Top 5 Reasons Why White Fillings are Better than Silver Fillings, by Scottsdale Dentist

Paradise Valley Cosmetic Dental

(480) 621-4077

(480) 299-8721

Dr. Matthew A. Bayne, DDS

Dr Matthew Bayne, DDS
Member, American Academy of Cosmetic Dentistry

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Top 5 Reasons Why Tooth-Colored White Fillings are better than Silver Fillings
by Dr. Matthew Bayne, DDS

White fillings bond to your tooth.

The application process of tooth-colored fillings involves a chemical bond to your tooth, which increases stability, reduces microleakage, and can repair small fractures. The application process for silver fillings involves cutting a dovetail into healthy tooth enamel to provide retention. Dovetails weaken the tooth enamel. This can often lead to fracture over time.

White fillings look nicer than silver.

It can be argued that nice, shiny, silver teeth are very attractive. Over time, however, the metal in silver fillings oxidizes to dark gray or black, which looks like holes in the back of your mouth where your teeth are supposed to be.

Yes, it is true that white tooth colored fillings become yellow with age, it is a more acceptable alternative than gray or black.

White fillings contain no mercury.

While the modernization of the 21st century has advanced, the chemical formulation of silver fillings has not really progressed since the early 1900’s. Amalgam, which is the technical name for the silver used in fillings, means mixture. Amalgam is a metal alloy of silver, copper, tin, and mercury. Today’s silver fillings still contain up to 25% mercury. While it may be true that the percentage has dropped over the years, the physical properties of the metals remain constant. Mercury is still a very necessary ingredient in amalgam fillings. Why is this important? The mercury in silver fillings gradually seeps out into your tooth, causing it to turn gray. Also, some amount of the mercury is ingested into your body as the filling chips and breaks down around the edges. If the filling fails, and you swallow it, then your stomach acid can release this toxin as the mercury is absorbed and digested.

Tooth colored white fillings contain no mercury, so this problem is prevented in its entirety.

White fillings don’t creep.

Silver is a relatively soft metal. One of the properties of silver is that it is malleable. Each time that you chew food, the silver filling is compressed a little bit. Each vertical compression of the silver filling causes a slight expansion in the horizontal dimension. If you are lucky, the silver filling will just ooze out of the front or the back of your molar into the spaces in between your molars. This process is known as amalgam creep. If you subscribe to the laws of physics then you know that there is a 50/50 chance that the creep will also occur in the side to side direction. If the silver filling is compressed to the side, then your tooth fractures off and you are faced with needing a crown to restore your broken tooth. This is an expensive proposition that you are now faced with.

White fillings, because they are made from composite resin, do not possess these metallic physical properties, so white fillings do not creep and do not cause your tooth to fracture.

White fillings are more biocompatible.

Have you ever purchased a cheap set of earrings, and then had your ears turn green from wearing them? That is from the chemical reaction that your body has with nonprecious metals such as tin, nickel, or copper. Silver fillings are not made from pure silver. They are made from a mixture of silver, copper, tin, and mercury. That’s it. There are no other ingredients. So how healthy can you really expect them to be?

White tooth colored fillings possess their own biocompatibility limitations, but they appear to be the winners in this contest, as well. Until scientists can clone a human tooth, we will have to make do with what we have, as far as materials go, and at this time, white tooth colored fillings appear to be the best choice.

As you can see, Scottsdale dentist Dr Matthew Bayne, DDS is passionate about dentistry and about keeping you safe. On the surface, it may seem like a small detail, but choosing the right dental restorative material for you and your family is one detail that makes Scottsdale dentist Dr Matthew Bayne stand out from the crowd. To schedule an appointment with Scottsdale dentist Dr Matthew Bayne, DDS at his new Paradise Valley location, call (480) 621-4077.

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