What Are White Fillings Made Of?

What Are White Fillings Made Of?

The purpose of a filling is to help restore your damaged or decayed teeth, to help them regain their normal function and shape. A white (or composite) filling is typically made of a tooth-coloured acrylic resin with a powdered glass mixture (hardened using a high-intensity blue light) which offers many advantages over an amalgam (or silver) filling. 

See our comparison of white fillings vs. amalgam here.

Due to the materials that the filling is made from, these natural coloured alternatives can be shaded to match the colour of your existing teeth, making them much less visible than silver. As more of our clients want natural-looking smiles, composite fillings have become increasingly popular, for cosmetic improvements of the smile by changing the colour of the teeth or reshaping damaged or misshapen teeth.

Composite or white fillings are our preferred choice of dental filling material, are recommended by our team, and we consider them to be stronger, safer and more durable than traditional silver amalgam fillings.

Do White Fillings Contain Mercury?

White or composite fillings do not contain mercury, while traditional amalgam (or silver or grey metal fillings) have typically 50% mercury in them along with tin, copper, silver or zinc. Many dental practices continue to use amalgam fillings which are considered by some as controversial, but at Milford Dentists, we have been amalgam - mercury free for all of our restoration work since 1999.

Durability and the preservation of your natural tooth are of great importance to us, so our team consider there to be no advantage, (but instead a distinct disadvantage), using dental silver amalgam vs. composite resins (white fillings).

You can find all the need to know facts about white fillings here.

Other options for fillings include gold and porcelain.

• Gold is one of the most durable and long-lasting options for dental restorations; however, gold fillings are amongst the most expensive and need to be mechanically retained, i.e., they need to be keyed into a cavity which can destroy tooth unnecessarily.
• Porcelain fillings are another indirect option that while higher in cost provide a very natural appearance, helps stop the spread of decay, protects the strength and function of teeth and can be used to correct an uneven tooth surface.

So although there is a range of options for fillings or restoration, contact Milford Dental today on (09) 489 6575, and we can help you identify the dental solution best suited to your needs.