Healthy Fluids

Dentists tell their patients that they need a dental filling all the time. Most people prefer to get a second opinion to find someone who will tell them that they do not really need it just so they can avoid having to pay for it. The truth is dental fillings are necessary for people who do not want to suffer from a serious dental health issue.

People do not have a real clue of what a dental filling is and what it is for. Understanding what these are and what they are for goes a long way in taking that step in getting one for a cavity. Here are a few brief discussions on dental fillings.

What is a filling?

Tooth decay is one of the leading dental health concerns on the planet. It affects people from all across the globe and is usually a result of poor dental hygiene as well as excessive sugar intake.

Bacteria in the mouth produce toxins that rot the teeth away. Once this becomes severe enough it becomes known as tooth decay. The dentist cleans the decay by treating it, and making sure that it is clean. Once treated and cleaned, the dentist has to fill the area affected by the tooth decay with a filling.

Dental filling is one of the most sensible, conservative and least invasive methods of treatment in the dental industry. People should not have to worry about having any sort of tool or instrument drilling holes in their teeth.

The types of fillings

There are many kinds of fillings out there. The one that most people are familiar with are composite fillings and silver amalgam. These are the most common forms of fillings a person can find since they are the ones that most people get.

Silver amalgam: It is the most popular and common dental filling. It is not made purely out of silver contrary to what most people might think. It is actually a mixture of several metals, in other words it is an alloy. It is composed of tin, silver, zinc, mercury, and copper. Mercury is the major component. Mercury accounts for 50% of the alloy.

Silver amalgam is popular among dentists and patients alike primarily due to its durability as well as its low cost. With proper care, these fillings can last for as much as fifteen years. They are also very easy to replace. The only real downside to silver amalgam is that they are not aesthetically pleasing.

Composite fillings: These are very popular primarily due to aesthetic quality. It can be custom colored to match the patient's teeth. It is the most natural looking filling. The downside to these fillings is that they are not as durable as silver amalgam.

Porcelain fillings: These are both aesthetically pleasing as well as durable. They strike the right combination of qualities found in both composite and silver amalgam fillings.