Cosmetic Dentistry Manchester – A Brief But Interesting History

10 August 2026

Cosmetic Dentistry Manchester – A Brief But Interesting History

While some forms of restorative and preventative dentistry have been around in Manchester for several hundred years, one innovation that appears relatively recent (within the last few decades at least) is cosmetic dentistry. Manchester-based practices who offer this genre of dentistry are starting to see an influx in interest.

Our Smile Manchester practice for example is witnessing a huge spike in demand for treatments such as teeth whitening and wrinkle reduction, many of which are carried out after restorative treatments such as dental implants. Manchester residents therefore might like to know more about cosmetic dentistry and where it originated. As a result we’ve decided to take a look back at a brief but interesting history of cosmetic dentistry to see how far it’s come.

Ancient practices – Ouch that hurts!

Cosmetic dentistry is all about making the teeth look the best they can and even as far back as 700BC, the ancient Etruscans were known for removing discoloured teeth and replacing them with white ivory, bone, and animal teeth, that were hammered into the gum. If that wasn’t bad enough the ancient Romans used ammonia extracted from urine to whiten their teeth.

The body-snatchers and spurious practices

During the medieval period pioneer barbers used to file and shape teeth while coating them in a solution to make them whiter. The trouble is that it wasn’t very good for teeth and would attack the enamel, thus rendering the tooth useless. Like the ancient Etruscans medieval pioneers used to remove teeth from corpses and crudely implant them into living humans. In nearly every case, the body would reject the tooth so it was back to the drawing board.

It’s modern dentistry but not as we know it!

Finally in the 8th century dentistry began to be recognised as a separate medical profession and dentists (as they were now called) began to use porcelain for dentures. Not only did it give a more natural tooth coloured smile, Manchester dentists sometimes use the same material today. More often though, dentists utilise plastics and acrylic because of their natural look and lightweight feel. This was the first known period of producing a technique that we truly recognise however.

The technology keeps on coming!

It wasn’t until the 1960’s that laser dentistry was first utilised. At that time it was primarily used for the treatment of gum disease until in the mid 1990’s when it was given the go ahead to be used for teeth whitening. It was only a few years earlier in 1989, when Dr Heywood and Dr Heymann first used carbamide peroxide with success as a whitening agent on teeth. So by the mid 1990’s a culmination of advancements meant that teeth whitening was safer, popular, and more affordable.

Around the same period (1960’s-1990’s) other dental techniques were being honed to make cosmetic dentistry more accessible. These included cosmetic bonding, porcelain veneers, wrinkle reduction (Botox), and of course dental implants. Manchester patients nowadays don’t have to go far to experience all of these; and if it wasn’t for these pioneers of dentistry, modern people wouldn’t be able to experience brighter whiter smiles with many dentists now practising cosmetic dentistry Manchester.

To find out more about how we can help to restore your smile, Manchester residents will want to speak to Church Road Dental and Cosmetics. Under the guidance of Dr Shi Karim, we ensure you get the smile you really want. To book a consultation call us on 0161 486 0743 and make your smile a healthy, happy one.