How your dentist can help you look 10 years younger
Have you ever caught a glimpse of yourself in the mirror and barely recognised the person staring back at you? It might resemble you, but things seem to have moved, changed size and shape. It could be that the dreaded curse of ageing has taken hold.
Our facial features can give a lot away, including (sadly) our age, but have you ever thought about how much of this is defined by your lips, teeth and gums? We are all too quick to reach for the latest in wrinkle cream in defiance of our accumulating years, but there has never been a more important time to pay some attention to your oral features.
Looking 10 years younger has never been easier with a little help from your dentist. With the tools and treatments dentists now have at their disposal, there is no reason not to address the signs of ageing with a dental makeover. From implants to whitening, your dentist can work a few small wonders to get your teeth, mouth and gums refreshed so that you can go forth and flash a more youthful smile to the world.
A healthy set of teeth and gums can easily make you look 10 years younger and framed by the perfect set of lips, you’ll feel like a new person. Here are a few of the classic ageing traits that your dentist can help iron out.
Drawn, sallow or wrinkled face
One missing tooth may not have a huge impact on your face shape, but several missing teeth can really age you. Your teeth give your face structure and without them your whole face shape changes. You can start to look drawn with the absence of teeth. The wrinkle effect starts to appear when the jawbone shrinks, taking the gums and teeth with it. The internal structure of the mouth starts to collapse, leaving the skin loose and wrinkled around it.
Skin can become sallow for a number of reasons, including vitamin deficiency. If your teeth are missing or in poor condition, you’re less likely to be able to eat and drink a completely balanced diet and this could lead to rather unhealthy looking sallow skin.
The good news is that these issues can be remedied by your dentist. Dental implants bring back that structure to your lower face, allow you to chew your food again and smile with confidence. A fuller structured jawline gives your face life and vitality, restoring youth and reversing the signs of ageing.
Dental Implants come with a lifetime guarantee and the cost can be spread to make them an affordable option for looking 10 years younger — a small price to pay in the grand scheme of things!
Crooked, uneven or broken teeth
Our teeth go through a lot over a lifetime and sometimes, genetics set us up for dental failure, before we’ve even had the chance to get going! Bad habits, accidents, and sometimes even bad dental work can cause broken or crooked teeth. It can have a huge impact on how we feel about ourselves, and it’s definitely more of a self-esteem issue as we age. If we reach middle age with crooked or broken teeth, we start to appear even older — it’s a definite ‘life has been hard on me’ look.
Never fear, your dentist is here are here! With a range of braces and restorative treatments to suit all needs, your crooked teeth can easily be sorted over time, giving you a refreshing new look to look 10 years younger. Incognito, Lingual or Invisalign braces are particularly suitable for adults who value discretion.
Composite bonding is another option for filling in unsightly chips or gaps, improving the shape of teeth, or even lengthening them. It uses a dental resin to ‘bond’ to the teeth, giving your smile a dazzling 10 years younger look. No pain, no fuss, and it won’t break the bank!
Discoloured, stained or yellow teeth
We subject our teeth to a lot and one effect of ageing is staining, discolouration or darkening of the teeth. We all know that certain foods and drinks can stain our teeth. Red wine and tobacco are especially bad culprits. How many of us actually think about this when we’re sipping a gorgeous Rioja or enjoying a cappuccino with friends? Not many I’m guessing. But, eventually it catches up with us.
Of course, our indulgences aren’t the only things to blame — some wear and tear happens over time. The outer layer of our teeth starts to wear away, giving them a darker appearance. Unlike the effects of naughty foods and drinks, which can be reduced with some lifestyle adjustments, the darkening due to ageing is harder to stop. Paying extra attention to your dental routine can undoubtedly help, however, this is often a problem that requires a little professional intervention.
Yes, tooth whitening is something that can be done at home and there are plenty of over the counter products these days. However, a professional service gives your smile a bit more oomph. Most dentists will offer a combination of at-home and in-chair whitening which will usually include a dental assessment and 3D scan to give you the best bespoke whitening package for your teeth. Tooth whitening is a very affordable and effective way of bringing you one step closer to looking 10 years younger, especially as part of a Smile Design process.
Smokers lip lines
The bottom line: smoking is bad for you. We all know it, don’t we? But hey, no judgement. We all have our vices and the dangers were not so well known back when many of us started. The effects of smoking are way bigger than just aesthetic issues, and the dangers to your overall health are extremely real. This is a good enough reason to quit in itself. But let’s think about the aesthetics for a moment — perhaps you’ve already quit but are still seeing the remnants on your face of a years-long habit.
Smoker’s lips or lip lines are vertical wrinkles around the lips, as well as a darkening of the lips and gums due to excessive tobacco use. Nicotine and chemicals in cigarettes are mainly to blame but the puckering motion also plays a role in the wrinkles forming. The outcome: smoking ages you. The best way to stop it? Quit. That said, there are treatments that can reverse the signs of ageing that have appeared due to smoking.
Modern-day dentists to the rescue! Banning Dental Group offer a range of facial aesthetics treatments which are non-surgical, making them much less daunting and much more affordable. Facial aesthetics treatment can include dermal fillers and botox treatments, the effects of which can last up to 12 months making them very affordable options. Dermal fillers like Juvederm are injections of gel that can help smooth out wrinkles and rejuvenate the skin; perfect for smoker’s lips.
Solve the lip lines, and you’ll soon be enjoying skin that looks 10 years younger.
Receding gums
Gums recede as we get older; fact. The expression ‘long in the tooth’ came into being for this very reason — our teeth start to look longer as we get older. Sometimes we don’t do ourselves any favours either; we quite often get our oral hygiene routine wrong. We can sometimes be too heavy-handed with the ol’ toothbrush OR we just don’t manage to get rid of the plaque in those hard to reach places, which can lead to gum disease. If left untreated this can lead to periodontal disease or periodontitis.
Regular checkups can prevent gum disease from getting worse and stop your gums from receding. A periodontist is a specialist who can treat gum disease effectively, making sure you hold onto your gums for a healthy, younger-looking smile and all-round happier mouth. Prevention is better than a cure so be sure to ask your dental hygienist about scaling and root planing to remove plaque before it has a chance to build up.
Abracadabra…10 years younger
Dentists are no longer just dentists if you didn’t already know. They’re also magicians! Just kidding, but there is an element of truth in that. So much can be done now, without putting you too much out of pocket, to knock the years off the clock. Dentists provide affordable, effective solutions to magically transform you into a more confident, youthful you.
No more switching off the laptop cam because you’re ashamed of your stained or crooked smile or because your face just looks that bit more wrinkled on screen. No more guilty feelings for neglecting your teeth or giving into naughty habits; the past is the past.
Step into a younger, fresher future with some no-fuss treatments at your local Banning Dental Group clinic.
