Ask MetaFilter questions tagged with filling

Amalgam vs Composite, Long-term

Comet Bug — Tue, 21 May 2013 13:48:16 -0800

I know amalgam fillings are more durable. However, they also require drilling away more of the tooth. Given this, which is a better choice for filling a molar in the long run for a young person? I need my first filling! :-( Now I have to decide which kind to get. I am concerned about both mercury in the amalgam fillings and BPA in the composites. However, I found some good information on that topic, so that isn't what I'm asking about here (though if you have some expertise, feel free to share).

Since there doesn't seem to be a clean winner in terms of health risk, I am trying to determine which type of filling would be less likely to lead to me needing a crown in the future. I am 25, so whatever I choose, it will probably have to be replaced someday. From what I understand, amalgams tend to last longer, but they also require removing more healthy tooth. Does this outweigh their superior durability over many years, when the process has to be repeated? I have been thinking that maybe, if I get a composite, by the time it has to be replaced there will be new materials available that will be stronger and not contain either mercury or BPA, and then I would have more tooth left. I don't know if that is reasonable, though.

Thanks for your help!

I never want to have another cavity in my teeth.

Ziggy500 — Mon, 04 Feb 2013 04:06:05 -0800

I never want to have another cavity in my teeth. Help make this dream a reality. I take care of my teeth (Oral-B electric toothbrush + floss + Corsodyl mouthwash twice a day) but every time I go to get a check up at the dentist's and they do an x-ray, it seems like I need another filling. (I'm rather lax about going to the dentist as a result of a stupid phobia, so when I say 'every time' it's more like 'once every 2 or 3 years'.)

So far I have been able to avoid the dreaded root canal but every time they do a filling they comment on 'how deep' it is and how it's been 'borderline'. My dentist tells me I have 'soft' teeth that decay easily. My last filling came about as a result of a crack in my tooth which got infected. I have an appointment later this month... I'm sure they'll find another cavity when I go! :(

So what can I do to take better care of my teeth? I have a varied diet. I have a sweet tooth but don't enjoy fizzy drinks. Those of you with healthy teeth, do you limit your sweet intake? How often do you visit the dentist? What's your oral hygiene like? Is there anything I'm missing? YANMDentist, of course.

Innovative jiaozi (potsticker, dumpling) fillings

whatzit — Tue, 29 May 2012 15:12:14 -0800

Jiaozi, dumplings, potstickers, Chinese ravioli, gyoza: as many possible fillings as there are names for these delicious, delicious mouthfuls. In a couple weeks I will host a dumpling party. What are your recommended filling recipes? Of course there will be the standard pork, which I learned from a Taiwanese mom; there will be an attempt to replicate the long-discontinued Trader Joe's Chicken Fajita dumplings; and what else...? Recipes for known standards like seafood and vegetable are welcome, but more innovative entries are truly the best answers.

Where can I find good and affordable dental care in the Boston area?

msbrauer — Fri, 07 Oct 2011 07:40:03 -0800

Where can I find good and affordable dental care in the Boston area? Asking for a friend, who is in Cambridge. She's just started a new part-time job and doesn't think her health insurance covers dental work. One of her fillings popped out and she needs to have it fixed. Do you have a recommendation for good and affordable dental care?

Or you could just stick chewing gum over it

mippy — Thu, 30 Jun 2011 08:41:06 -0800

You Are Not My Dentist-filter: Tooth filled with composite (white) filling six months ago. This week, it's started hurting when chewing or when drinking hot drinks. Why? Should I start worrying and prepare for the possibility of needing more work done (I have a phobia of needles which makes getting dental treatment very difficult) or is this a common issue that's more than likely nothing to worry about?

Is the weirdness of a new filling normal and temporary?

lollusc — Thu, 14 Oct 2010 02:47:24 -0800

Should I be able to feel the edge of a filling with my tongue? I just got my first ever filling today. It is on the back of a front tooth (the tooth chipped randomly as I was brushing my teeth this morning, yeah, WTF?)

After the dentist finished, she asked me if it felt smooth. It felt a million times better than the rough chipped surface did beforehand, so I said yes.

But ever since (about 10 hours now), my tongue keeps returning to the "seam" of the edge of the filling and running along it, worrying at it, etc. It feels like there is some alien object stuck to my tooth and my tongue wants to try and remove it - like when food is stuck in your teeth. I am trying not to do this, but it's really hard to stop. Two of the edges of the filling feel like this, while the other two are almost unnoticeable.

So I am wondering now whether she didn't polish it as smooth as was possible, and whether I should go back and ask her to smooth it out more. Or is it normal to feel like there is something weird in your mouth with a new filling? How long will it take before I stop noticing it? I have no idea what is normal here and I don't want to be a pain in the butt to my dentist if I'm obsessing over nothing. But I also don't want to keep poking at it with my tongue until I actually do some damage.

It's a composite (white) filling, in case that's relevant. I didn't have anaesthetic, so the weirdness isn't a side effect of that. And there is no pain.

Unfulfilled lunchtime.

sucre — Tue, 22 Jun 2010 09:52:36 -0800

I have a bad habit of buying lunch while at work. What can I make for lunch that will fulfill my super-strong cravings for huge burritos and greasy pizza? I buy lunch at work more often that I should. When I'm starving, it's hard for me to avoid buying a massive burrito or huge plate of greasy stirfry. What can I say? I love salt and fat.

I want to look forward to lunch. I want to sit at my desk in the morning and daydream about my lunch waiting for me in the fridge. I want my homemade lunches to be drool-worthy and cause me to forget all about my desire to go out and waste money. For example, my homemade lunch today consists of two hardboiled eggs, a container of plain yogurt with walnuts and dried cranberries, and a bag of edamame. Healthy, uh-huh, but it won't fulfill that deep desire for a hearty meal.

I know there are plenty of lunch threads, but I haven't seen one that suits my particular need (please let me know if I'm wrong).

Any dazzling lunch recipes that will satisfy my stomach and wallet?

I want to eat my water.

sprocket87 — Tue, 08 Jun 2010 08:12:23 -0800

How can you make water more filling? (This is a weird one, I know)

So being a new dad, I've recently discovered that it's common for a baby's first "solid" meals to be not solid at all - instead, some sort of rice, cereal, or grain mixed into the breastmilk/formula/water to make it more filling and nutritious.

I was wondering what a good adult equivalent would be. Everyone is always recommending drinking water throughout the day to feel fuller so you don't graze on junk food so much. It seems to me that you could mix something into your water to make it more filling. Obviously corn syrup and sugar can do this, but I'm sure there are some healthier options. Something grain-like perhaps? Some non-yucky vegetable? I dunno.

Any ideas on what would be a good filler? The best option(s) would be something that doesn't make it taste like butt, doesn't add significant calories or sugar, and is easy/cheap to come by.

(Note: not trying to change [just] the flavor of water, nor to make it packed with nutrients/vitamins/electrolytes/antioxidants/magic juju/etc, but just to make it more filling).

Also: I'm not some diet fanatic trying to lose fifty pounds in a month or anything. I'm mostly just curious. I figured MeFites would have some creative ideas :)

Should I replace my composite filling?

blake137 — Fri, 28 May 2010 05:53:40 -0800

Should I ask my dentist to replace my composite (white) filling with something stronger, so my chewing sensitivity is eliminated? Two years ago my dentist filled a cavity with a composite (white) filling. Right away I had problems with it, and had to go back and have the dentist grind away some of the composite filling that was almost touching the tooth next to it (dental floss would barely fit between them).

I've also mentioned the chewing sensitivity I have with this tooth, and the dentist said it's because the composite filling isn't as dense as metal. He's said that any time I want to trade fillings, he'd do it for free.

The sensitivity has increased over the last few months, and now I rarely chew any harder foods with that side of my mouth. Should I take him up on the offer - will putting a metal filling in stop my chewing sensitivity?

I chipped my tooth, and now I'm getting a strange taste in my mouth.

Kirn — Sun, 14 Feb 2010 11:16:17 -0800

I chipped my tooth, and now I'm getting a strange taste in my mouth. A piece of crunchy peppermint chocolate chipped part of one of my molars off. I've had a lot of fillings, particularly in my molars, and I'm *guessing* it is probably a filling that came loose rather 'real' tooth.

That was almost a week ago. There's no pain, and I've still been able to eat, although I'm trying to be gentle around the chipped tooth. I'm not seeing the dentist for another week and a half - they claimed not to be able to give me an 'emergency' appointment any sooner, and since there's no pain, I decided it wasn't worth trying to go somewhere else.

However, a couple of times over the past few days, including right now, I've been getting a weird taste in the side of my mouth where the tooth resides. It's an unpleasant, earwaxy kind of taste, and a bit sharp and bitter like blood. This time it started about 30 minutes after I flossed and brushed my teeth (gently around the chipped tooth) - I'm not sure if that's significant as I can't remember whether I had recently brushed my teeth on the other occasions.

Does anyone know what this might be? Is it anything I should worry about? Is there anything I can do about it?

Thanks everyone.

DentalInsuranceDeductibleFilter

oinopaponton — Mon, 08 Feb 2010 08:04:40 -0800

Does what my dentist's receptionist told me re: dental insurance and my deductible make sense? I just got my teeth cleaned, and my dentist wants to do a couple of preventative fillings and replace a bigger, old filling. The receptionist told me how much this should cost (~$75 if I go with silver for the big filling, ~$150 if I go with white) and then said something that really confused me: because my insurance deductible is $50, they're going to charge me an additional $50 on top of the price of my fillings.

Does that make sense? I always thought that the whole point of a deductible is that I don't pay anything beyond it (and that in this case, my insurance should be covering anything over $50). I was like, "Whaaat?" to the receptionist, and all she could say is, "That's what the insurance company tells us to say."

This is my first dental insurance plan, so I fully accept the possibility that I might be wrong about this, but is this the way dental insurance works? Are dental deductibles really an additional charge on top of the price of the service? If it matters, I have Delta Dental Premier coverage in Massachusetts.

What to do in the 2 weeks before the root canal?

Anonymous — Tue, 22 Sep 2009 21:10:54 -0800

Big throbbing hole in my tooth. Two weeks until the root canal. No instructions on what to do in the meantime. I flossed out a very large filling the other week. I went to my local clinic on an emergency basis when I started feeling pain, and they said I'd have to schedule a root canal elsewhere. I've got an appointment...and it's in two weeks.

The initial consultation was done at a overburdened clinic for people on state medical/dental benefits, so no followup care/info is available there (I didn't even have anyone to explain to me what needed to happen next, beyond getting the actual referral--total time with dentist was 2 minutes, and I was lucky to get that....non-emergency appointments have a 6 month waiting list at this point).

I don't know what I should/shouldn't be eating, drinking, or doing to minimize the chances that the tooth will crack open, the decay will worsen, the pain will go from nagging to unbearable before the appt, etc. I don't even know if 2 weeks is a normal wait time for a root canal (not that I can afford to go anywhere else--the specialist I'll be seeing is one of the only ones in the state who accepts Medicaid).

I have the temporary filling cement you can buy at the drug store, but I don't even think that's a good idea.

Please help!

How do I make the best cannoli filling ever?

jroybal — Mon, 22 Jun 2009 13:34:13 -0800

Headline says it all: how do I make the best cannoli filling? Ricotta+powdered sugar+vanilla? How much of each (or other ingredients) should I use? I made it last night with 1.5 lb ricotta, 1 c powdered sugar, and 1/4 tsp vanilla, using a recipe in some old Italian cookbook, but it came out a bit chalky and not as thick/creamy as it is when it comes from a restaurant. Any specific pointers (or any particularly great add-ins)? Lots of Google hits, but I'm trying to filter out the noise. Thanks in advance.

is my dentist a quack?

Jason and Laszlo — Sun, 10 May 2009 20:07:25 -0800

My tooth cracked. Is it my dentist's fault? (bonus question: is it causing my tonsillitis??) I had a filling in my tooth. Several months passed and the dentist had to replace the filling with a new one. Now, the tooth feels cracked. Is my dentist a bad dentist? Is this his fault or is this a normal complication for a filling?

Bonus question: too much googling and hypochondria has led me to believe that my untreated cracked tooth has become infected (although not painful) and is causing swollen tonsils. Is this correlation accurate? Has this happened to you? (yes I have a doctor's appointment scheduled).

Holy Rotten Baby Teeth, Batman

swilkerson — Sat, 18 Apr 2009 13:50:39 -0800

My three year old just had his filling break off (or fall out) his front tooth a mere seven days after having a dental procedure. Needless to say, it looks AWFUL. Is there some dental technique I should ask my dentist about to get something that will provide a more permanent(ish) solution until his adult teeth come in? Lots more below. We had been giving our son on-demand Milk + Carnation Instant Breakfast as a weight-gainer of sort since he was about 18 months old -- on our doctor's recommendation. Apparently all of the sugar hit his front teeth constantly because he was taking it through the sippy cup resulting in - yep, a handful of cavities on the front teeth and incisors. The pediatric dentist said he needed fillings, and he ended up undergoing a fairly length dental procedure that involved sedatives, nitrous, and being strapped to a papoose (and heartbreaking crying and screaming). We were not told that there were any restrictions on regular eating habits or that the fix had been anything less than successful.

Four months later, when my son was eating carrot sticks, I was horrified to find that one of the fillings had broken out, leaving two huge holes in the front tooth and incisor (the filling had been between the two teeth, and apparently they did a fair amount of drilling to make a place for it, as the cavity itself was very small from all outward appearances when we took him in initially). We took him back to the dentist again and went through the whole ordeal of sedatives/papoose/etc again. This time, he also got a root canal, a new filling, and a crown. The dentist (a different dentist from the first go-round) told me that he shouldn't eat whole apples/carrots/other hard foods that put a lot of pressure on the front teeth and indicated that there was a good chance that the filling could break out again, because it was hard for a filling to bond to the smooth surface of the front teeth.

Seven days later, we're back to a broken filling and a huge hole. We've been very diligent about not letting him bite into hard things with his front teeth (or at all, for that matter). Is there really no good way to fix baby teeth in the front?

(FYI - I'm waiting for a call back from the dentist now ... as it's a Saturday, all I could do was call his answering service)

PS - I'm not interested in "they're just baby teeth; ride it out" types of advice. Kids can be cruel, and I'm not sending my kid to preschool with a rotten broken tooth right in the front. You can disagree with that decision, but I'm not looking for advice on it.

Will Obama give me money?

photomusic86 — Tue, 24 Feb 2009 20:12:05 -0800

Will the stimulus law affect my tax filling? Because of a minor miscalculation when i changed jobs, I owe about $100. Will the stimulus change that? or does the law affect me in any other way?
Single male, 23 and living with parents.

To Beer or not to...

Groovytimes — Tue, 03 Feb 2009 20:51:20 -0800

Is it safe to drink alcohol after a cavity filling? My friends and I are going out for a drink tomorrow, but Im getting a filling around 2pm. If I were to drink it probably wouldn't be until 7 or 8. My drinking usually encompasses beer. Is it safe to drink?

eggs are yucky, what isn't?

mustcatchmooseandsquirrel — Wed, 16 Jan 2008 09:09:11 -0800

What is a good breakfast? My boyfriend and I had a "fried egg on a piece of whole-grain bread" breakfast for the last year or so. It was quick to make, filling, not sugary, and seemed to have a good nutritional profile for the start of the day. Also, the ritual of frying the egg and making the toast was fun.

I've never really liked the idea of eggs all that much, but just somehow got over my dislike for a year. Now eggs have started grossing me out again.

What is another good breakfast for two that is not too heavy, not too sugary, good nutritionally, and relatively quick in the morning? (and has some degree of ritual beyond popping open the top of a yogurt container)

How to fill in multiple webforms from a list

dripped — Wed, 21 Nov 2007 22:02:24 -0800

I am looking for some automated method of using a txt list of names to submit into a single value web form that in turn returns a web page with data that I am interested in. I have no programming skills, so kind of looking for some sort of idiot proof answer. Any ideas?

Filling fell out...what to do till I can see my dentist?

scody — Wed, 21 Nov 2007 17:46:56 -0800

Dammit. It looks like part of a filling in one of my molars has fallen out... on the evening before Thanksgiving, naturally! I've already called my dentist and no one's in the office till Monday (and I don't think this counts as a bona fide emergency). What should I do to minimize the damage till I can get in to see him? I'm not in any pain. Nothing's exposed, except the rough/chipped edges on the edge of the tooth. I probably have some wax left over from my old days with braces that I can cram in there. Is there anything else I can do or should be aware of?

Fill me up for a fiver, please.

bjork24 — Thu, 19 Apr 2007 10:58:45 -0800

My wife (a spectacular cook) is out of town, I have $5.00 for lunch, and I'm not in the mood to make something for myself. Since this will probably be my only meal of the day, what's the most filling food I can buy for ~$5.00? I'm open to fast food, slow food, food from the gas station; just as long as I don't have to cook or prepare it myself.

Is there really an advantage to gold dental fillings?

Joey Michaels — Sat, 01 Apr 2006 03:14:36 -0800

Is there really an advantage to gold dental fillings? It is time to replace one of the fillings at the back of my mouth. My dentist is telling me that, since this is a chewing tooth, gold is the best material for this filling. While I think gold looks tacky as a filling substance, it isn't as if anyone other than he is going to see it, so that is not an issue for me.

The issue is that this is the first time a gold filling has ever been suggested. Is this really a better material for a long term filling?

I likely swallowed a fillling in my sleep- is there any danger to my health?

biffa — Thu, 15 Apr 2004 08:40:34 -0800

I lost a filling the other day and figure its most likely I swallowed it (in my sleep). Is this likely to present any danger to my health? Will it most likely just be inert and come out in the wash, so to speak? I'm not sure what it was made of, whatever they were putting in UK NHS amalgam 7-8 years ago.