Most people don't like the dentist because of the horror dental stories—a generalized perception of dental hygiene. In some cases, people just choose to ignore their debilitating toothaches just to avoid the dentist.

Unfortunately, such opinion of oral care prevents people from having a healthy set of teeth. Depending on the severity of the disease, there will be different levels of pain that will be felt during some dental procedures; some people avoid going to the dentist, unless it's really necessary. Often, by then, it may be too late to save teeth that have gone bad. Traditional dentistry is concerned with oral hygiene; this includes diagnosis, treatment and prevention of oral diseases. In most cases, these are done as part of semi-annual or annual dental exam.

Simply put, many people go to the dentist to address dental problems, and forget about the preventive measures. The branch of dentistry primarily focused on the aesthetic value of a beautiful smile is called cosmetic dentistry. If you are specifically looking for a desired treatment to make your teeth look better, then you would have to go visit a dentist who specializes in cosmetic dentistry. Of course, cosmetic dentistry is not just limited to making your mouth feel and look great. Some restorative services are also provided. Dental filling is one example of this type of service.