Actually they are not white. They are tooth coloured fillings because teeth are not white – anything but white. A pure white filling would stand out like a sore thumb if the tooth itself is not pure white, and so for this reason a properly placed filling should be invisible and not draw attention to itself. The correct name for them is ‘composite restorations’ and ‘glass ionomer restorations’. At Haynesdental we only place white fillings.

Old fashioned amalgam fillings are safe and long lasting, and functionally they are perfectly adequate but they turn black and look awful. Dentists have been placing amalgam fillings for about 150 years with few problems. The very first ones were made from the scrapings off of a silver coin, mixed with mercury to form a plastic alloy, which then sets when it has been adapted to a cavity inside a tooth. The fact that silver is a powerful antiseptic added to their effectiveness. The technical term for any alloy made from mercury is amalgam. Of course the constituents have been altered over the years and so modern amalgams are high quality and very safe. BUT THEY LOOK AWFUL.

To me, teeth are beautiful things. The inside of a tooth is made of dentine which is really quite yellow but this dentine is covered by a very hard, and much whiter enamel. Enamel is 95% inorganic and its beauty comes from its translucency.  This gives the tips of front teeth a greyish ‘see through’ appearance depending on the light. The body of the tooth is affected by the dentine showing through the enamel giving it a quite different appearance to the tip. The dentine at the neck of the tooth is near the gum and may not be covered at all, making it look yellow or even brown. The skill of the dentist is to layer composite filling material using blues, reds and yellows in the correct hues along with opaque and transparent whites, in the same way that a natural tooth is layered, so that the final restoration is made invisible.

For the dentist composites are hard to place because they are technique sensitive which means that there are no ‘short cuts’. Each stage in the placement of a composite must be followed meticulously. (Unlike amalgams; which can be placed in the dark and in the wet with boxing gloves on).

Not only must the dentist match up the colours, but first the cavity must be cut correctly. The filling must be placed dry after the tooth has been bonded using acid etch and bonding agent. The material must be layered and adhered to the base and sides of the cavity then light cured. The filling must fit tightly to adjacent teeth and if possible just touching opposing teeth. The patient must be able to floss and bite comfortably.

At Haynesdental we use the “V” Ring technique for back teeth and diamond polishing paste for front teeth to give them that final gloss thus making them appear natural. We use Herculite or HFO composite as well as Photac glass ionomer and Relyx cements carbon fibre posts. We also have a full range of special materials for unusual cases like pink composite that looks like gums, Diamond Carve for unusual cavities, fibreglass Ribbond for splinting teeth together and cupboards full of other things just waiting for that ‘once in a blue moon case’ that needs something special.   

The whole process is time consuming and so we ask that our clients are patient with us because we believe you want good quality workmanship that looks and feels good. This gives you value and makes you and the dentist feel contented.

It all comes back to our motto - we want to help you to 'love your teeth'!