There was a time that when someone said the phrase "cosmetic dentistry," that person could only be referring to braces. These days, the phrase conjures up a much different notion, many different notions, in fact. While the orthodontist works to realign a person's teeth using braces, the cosmetic dentist can do a number of different things to help improve the aesthetics of a person's smile. In the modern era, it is not outside of most people's budgets to be able to obtain the caps and crowns necessary for proper dental care and cosmetics.

So many advances have taken place in the field that cosmetic dentistry is no longer uncommon among the societal mainstream. Because those in the field are constantly improving cost and technique, costs have gone down and the necessary procedures have become more affordable. From an outsider's perspective, it may not seem like much has changed since orthodontists twist pen lip gloss still utilize braces to straighten smiles and caps for whitening purposes but the manner in which they do these things has improved quite a bit.

It was only a few decades ago that dentist began using porcelain structures to fill and cap teeth, and metal braces predated this practice. Looking back in dentistry's distant past, one will see that flawed structures made of wood were used as dentures and that nitric acid was used to dye teeth. Barbers were the general practitioner of the latter observance. Eventually, the enamel-damaging practice of using nitric acid was replaced by the use of fluoride rinses meant to whiten teeth but which actually ended up staining teeth instead. Cosmetic dentistry has come a long way since those strange ways. It is true that metal braces are still used quite a bit, but even these are beginning to fall into disuse.

Even children are getting clear, plastic alignment devices instead of the traditional metal braces which use wiring and rubber bands to move teeth. These clear, plastic aligners are worn in stages, allowing teeth to be moved little by little over time until teeth have been moved as desired. There are many reasons why people prefer these clear retainers over metal braces. For one, the plastic aligners can be removed when it comes time to eat or brush the teeth. And while in many cases braces must be left on for years at a time, plastic retainers need only be used for a period of about a year.

Dentists still utilize porcelain to bond teeth or to cap teeth and fill in unwieldy gaps but these days it is done in a manner which has been significantly improved. What does the future hold for the field of cosmetic dentistry? At the moment, professionals in the field are working to improve the techniques that are currently being practiced. Advancements have been so unexpected in the past that we almost do not know what great new things to expect in the future. Most expect vast improvements on 3-D digital teeth imagining, which is currently being used to enhance quite a few procedures and prosthetics.

JustMe's Dear Diary