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While Instagram might have you thinking that symmetrical teeth as white as a full moon is what dentistry dreams are made of, the trend for identikit teeth is waning, evolving into demand for a more authentic, personalised smile tailor-made to you.
The ace up the industry’s sleeve is aesthetic dentistry – a branch of dental medicine that does things a little differently. Rather than simply focusing on surface-level aesthetics and visual appeal, it digs a little deeper to analyse the individual looks, lifestyle and wish-lists of a patient in order to create a more holistic appearance that is entirely unique.
“It’s all about giving a new smile to a patient, but one that is natural and completely bespoke,” explains Dr. Ralph Badaoui, an aesthetic dentist and co-owner of Smile Clinic in Paris. “We study their lifestyle, their personality, their way of living to adapt a new smile specifically for them. We want their smile to have character, something special, so that each patient feels that this smile is really theirs – not a copy of someone else’s.”
By tapping into the lives of each patient through in-depth consultations, aesthetic dentists can map out a dental plan accordingly. “One patient might prefer to hide their gums or be fond of their chipped tooth, while someone might want a smile that projects confidence and charisma and another, who is perhaps more shy, prefers something more subtle… By really studying their lifestyle and personality, we can create and design a smile that can fit each patient’s face,” explains Dr. Ralph of the detailed and personality-driven approach of aesthetic dentistry.
In recent years, he’s seen increasing demand for smiles that are less carbon copy and more custom made. “15 years ago, everyone wanted the ‘Hollywood Smile’ – very wide, very straight, square smiles. But today, the demand is for something more natural, more personalised. That is the new goal.”
To achieve that, everything from the colour of your eyes, hair and skin is taken into consideration, as well as the size and shape of your face. And while the search for the ‘perfect’ smile might be somewhat obsolete, given that beauty is in the eye of the beholder, Dr. Ralph explains that there a few elements taken into consideration before the more tailored ‘tweakments’ are made. “There are some general characteristics to a beautiful smile, such as symmetry, length of teeth, how much the gum shows… But then these all need to be modified to fit every patient for a personalised smile, which is why it’s really important to analyse and understand each individual face.”
You can think of your aesthetic dentist like the conductor of an orchestra, says Dr. Ralph. Bringing together the required specialists – from orthodontics to surgeons – they conduct a well-choreographed performance, anchored in both art and science, to create beauty in singular form. Put simply, a smile that is all you.
But far more than just straight teeth and a bright smile, aesthetic dentistry has the ability to have a profound impact on its patients. “The face is one of the first things you see, and when you’re fixing something for a patient that has, perhaps, bothered them for a long time, it can make them feel more confident. It has the power to not only change someone’s lifestyle, but also change someone’s life.”
The evolution of this more ‘bespoke smile’ has become an extension of self-expression too, Dr. Ralph notes of a growing trend for dental accessorising. “We’re seeing a lot of patients asking for jewellery on their teeth – such as some diamonds or grills. This evolution in ‘accessorising’ allows us to fit a smile to a moment or a particular fashion, which is always interesting. But our mission as a professional is to make this happen without damaging the smile or damaging the health of the tooth.”
Intuitive and innovative whilst advocating overall wellbeing, it allows every smile to tell a beautiful story. And if a smile is indeed the best accessory you can wear, aesthetic dentistry might just be your new secret weapon. Aligned and improved yet authentically you.
Words: Emily Baxter-Priest
