What do you know about veneers? You may know very little about them and what they do, so here are a few facts about veneers.
- Veneers whiten and straighten teeth. Their coloring lightens stained teeth and their shape can cover crooked ones.
- Veneers are bonded to teeth with a dental cement. The tooth surface is first removed of ½ millimeter enamel, polished, and then etched to aid bonding. After the veneer is placed on the tooth with cement, the dentist applies a special light beam which activates chemicals that harden the cement quickly.
- Veneers are either made of porcelain or a resin composite. The porcelain reflects light more like natural teeth do. In contrast, resin makes a thinner shell, requiring less tooth enamel to be removed.
- Veneers are permanent. Though they need to be replaced every 5-10 years, the veneer process is usually irreversible because tooth enamel has been scraped away.
- Veneers don’t fall off. Having a veneer fall off is very rare. But avoiding bad habits such as teeth grinding or biting fingernails helps veneers stay on teeth and intact.
- Veneers do well at resisting stain. However, the dentist may still recommend avoiding certain drinks in excess like coffee, red wine, and tea.
- Veneers can be treated just like natural teeth.