Teeth tones. What determines the natural color of teeth?

Milky white and translucent, but over the course of life the fabric can become stained by exposure various factors. The color of teeth depends not only, or rather not so much, on the enamel, but on the shade and quality of dentin, which shines through the enamel. The younger the person, the denser the layer of enamel on his teeth. In addition, the surface of the tooth is uneven, which means the light is reflected unevenly. The denser the layer of enamel is on the teeth and the more pronounced its surface microrelief, the less it shines through, and, therefore, the tooth looks whiter. And vice versa, with age tooth surface smoothes out, the enamel layer decreases, and dentin begins to shine through more and more, the natural color of which is much darker than the enamel and can be light brown, yellow or gray. With age, the amount of enamel decreases, dentin also undergoes changes, and red-brown pulp begins to shine through the surface structures of the tooth, therefore, the teeth themselves acquire darker shades. It should be taken into account that dental tissues are usually colored unevenly over their surface: at the cutting edge the color is lighter than at the root. Different teeth also have different shade. For example, canines are often darker than incisors. That's all today age-related changes Easily corrects tooth colors aesthetic dentistry, however, like any other problems associated with appearance dentition.

Natural tooth color

Speaking about the natural color of teeth, one cannot fail to mention the characteristics of people with different skin tones. For example, during the recent comparative research representatives of the Slavic and Iranian groups, scientists have identified such a feature. People of the Slavic and Iranian groups most often have a red-brown tint of teeth, less often - reddish-gray. At the same time, the teeth of the Slavs can also be reddish-yellow, but among the Iranians this color was not found in the color of the teeth, as well as gray - in both one and the other group. Comparative analysis other nationalities shows similar results, indicating that the color of teeth is largely influenced by genetic features and to a lesser extent - the environment in which a person lives.

Many people believe that people with black skin have beautiful white teeth, but most often this is not the case. African Americans' smiles simply appear brighter. A similar effect, by the way, is observed in tanned people, even those who have only spent a little time in the sun. Therefore, when answering the question of what color natural teeth should be, one should rely on many factors, including those listed above.

By the way, the American Dental Association claims that teeth with a yellowish tint are easiest to whiten. In second place is a brownish tint to the enamel, and teeth react worst to the whitening procedure gray, which are often found among Americans.

How to choose teeth color

The practice of an orthopedic dentist involves the need to choose the shade of dentures. When making prosthetics or restoring one or more teeth in a row, the color is selected in accordance with the patient’s natural teeth. In the manufacture of complete removable or non-removable orthopedic structures The patient has the opportunity to choose the desired color of the teeth. In this case, you should focus not only on own desires, but also on the shade of skin, hair and eye whites. Typically, teeth that are much lighter than the whites of the eyes look unnatural and stand out too much when you smile. In addition, the material from which the crowns or veneers are made should also be taken into account. Thus, plastic and composite materials used to restore teeth look different than metal ceramics, even with the same color index.

Please note that the color of teeth will be perceived differently in different lighting conditions. That is why, when choosing the shade of veneers or dentures, it is necessary to follow a whole list of conditions, such as natural light, neutral color of the walls in the room and the clothes of the patient and the doctor, the absence of bright lipstick on the lips, and so on.

Definitions of tooth color

When making dentures, technicians are guided by a special tooth color chart. According to the Vita scale, which is used by almost everyone dental clinics in the world, natural teeth can have only a few shades: brown, yellow, gray and red. Depending on the intensity category, colors are designated by numbers from 1 to 4. Thus, if a dentist talks about tooth color under the index A1, he means the lightest shade from the reddish-brown range of the table, accordingly, A2 will be slightly darker, A3 - even darker. Index B corresponds to the yellow tone of the teeth and varies in the same way according to the lightness of the shades (B1, B2, and so on). The gray shade is indicated by the Latin letter C (C1, C2, and so on), and reddish-gray teeth - D (namely Latin, not Russian D). The numerical index of the scale indicates the intensity of the color and starts from one, so tooth color 0 actually does not exist.

Dentists can easily distinguish the color of teeth: every specialist has a table that helps with this in his office. The rules of personal hygiene for each person include, along with taking a shower, shaving, washing your hair, and daily brushing of your teeth. Of course, these rules are not written by anyone and no fine or other penalties are imposed for violating them. But any child with early childhood parents on by example should be taught these simple manipulations. After all general health a person, as well as the attitude of other people, depends primarily on these simple procedures. What determines the color of a person’s teeth?

Causes of tooth discoloration

Every person's teeth are genetically endowed with a certain color. It can be white, yellow, or gray. And the shades of these colors cannot be counted. People are not always satisfied with the color of their teeth, even if their teeth are completely healthy. Modern trends dictate the fashion for dazzling white teeth, but they should be even, and the smile should be wide and sincere. Dazzling propaganda snow-white smile It is common, it is almost everywhere. Therefore, people try to correct what nature has given them: to make the color of their teeth, if not snow-white, then at least several shades lighter. Almost all people who are dissatisfied with their natural shade decide to change the color of their teeth.

According to almost all dentists in the world, White color teeth are extremely rare in people in natural conditions. Most often, teeth have shades from yellow to gray, while representatives of the peoples of Russia have mostly yellowish shades of teeth, and people living in America have teeth of gray shades. In general, the color of teeth at birth is determined by several factors: genetic predisposition, place of birth. For example, in Rus', for a long time they ate mainly products from natural farming, and washed it down with drinks that did not contain any dyes other than natural ones. Americans drink drinks with artificial colors, and in a huge number, eat a lot of fatty and floury foods. And residents of any country have such characteristics.

Throughout a person's life, teeth change color according to various reasons: food and drinks consumed, quality and thickness of tooth enamel, person’s age, alcohol and smoking, taking tablets medicines, various diseases the oral cavity and the teeth themselves. People need to know that whitened teeth can never look healthy if they were sick before whitening.

Moreover, if teeth that need treatment are subjected to whitening, then the health of the jaws will be even worse after it.

Even if bleached healthy teeth, then after bleaching in half of the cases they become more sensitive and react to cold and hot, which makes a person’s life extremely difficult. It is important for a person who wants to whiten their teeth to know that even a one-time whitening procedure significantly affects the enamel of the teeth. Reagents included in the gel for professional procedure, thin it out. In Hollywood, actors do not change the color of their teeth with whitening.

Table for determining tooth color

A radical way to interfere with color change can be replacement natural teeth to artificial ones. Each dentist has a special table that determines the natural color of teeth.

The doctor takes over full responsibility for selecting the only correct tooth color, especially if crowns are made not for all teeth, but for one or several. The natural color of teeth must match 100% with the artificial one, otherwise a person will experience not only discomfort, but also embarrassment when communicating with people.

Dentists are people too, so they can make mistakes. The doctor may have impaired color perception, and he is simply not able to distinguish many shades on his own. Of course, this does not mean that this doctor is professionally unsuitable, but he himself must take care not to make mistakes. Dentists have several methods for determining the color of teeth:

1. Visual inspection with the naked eye. It is important to know that a tooth changes its shade and even color when the lighting changes, that is, under artificial lighting it can be one way, under natural light it can be different. Natural light is of primary importance to the dentist. To reveal the shade of teeth, you need certain weather: a bright, sunny day, without clouds or clouds, but also without direct sun rays. Natural lighting should be perfectly even and 100% diffused. This method of determining shade is very unstable, so it is used extremely rarely and only by experienced dentists. Such doctors must have a very sensitive and accurate perception of color, which is extremely rare in nature.
2. Lighting the dental office with artificial light. Since the previous method is practically not used, dentists prefer several sources of artificial lighting that can replace natural light. Preference is given to fluorescent lamps, which provide an even and stable color. The illumination scale in such lamps is within 5500 lux. Conventional dental chairs with standard lighting are generally not suitable because the illumination level of their lamps is very low. Modern industry produces special chairs with built-in fluorescent lamps, which are ideal for correctly determining the color of teeth.
3. If the dentist has little experience or he simply does not want to make a mistake, then it is better to use special devices to determine the shades of teeth. Only when the patient is dressed in white or light clothes does the woman have lipstick on her lips, especially bright colors, background in dental office neutral, you can be sure that the color of tooth enamel can be determined correctly. But it often happens that the patient is dressed in bright and multi-colored clothes, often with one color superimposed on another; the color background in the office is not always neutral. Therefore, it is very difficult to determine the correct enamel color. Especially if the doctor has to look at one point for more than 10 seconds. Then it happens optical illusion, or the overlay of one shade on another, and it is simply impossible to determine the correct shades of teeth. To eliminate these shortcomings, a white or neutral gray napkin or towel is put on the patient, and after looking at it, color perception is stabilized. There is a color scale that can be used to accurately determine the shade of tooth enamel.

Beautiful snow-white teeth are the dream of many people. Anyone wants to talk and laugh without embarrassment. In pursuit of fashion, most of the population wants to whiten their teeth to incredible shades. However, not everyone knows that this can lead to serious damage enamels.

Tooth enamel color selection ruler

What determines the natural shade of tooth enamel?

In nature, a snow-white surface of the dental covering is almost never found. Each person has a unique natural color enamel, due to the combination of several characteristics. The determining factors are the colors of the dentin and tooth covering. The statement that only the color of the enamel affects the tone of teeth is fundamentally wrong. The fundamental factor is the color of the internal component.

Dentin is the main component of the tooth (more details in the article:). It hosts blood vessels and nerves. It is its shade that determines the color range of the teeth. With healthy dentin, the coating will be light, almost white.

The color of dentin, and therefore teeth, depends on the following factors:

The color of teeth also depends on the characteristics of human perception. There is a misconception that representatives of the Negroid race have whiter teeth than others. This is wrong. It's all about the light shade of the coating, which seems even lighter due to the contrast with dark skin.

The tone of a tooth is also affected by its position in the dentition. For example, canines are yellower than incisors. Don't worry if your teeth are not uniform in color - in almost all people the shade from the cutting edge to the neck becomes darker.

Reasons for changes in enamel color

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Throughout human life, changes in the color of teeth constantly occur. There are many reasons for this:

The darkening of teeth is preceded by the beginning pathological processes which, if left untreated, will lead to disease. These may be jaundice, hemolytic syndromes, when bilirubin accumulates in dentin, liver damage and bile ducts, endocrine diseases. Uncontrolled use of antibiotics, especially tetracyclines, can also lead to darkening of teeth.

Injuries also lead to changes in the shade of teeth. maxillofacial apparatus. Also, teeth darken from the use of fillings containing metals. Fortunately, dentists are now widely abandoning these materials.

It should be understood that no amount of whitening will help if the cause of the problem is not eliminated first. If the procedure is applied without prior treatment, the consequences will be catastrophic.

Why is the Vita scale needed?

The Vita scale is a standardized scale for visual definition teeth color. When whitening and selecting an implant, this tool is necessary in mandatory. On the scale, shades are sorted into four groups:

• shades A – reddish brown;
• shades B – reddish-yellowish;
• shades C – gray;
• shades D – reddish-gray.

For each shade from any group, the degree of saturation is determined, which is recorded in a numerical coefficient from 1 to 4. In the photo below, you can clearly distinguish between letter and numerical designations. Any gradations from a1 and a2 to c4 and a3 are absolutely normal.

This scale is available in different forms:

• in paper form;
• plastic gradient;
• ceramic or porcelain model.

The most popular in Russia and Europe last option, since it is least susceptible to distortion visual analyzer person. The table in medicine is used not only to determine the tone of teeth, but also to identify signs of an incipient disease. Experienced doctor is able to determine the presence of problems even in the absence of the Vita scale, but for a young dentist it will be a wonderful hint when examining the oral cavity.

How is color determined?

Initially, the doctor pays attention to the shade and saturation of the enamel. The doctor determines which group on the Vita scale the patient’s teeth belong to and what their natural shade is. To make the doctor's task easier, the patient should prepare for correct definition colors. To do this, you must follow two simple rules:

• the day before and before visiting a specialist, you should thoroughly clean the surface of your teeth from plaque;
• you should not shorten the brushing time, which is normally two minutes.

It often happens that patients neglect this advice, which is why the doctor has to carry out additional procedure cleaning. It takes time. Only after a thorough cleaning of your teeth can the doctor determine the color of your enamel using a scale with minimal error.

We must not forget about the subjectivity of human perception. The following factors will interfere with the use of the Vita scale:

• artificial lighting in the office;
• background contrast – patient’s clothing;
• red shades will shift the perception of natural color closer to group A;
• accompanying illnesses.

The most precise definition the color of the teeth will be if there is natural daylight in the office. Thorough cleaning of the surface of the teeth and the patient’s clothing in pastel colors will play a huge role.

How to preserve the natural color of tooth enamel?

Many people turn to dentistry for whitening, because teeth change color constantly. This is possible in the absence of contraindications and concomitant diseases. However, the whitening procedure can cause damage. The enamel is damaged - the only protection of the tooth against aggressive environment oral cavity. Even though this harm is minimal if the procedure is carried out correctly, it is better not to let your oral health take its course.

• Clean your mouth regularly;
• use gum rinse and dental floss;
• visit the dentist at least once every six months;
• give up bad habits- they have a bad effect not only on the beauty of teeth, but also on their health;
• follow the recommendations of a specialist.