Enjoy a Cavity-free Smile with Safe and Beautiful Composite Fillings

When you notice signs of cavities in your teeth, please don’t take them for granted. Although cavities are painless at first, they become larger pits that require extensive restorative treatments over time. Worse yet, what started as minor tooth decay, might cost your tooth! While dental cavities aren’t reversible, they’re easily treatable. Southern Pine Dental in Dothan, Alabama, uses composite (white) fillings to treat your cavity-laden teeth.

The dental filling procedure: What to expect

Ignoring your cavity won’t make it go away. The best course of action is to have it treated. We begin the cavity-filling treatment by removing the decayed part and cleaning the area. But since this leaves the tooth vulnerable, protection is vital to shield the tooth from further damage.

We fill out the void left by the cavity with composite resin. We apply this material in layers and harden it using a curing light. Then, we reshape the filling until your bite feels natural. After treatment, you need minimal aftercare. We only advise you to avoid eating or chewing for about two hours until the anesthesia wears out; otherwise, you may bite your tongue or cheeks.  

Benefits of composite fillings

For years, dentists have always used amalgam (silver-colored) fillings to restore cavities. While metal fillings effectively treat tooth decay, they don’t look beautiful and are known to emit toxic mercury vapors. Given the shortcomings of amalgam fillings, many dentists now use composite fillings. Tooth-colored fillings offer numerous benefits, including:

• Conservative: We only remove a small portion of your tooth when filling it with composite resin, leaving much of your tooth’s structure intact. 
• Natural-looking: Composite resin can be color-matched with the surrounding teeth to keep your smile natural. So, dental fillings restore cavities and leave your smile looking beautiful.
• Safety: Composite fillings are safe to restore damaged teeth. Unlike amalgam fillings, composite feelings don’t contain harmful materials (like mercury), unsafe for your health.

Battling one, two, or several cavities? What are you waiting for? Fix your cavities before it’s too late. Please dial (334) 794-0348 to schedule an appointment with Southern Pine Dental. Dr. Durwood Nowell and his team offer composite fillings to treat cavities while leaving your beautiful smile intact.