The Morrocan dentist with patient Dr Sunita Verma   

Marrakech is a place of snake charmers, magic potions, souks, steamy hammams and hidden palaces. Within the medina or old city, disappear around a maze of winding alleys to find the celebrated square, the Jemaa el Fna, the hub bub of all activity. 

On a recent visit, amongst the spices, exotic dried fruits, lanterns and steaming bowls of snails, I was somewhat surprised to find the Moroccan street dentist, a little old man sitting under an umbrella with tools neatly arrayed on a cloth on a fold up table together with dozens of teeth and dentures arranged like museum pieces.

The dentally challenged or merely curious poked at the wares, holding them up to the sunlight for closer inspection as did I. `Ten dirhams’ he said `for a photo’ and before I could say `bakhlava’, I was in his `dental chair’ or wooden stool ready for my shot!

My thoughts went back to my practice at Sparkle Dental Boutique, in London where dentistry is carried out to the highest standards with strict controls on hygiene and cross infection.

Before I knew it, a small crowd had gathered to see the dentist in action. He posed for a picture and when I asked him about his teeth, he smiled and, using the tip of his tongue, lifted a denture from his upper and lower jaw!

Quite amazing!

The Moroccan dentist displays his wares

Kavita Verma receiving the award of Outstanding Individual of the Year

Sparkle Dental Boutique is making headlines again with the announcement that Kavita Verma, Boutique Manager has been selected as winner of Outstanding Individual of the Year 2008 at the Private Dentistry Awards.

This is the first year that the new category of Outstanding Individual of the Year has been announced. Kavita brings her special commitment and hard-won business acumen to the forefront with this exclusive recognition of her practice. 

In the span of 22 months, Kavita with her sister, Dr Sunita Verma have established Sparkle Dental Boutique in Hanwell as the private dental practice.  Her selection as Outstanding Individual of the Year highlights her progressive practice management skills, which springs from first class ethics, dedication to patient care, and a special, innovative ‘spark’ that fires her professional determination for success.    

From the outset, Kavita had already laid the foundations for her stunning success, by achieving the Investors in People and BDA Good Practice Awards within a year of working at the practice. She says `I am totally gobsmacked! Its a real honour and privilege to be acknowledged in this way. I love our practice ethos. My team are great and the lovely patients we have, make what we do so worthwhile.  Its been a fantastic two years and I hope to help the practice to grow from strength to strength!’

                                           Madhuri Dixit with her Beautiful Smile!

It seems quite clear that your smile can have a very positive (or negative) impact on your life…socially, romantically, and in your career. This was backed by a recent survey by the American Academy of Cosmetic Dentists which showed that 96% of adults believed that an attractive smile makes a person more appealing to the opposite sex and three-quarters (74%) of adults feel that an unattractive smile could hurt a person’s chances for career success!

A beautiful smile makes you memorable and adds to your opportunities, while a not-so-beautiful smile does not.

Dr Sunita Verma from Sparkle Dental Boutique, Ealing says “With the growth in all things Bollywood, we are now seeing patients asking for a `Bollywood’ smile’, much like their screen idols, Madhuri Dixit or Aishwariya Rai-Bachan. Having a Bollywood beautiful smile is becoming as much of an accessory as is the latest handbag and whilst you may not get to star in a Bollywood movie…you certainly can have a celebrity smile.” 

So who in Bollywood has a beautiful smile? 

Madhuri Dixit is widely regarded as having the perfect smile – a broad smile, with beautifully proportioned white teeth.     

Sunita says “At Sparkle Dental Boutique, we can correct dental problems and improve a person’s smile and overall appearance through a variety of techniques, including veneers, bonding, gum contouring, crowns, bridges and tooth whitening. While, at first glance these may seem to offer primarily aesthetic benefits, cosmetic dentistry can also help provide many emotional and health benefits. An improved smile can boost a person’s self image and self-esteem, making them more confident in their daily lives, achieving goals that they never thought possible. Everyone can feel like a star!”

Diwali is celebrated by Hindu’s and Sikhs across the globe as the `Festival of Lights’ where the lighting of `diva’s’ or lights signify the victory of good over evil. In many parts of India, Diwali celebrates the homecoming of King Rama to Ayodhya, after a 14 years exile in the forest and the defeating of evil Ravana. The people of Ayodhya welcomed Ram, his wife Sita and brother Laxmana by lighting a row of lights.

Many hindu’s also on this auspicious day worship the Goddess Lakshmi, the goddess of wealth and prosperity. They use light diva’s to welcome wealth, happiness and prosperity into their homes and lives.

For the Sikh community, Diwali signify’s Guru Hargobind, who had been held captive in the fort at Gwalior, returning to his home town of Amritsar. As the sixth Guru (teacher) of Sikhism, Guru Hargobind, was freed from imprisonment - along with 53 Hindu Kings whom the Guru had arranged to be released as well. After his release he went to the Golden Temple in the holy city of Amritsar, where he was welcomed in happiness by the people who lit candles and divas to greet the Guru.

In London, amongst Hindu’s and Sikh’s, Diwali is celebrated with a bang!  Fireworks light the skies, gifts are exchanged, indian sweets are shared, prayers are offered and prosperity is welcomed through the lighting of diva’s. 

To all our patients of all faiths, Happy Diwali. Peace, love and happiness to you all!  

                          … Is it Julia Roberts …             

              …or the gorgeous Tom Cruise…

                                           … or the vivacious Halle Balle …

                           …or the hard hitting Brad Pitt…                                       

                                                          … or could it be Angelina  Jolie …        

                                  …you decide…

Did you know that James Bond star Daniel Craig lost two teeth whilst making Casino Royale?

So what can you do if you happen to lose a tooth? 

Dr Sunita Verma from Sparkle Dental Boutique, Ealing  says `Missing teeth are sometimes unsightly and can also affect your appearance. Gaps left by a missing tooth can also mean that a greater strain is put on the teeth at either side. Gaps can also affect your “bite” as the teeth next to the space can lean into the gap and alter the way the upper and lower teeth bite together. This can then lead to food getting packed into the gap, which causes both decay and gum disease.”

If you have a missing tooth or several missing teeth, there are many ways in which the gaps can be closed to give you a beautiful, healthy smile:

• Partial denture - where you have a false tooth or teeth which are removable attached to a acrylic or metal plate 

• Fixed bridge - where there are fewer teeth to replace, or when the missing teeth are only on one side of the mouth

• Implant - where a titanium metal rod is placed into the jawbone. It is used to support one or more false teeth

Halloween is on its way on the night of 31^st October with halloween activities of trick or treating, ghost tours, bonfires, pumpkins, costume parties and haunted houses…and it’s the only time of year where vampire and werewolf looking gnashers are totally acceptable! 

Fang-like Teeth

No need to only come out at night as transforming your vampire or `fang like’ teeth into sparkly whites, is now easier than ever! 

 Fangs All Gone! (Smile Transformations by Dr Sunita Verma)

At Sparkle Dental Boutique, Hanwell transforming your gnashers may be simpler than you think. Dr Sunita Verma says, “There are many things that we do at Sparkle, from whitening discoloured or stained teeth, to re-aligning crooked teeth, to closing spaces or gaps left by missing teeth to restoring chipped and broken teeth and much, much more!” 

“We can restore teeth and greatly improve their strength, appearance and longevity with bespoke porcelain veneers or crowns. With a fang like tooth, a porcelain veneer or crown can be shaped, coloured, sized and positioned to dramatically improve the look of this tooth. The best thing is that crowns or veneers are made from natural looking translucent porcelain, so blend in well with neighbouring teeth so that no one can tell that you have them.”

So this Halloween, treat yourself to a beautiful looking smile and greater self-confidence and who knows catching an apple in the traditional Halloween `apple bobbing’ game may not be the only thing you catch…

The FMC, the leading communications company operating in the UK dental sector, recently announced the launch of the Smile Awards.  

The Smile Awards have been created to promote clinical excellence in dental and facial aesthetics and reward all those practising at the highest levels of aesthetic dentistry. 

Sparkle Dental Boutique’s Principal, Dr Sunita Verma says “The Smile Awards are a great way to promote clinical excellence. These awards push us to try to create the most aesthetically pleasing cases possible.” “I have been very fortunate to have had the opportunity to create some beautiful smile transformations this year from what started out to be very unusual or challenging cases.” 

Before: An Unusual Dental Problem  

After: A Stunning Result (Smile Transformations by Dr Sunita Verma) 

Sunita goes on to say “I have been nominated by my patients under the category of Patients Smile, which is a real honour and I am planning to put forward entries under the categories of `Conservative Smile’ and `Restorative Smile. It will be great to put Hanwell on the map again” An independent judging panel of renowned experts will be studying the entries and compiling a shortlist for each category.  

Sunita says “The Smile Awards Ceremony will take place next year at The Royal Garden Hotel in London on Friday 20 March and it will be a great opportunity to mingle with the crème de la crème of the profession and celebrate a truly amazing and rewarding profession.”

Wearing the crown jewels may not be a possibility for most of us, but make no mistake wearing a porcelain crown will not only rejuvenate your smile but will make your feel like a queen! 

Crowns have always been used to restore teeth that have been severely damaged or weakened by trauma, root canal treatment or large fillings. They are also used to support bridges which are used to close gaps and can be attached to implants to rebuild and enhance your smile.  

Crowns are now often used to enhance protect and strengthen teeth and improve the looks of your smile.  

Dr Sunita Verma from Sparkle Dental Boutique, Hanwell says “Crowns have come a long way from the all metal restorations, which are often made of gold. They are strong, long lasting but unsightly at times. Porcelain fused metal crowns create a more natural look than all metal crowns and though the metal limits translucency, it adds strength, which is particularly useful at the back of the mouth.” 

“The all ceramic or all porcelain crowns look the closest to natural teeth enamel and do not have the tell tale dark metal margins at the gumline as sometimes occurs with porcelain fused to metal crowns. These crowns are strong, long lasting and youthful looking. In fact, we use all porcelain crowns for a lot of our smile design or smile transformation cases to give patients beautiful smiles.”  

Today, replacing outdated crowns is a way to take years off your appearance!