W hether within the glamour lifestyle industryor someone’s everyday life, nothing captureshearts more than a great smile. But what arethe elements of a winning smile? What win-ning formula allows all of the stars to align,

the details to fade away, and the ability to captivate others?I will break the perfect smile down into the different piecesthat work together in creating magic. When we see a beau-tiful smile, we can separate it into three basic compo-nents—teeth, lips and face.

The eyes and mouth become the focal points when wenotice someone with a winning smile. Full, defined youth-ful lips frame naturally-shaped teeth with translucentwhite color, just as the eyes are surrounded by a smooth,youthful textured skin, with the eyebrows preferablyslightly-arched. All of these elements can be enhanced bya qualified and talented dentist, trained in natural-lookingdentofacial esthetics. Let’s focus on teeth and lips, as wezero in on a radiant smile that can light up a room and im-press at a competition.

SETTING THE RIGHT ARRANGEMENTOrthodontists are dental specialists that are trained in

the arrangement of teeth. New techniques for straighteningteeth have evolved, and inventions such as Invisalign andother clear aligners are an exciting change to those oldmetal railroad tracks that were anything but beautiful.Clear aligners are thin plastic trays, custom fabricated by ahigh tech computer program and changed every two weeks,and are barely visible. They should be worn for at least 22hours a day, but are easily removed for meals, and any im-portant social functions.

These trays make small changes as teeth move to the

ideal alignment desired. With tooth-colored brackets and“lingual braces” (brackets on the inside of teeth, so they areinvisible) it’s easy to change an average smile into a wow-factor smile.

When there is more than one issue with a tooth, dentistsoften turn to veneers, or all porcelain crowns. In addition,dentists may use dental implants and tooth-colored fillingsto be able to provide a great-looking smile.

LOOKING WHITE IN THE TOOTH With cosmetic dentistry and white teeth visible in every

well-photographed model’s smile, the industry has risen tothe occasion, with a large variety of over-the-counter, takehome and do-it-yourself tooth whitening systems. Zoom!,Opalessense and Brightsmile are well-known, in-officeone-hour tooth whitening systems, found to be safe and ef-fective for a relatively permanent color change.

With any tooth-whitening, the results can be prolongedby using a Sonicare or similar electric-style toothbrush, andthe vibrations of the brush will help to prolong the im-proved shade over time. Cutting down on red wine andother darkly-pigmented foods may be a bit boring, but itwill keep your smile brighter, longer.

BELIEVE IN VENEERSVeneers, or porcelain veneers as they are called, are

porcelain facings that are literally bonded to the front of anexisting tooth that can change the color, shape, size andarrangement instantly. These restorations are durable andcan look completely natural when the dentist collaborateswith a talented laboratory, as the makeover effect can beshockingly dramatic and spectacular. Discolorations,chipped and misaligned or rotated teeth can be instantly

By Dr. Joel Gould

your look ● the smile dr

In understanding the elementsof a winning smile, anyone canutilize today’s best dental andcosmetic techniques in gettinga head start on the competition

Instant SmileMakeover

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INVISALIGN

transformed to a set of ideal pearly whites. This is instantgratification at its best, as the results are visible at the firstvisit. When it comes to how many veneers are needed for atrue smile makeover, we need to take into account how bigof a smile our subject projects to achieve our ultimate goal.A winning smile usually exposes teeth all the way back tothe first molar, and the dentist and patient can decidewhether we need to change six, 10, or even 20 teeth toachieve an ideal instant smile makeover.

Lumineers and the supermodel veneer are two differentbrands or styles of veneers that are utilized by dentists. Dif-ferent porcelains are fabricated and designed to specificallysuit the patient’s specific needs.

The different elements of the face, lips and teeth can bebrought together by a great cosmetic dentist. With moderntechnology, and an experienced dental team, anyone canhave the winning smile of their dreams.

FACING THE FILLER FACTSSome dentists treat their patients with Botox and dermal

fillers such as Juvederm. As doctors of the mouth and asso-ciated structures, a dentist can be trained and highly skilledat these injections, and after all, who gives more shots thandentists? These medications can be used to diminish faciallines and give areas of the face a firm and youthful look.

GIVING SOME LIPLip augmentation techniques used to achieve cosmetic

improvements vary greatly from provider to provider, basedon their training, experience and artistic talent. Dentistscan utilize their knowledge and understanding of how thelips rest on the teeth. They use specific dental measure-ments to be able to create a very natural smile, while avoid-ing the pitfalls of many inexperienced injectors creating atrout pout or duck lips.

Different products are available to use in the face and lipsand are called “dermal fillers.” You may have heard of two ofthe more popular brand names, Restalyn or Juvederm. Theycontain a substance called hyaluronic acid, which is a clear,purified viscous gel that is hypoallergenic. As we age,women especially will lose their own natural hyaluronicacids. Fine and increasingly deeper lines can be filled com-fortably with these products. Dentists can use Novocain tonumb the lips and avoid pain that can sometimes be intense

during the injections. As these products often last more thansix months, the dental office can be an ideal place to main-tain a youthful appearance, with both ease and comfort.

Lip augmentation should be highly-customized to suit aperson’s face, as a set of “one size fits all” lips is an instantred flag when it comes to a natural appearance. A combi-nation of different needles and techniques are used to mod-ify and enhance the person’s own unique lip architecture toensure a very natural-looking appearance. Different needleswill create different effects when it comes to placing Juve-derm for cosmetic lip augmentation. Most needles willcause some degree of swelling and bruising, so it’s best toplan ahead, as great looking lips should ideally be slowlybuilt in, over time, and in stages to achieve the most natu-ral appearance.

A new technique called “blunt tip cannula” is an amaz-ing breakthrough in dermal fillers. A long and flexible nee-dle (cannula) with a blunt tip can be inserted through oneor a few small insertion points in the face. The cannula canbe inserted without numbing, and can reach the entirelower face, without any bruising, swelling, or pain. Thistechnique is new and very few providers have started usingit. It’s really a game changer, as anyone who has suffereddays of swelling, pain and bruising can attest to. What iseven more incredible is that the simple act of repeatedly in-serting and filling the tissue stimulates the body’s own cells,called fibroblasts to produce more collagen, naturally. (Youcan put aside the cow collagen now, thank goodness.)

Well-placed Juvederm can last for six months to over ayear, and usually each time it is placed at subsequent visits,the filler ends up lasting longer. �

Dr. Joel Gould has been practicing in Manhattan Beach since 2001.His general and cosmetic dental office treats patients of all ages andoffers a broad range of treatments. Dr. Gould owned several practices inVancouver, Canada for 10 years before moving to the Los Angeles area,and he has trained with several Beverly Hills plastic surgeons in the artand science of Botox and Juvederm. He collaborated with Dimitri’sdental studios to create the “supermodel veneer” which he uses in hisinstant smile makeovers. Dr. Gould recently launched his new conceptcalled “Modern American Dentistry,” a no-nonsense approach to mod-ern dental practice. With three locations, and five dentists, he has creat-ed a dental experience that is consistently comfortable.

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