How to Understand the Benefits of Dental Veneers

Dental veneers are a thin shell of tooth-colored material that is placed over your natural teeth. They are usually made of porcelain, but composite resin veneers are also popular. Dental veneers are primarily used to cover chipped or discolored teeth and also may be applied to protect a damaged tooth.

Instructions

• 1

  Expect dental veneers to provide a natural tooth appearance. The color can be matched to your other teeth and porcelain veneers reflect light in manner similar to natural teeth.

• 2

  Get veneers as a long-term solution. When applied correctly, they last 5 to 10 years on average, but may last for 15 years. Composite veneers are not as prone to cracking as porcelain veneers and are frequently repairable.

• 3

  Select the color of the porcelain veneer to make your teeth appear whiter. You may use this option when you have all of your visible teeth covered by veneers.

• 4

  Know that porcelain veneers are stain resistant. This type of material is usually not discolored by beverages such as coffee, tea or wine. Porcelain veneers are also well-tolerated by gum tissue.

• 5

  Use veneers as an intermediate approach for changing the appearance of your teeth. It is an effective solution for discolored teeth that do not respond to teeth-whitening treatments but costs less than a full crown and requires less shaping of the real tooth. Veneers typically require 0.5 mm of enamel to be removed.