![]() If you don’t have a good enough oral hygiene routine and skip over a little plaque every day, gemstones on teeth can easily trap bacteria. Some dental professionals even recommend that you don’t use an electric toothbrush to clean teeth with dental jewelry, because it can shake the tooth gem off your teeth. That way you can make sure there’s no plaque creating a ring around the crystals like you would see with an orthodontic bracket. It’s best to use a soft toothbrush around each side of your tooth jewelry to clean around all of the edges. Like orthodontic appliances, tooth gems can get plaque or food buildup around them, so oral hygiene routines need to be thorough. Even superglue is toxic and dangerous to use in your mouth! Can Tooth Gems Give You Cavities? Not only could you trap bacteria under the tooth jewelry and give yourself a cavity, but most adhesives are not safe to swallow. You should not ever, ever try to bond gemstones on teeth by yourself. First, they would numb the tooth and then reshape the enamel to create a concavity in the surface, at which point they would cement the gem to your tooth. If for some reason you were getting permanent teeth jewelry, your dentist would need to complete a process similar to a dental filling. As a side note, these temporary tooth gems are only attached to the outside of healthy tooth structure. Then the “glue” (bonding agent) is applied, the crystal placed, and everything cures or hardens into place. A special etchant is used to gently roughen your tooth surface so that the bonding agent adheres properly. Tooth gems are a form of teeth jewelry that your dentist can bond to your teeth similar to placing braces. There are even Swarovski crystals specifically branded for use on teeth! How Do Tooth Gems Adhere To Your Teeth? Today, tooth gems can be a basic rhinestone or inexpensive crystal, or as fancy as solid diamonds and sapphires. Precious materials like jade or hematite were often used. For example, they may have thought that where the jewels were placed helped protect teeth against damage, wear, or decay. Some people even think they served an antimicrobial purpose, given the materials that were used and the type of people who had teeth jewelry. Older variations of tooth gems in the days of the ancient Mayans were often large, permanent gems or metals. On the flip side, permanent teeth jewelry is fitted inside of a hole created in your tooth structure. They're held there with a special bonding agent over the surface of your tooth. Temporary gems are removable and similar to orthodontic brackets. There are two types of tooth gems: temporary and permanent. Like a tiny nose piercing, tooth gems look like small crystals that sparkle when the light hits them just right. ![]() Tooth gems can be small and colorful, pricey or inexpensive, and placed on any tooth for added "bling". ![]() ![]() There might only be one or you could get several. Simply put, tooth gems are a type of dental jewelry and a form of self-expression that you install on the front teeth that are visible when you smile. Here's everything you need to know before trying DIY tooth gems at home or asking your dentist to bond them to your teeth. If you’re thinking about putting a gem on your teeth or have a teen who wants them, there are some things to consider before investing in tooth jewelry. But are tooth gem trends safe and do they pose an oral health risk like cavities? Teeth jewelry isn't anything new in fact, it goes back thousands of years in cultures like the ancient Mayans. A longer focal length means a weaker magnification, and vice versa.Tooth gems were a popular trend in the 90s and early 2000s and just like stovepipe pants and low-rise jeans, they're starting to make a comeback. Keep the focal length (distance between the loupe and gem) in mind.Most professional jewelers use a loupe with a 10x magnification.A single lens loupe is generally cheaper but of lower quality. Jeweler’s loupes come with either a single lens or with 3 lenses.Most gemstones are hard and durable, so scratches or other signs of external damage indicate that the stone isn’t real. You should also look for scratches on the gemstone.If you don’t see any inclusions or blemishes in the stone using a jeweler’s loupe (a special magnifying lens), it’s a good indication that the stone is glass or synthetic. It just means that as the stone was growing, it got a little crack for natural reasons. Inclusions (materials trapped inside the stones as they form) or blemishes are a sign that a gemstone is real. Use a jeweler’s loupe to search for inclusions and blemishes.
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