The Different Types of Dental Fillings: Pros and Cons

Dental fillings are single or combinations of metals, plastic, glass, et cetera, helpful to repair and restore teeth. Dental fillings are popular to fill areas of a tooth your dentist must remove due to decay. Fillers also help repair broken and cracked teeth from misuse, nail-biting, and teeth grinding.

Materials Helping Make Dental Fillings

Various materials help make dental fillings, including gold, silver amalgam, tooth-colored plastic and glass material called composite resin, and porcelain. The location of your tooth affected by decay and the extent of damage, the cost of the filling material, your insurance coverage, and the dentist’s recommendations in Northlake, IL, help determine which dental filling material will best address your needs.

The Pros and Cons of Different Materials Helping Make Dental Fillings

Pros of Dental Fillers

• Gold Fillings: Fillings from gold and incredibly durable and remain in your teeth for over 10 to 15 years, with some patients claiming they are pleasing.
• Silver Amalgam: Also lasting 10 to 15 years, silver amalgam fillings are more durable and inexpensive than gold but cost more than tooth-colored fillings.
• Tooth-Colored Composite Fillings: the shade of tooth-colored fillings will resemble the color of your natural tooth. The material bonds to the existing tooth structure providing additional support, and is frequently used for repairing teeth besides restoring decayed teeth. Significant tooth structure removal is not required for tooth-colored composite fillings.
• Porcelain: porcelain is also durable, lasting over 15 years but can stain over time than composite resin.
• Glass Ionomer: Glass ionomer fillings restore teeth below the gum line and release fluoride to protect them from further decay.

Cons of Dental Fillers

• Gold: Gold fillings are more costly than other fillers and require two visits when getting cavity fillings near you.
• Silver Amalgam: Silver amalgam fillers require significant tooth structure removal to hold the material, which creates a greyish hue to the neighboring tooth structure. They may expose you to tooth cracks and fractures risk because they can expand and contract due to temperature changes.
• Tooth-Colored Composite Fillings: Composite fillers are less durable than the other varieties lasting merely 5 to 7 years before needing replacements. They can also chip and break depending on their location. In addition, composite fillings cost more than amalgam and require more time to place because they need an application in layers.
• Porcelain: the cost of porcelain fillings is similar to gold.
• Glass Ionomer: the durability of glass ionomer fillers is weaker than composite resin, making them more likely to fracture or wear, needing replacements within five years but costing more than composite resin fillers.

Which Dental Filling Material Best Suits Your Needs

The filling materials described all help to fix damaged teeth due to decay. However, it helps if you understand that not all fillers suit all teeth. For example, you will not find amalgam or gold fillings suitable for your front teeth, and the durability of composite fillings will not make them appropriate for your molars. However, you can have them if you prefer.

If you are getting dental fillings in Northlake, you must allow the dentist to determine the best filler for your tooth after considering the tooth’s location, the extent of damage, the durability of the filling material, costs, et cetera.

In addition, filling materials made from metals are unsuitable for restoring broken or cracked teeth because they can make you look like a gangster instead of an individual with tooth damage. Therefore it helps if you adhere to your dentist’s advice and select the material they suggest instead of making your choice because it helps maintain facial aesthetics. In addition, the materials stay in your teeth for their intended lifespan.

How to Maintain Your Dental Fillings?

Following excellent dental hygiene practices is optimal for maintaining your dental fillings. In addition, you must visit your dentist twice yearly for checkups and cleanings and brush twice daily with fluoride toothpaste. You must also include flossing in your dental hygiene regimen to eliminate food particles and plaque to prevent cavities from developing in your mouth. Furthermore, it helps to avoid having sugary and starchy foods and beverages and avoid habits that harm your dental health. Most importantly, if your dentist detects a cavity in your tooth, you must ensure you get it restored as soon as possible to prevent aggravating the damage.

If you need a tooth restored because of cavities, Smiles of Northlake offers different Materials to fill your teeth. Please do not hesitate to visit them for the restorations but choose the material they suggest to benefit from the pros of dental fillings instead of falling prey to the cons.