work. In general, it’s best to replace the largest silver amalgam fillings first, because they’re the ones that are the most likely to crack or fracture, to get recurring decay beneath them, and/or to cause other dental problems.

 

Whether you would like your amalgam filling replaced for health, functionality or cosmetic reasons, you will love the look and feel of your teeth once you have it replaced with a white material.

 

We invite you to come in for a dental consultation, to talk about your options and how we can assist you with changing your silver fillings.