HOW TO PERFECT YOUR TEETH AND SMILE
HOW TO PERFECT YOUR TEETH AND SMILE
A confident smile can change your whole appearance. So how can you achieve it?
Keep your teeth bright and white
Whilst we all know to brush regularly, floss, and see the dentist twice a year, it is also good to see a hygienist who can remove stains. If you are still not happy with the result, then the safest way to whiter teeth is to see a professional for laser whitening or tailor-made trays to use with a whitening solution overnight for a few weeks. Don’t be tempted to scrub hard at your teeth or use too much toothpaste in an attempt to whiten them as you can do more harm than good. There are electric toothbrushes with pressure sensors available. And only use a pea-sized amount of toothpaste.
Your diet is key
But what about preventing your teeth from staining in the first place? We all know that certain foods and drinks such as red wine and coffee stain your teeth, but there are some other surprising foods that dentist Dr Sandra Garcia Martin, from 107 Harley Street, says will actually help with gum and tooth health. Soy, along with other foods such as margarine and fatty fish, contains high amounts of Vitamin D which help your teeth absorb calcium. Without this important vitamin, you could suffer from calcium deficiency, leading to underdeveloped gums, tooth decay and gum disease. Garlic is loaded with antibacterial properties that makes it great for your teeth. The key component is allicin which, as well as being antibacterial, is also antifungal and antiviral. Ginger can be used to whiten and strengthen your teeth and gum line. The antibacterial properties of ginger also help to keep plaque and bacterial build up at bay. Cheese is one of the best foods out there for your teeth. Naturally high levels of phosphate and calcium help to strengthen as well as balancing the pH level in your mouth, which means there will be less harmful acid and fewer cavities. Some things can also corrode the enamel on the teeth such as cola, apple cider vinegar drinks and juices. And be cautious with ice, fruit with stones and granary bread to avoid chipping. If the damage is done, veneers and bonding are good ways of restoring your teeth, and crowded and crooked teeth can be improved with braces.
Great looking lips
We have been told for years to exfoliate and scrub our skin to shed dead cells, so that when we put serums and moisturisers on they penetrate the skin. This is also relevant for lips. Many of us lather layers of Vaseline and moisturisers on our lips, but if the skin hasn’t been exfoliated then the moisture will just sit on the surface. Try to avoid licking your lips as this can dry them out, and keep them protected from the sun with a lip balm containing SPF. A decent lip liner and lipstick can be used to make your lips look fuller and brighter. We like Charlotte Tilbury’s Lip Cheat liner for a full pout! Or consider lip-blushing – a semipermanent technique that deposists colour using ultra fine needles and can either give a very natural look or like you’re wearing your fave lipstick. It can also help improve definition of the lips. Lip fillers and Botox, meanwhile, can improve the appearance of the mouth area with fillers making the lips look plumper and Botox used for things such as a gummy smile
All about the face
It’s not just the teeth and the lips that are involved in the perfect smile. Treating the lower half of the face can help provide the desired effect. Nakedhealth MEDISPA in Wimbledon suggests treatments such as EndyMed in which radiofrequency energy is used to stimulate the body’s natural collagen and can help with sagging skin on your cheeks or jowls. The CACI nonsurgical facelift can help with facial toning. Ultherapy is another high tech solution, deploying micro focused ultrasound energy. While there are many studies on the ‘perfect’ smile (there are even precise calculations on teeth size, colour and proportions), the most important aspect is confidence – which in turn creates a genuine and happy smile that lights up your whole face.
