Do you suffer from cavities in your teeth or have chipped teeth in your mouth? If so, a dental filling treatment is the right treatment to provide you relief. Dental fillings are materials that are meant to restore your teeth structure by recreating the structure of your teeth before they were damaged.
Teeth fillings have been used for around 150 years to cure millions of patients around the world. However, recent studies in dental fillings have raised concerns regarding the safety of using certain forms of tooth filling in Houston. It is natural for people to get worried about substances that are placed inside their bodies.
So, let us look at which is the safest filling for teeth in Houston.
Different Kinds of Teeth Filling
In Houston, there are different kinds of tooth fillings that patients can receive to cure their teeth. Each filling is made of a different substance. They have different properties for different patients.
- Dental Amalgam
Dental Amalgam is the most common form of teeth filling that patients receive in Houston. This dental filling is made from the composition of copper, tin, silver, and mercury. Dental amalgams were once very popular in Houston for tooth fillings. They were cheap, durable, and widely available.
In the modern day, after the discovery of mercury as a toxic substance to human health, dental amalgams in Houston are avoided by many people due to the inclusion of mercury in its composition.
- Composite Teeth Filling
Composite teeth filling can be made from a large variety of substances. Each patient in Houston who receives composite teeth filling will not have the same components in their teeth filling. The compatibility of composite teeth fillings allows dentists in Houston to customize their appearance to match the appearance of your natural teeth.
This has made composite teeth filling the most popular teeth filling choice in Houston. However, composite teeth filling comes with the downside of having low durability which forces patients to get replacements in 5 years and they cost around twice the cost of dental amalgams.
- Gold Teeth Filling
A common tooth filling that patients in Houston must have seen in movies, gold teeth filling is a composite of gold with other metals like chromium and nickel. Gold teeth fillings are also an old form of teeth filling in Houston which are mostly seen in patients from higher income groups. This is because of their price which is the highest of any teeth filling available in Houston. Applying gold teeth filling also requires the patients to visit the dentist twice unlike other teeth fillings. In the modern day, it is very hard to find a dentist who will apply gold teeth filling in your mouth due to their declining popularity.
- Porcelain and Ceramics
Porcelain and ceramic teeth fillings in Houston are becoming popular for younger patients due to their resistance to staining and abrasions. Staining is a common issue for other forms of teeth fillings in Houston which has made porcelain teeth fillings a popular choice as well.
While porcelain and ceramics have good durability of around 25 years, they are vulnerable to getting cracked or chipped easily which requires early repairs to resolve.
- Temporary Dental Fillings
In certain cases, dental fillings in Houston are only applied temporarily to support other dental treatments such as dental cleaning, dental bonding, or teeth whitening. These dental fillings are meant to prevent the growth of cavities in your mouth.
Which Is the Safest Teeth Filling in Houston?
There is no one answer to this question as it depends on your health including both your dental and other physical health factors. For babies and toddlers, temporary dental filling is the most common option in Houston as it is the safest for them.
As for adult patients in Houston, the inclusion of mercury in dental amalgamation is alarming to most patients however, According to the U.S. Food and Drug Administration, exposure to mercury from dental amalgam will not lead to adverse health effects in the general population.
They recommend that only patients who have the following health conditions avoid getting dental amalgam for their teeth fillings:
- Pregnant Women or who wish to become pregnant
- Children younger than 6 years of age
- Patients who have kidney problems, neurological disorders, or sensitivity to mercury
Patients in Houston with these health conditions will get mercury-free, resin-based fillings.
Conclusion
Teeth filling is a good option to restore your damaged teeth. It has minimal downtime and costs less than other treatments. While there are concerns regarding their safety of use in Houston, most of these concerns are nothing to worry about and if you have issues with a certain type of teeth filling, a reliable dentist in Houston will provide alternatives for your treatment.
So, if you are in search of a reliable dentist to get teeth filling in Houston, contact All Stars Dental today. Please take a look at these Google reviews left by their previous clients to judge their expertise and quality of service.
