DENVER -- A smile is often the first thing a person notices when first meeting someone.

But for those who suffer from gum recession or some other dental problems, it's not easy to flash their pearly whites.

A new Food and Drug Admistration-approved protein is helping some patients turn their frowns upside down.

"I take care of my teeth very well," said patient Linda Hookers. "I floss twice a day and brush my teeth three times a day."

Even regular visits with the dentist didn't stop Hooker from having gum recession.

"Probably in the last 10 years, I've noticed gum recession," she said. "In the last couple of years it's gotten exceedingly worse."

"Patients grinding (their) teeth puts pressure on the neck of the tooth and it dissolves away some of the bone," said Dr. Ole Jensen of Cody Dental Group.

"If the recession continues and bone loss continues -- I don't want any problems with losing a tooth," said Hooker.

So she decided to try gum regeneration surgery using a new FDA-approved protein.

"We're going to put the liquid in there and sew it all together," said Jensen. "This will allow blood vessels to grow and keep it vital."

"Normally with gum recession, we think about taking gum tissue from the roof of the mouth," said Jensen.

Jensen said compared to the old recovery time of more than 10 days, the gum regeneration surgery should take just a couple of days. He said ultimately Hooker's teeth and gum recession should see a big improvement.

After about 45 minutes, a difference can be seen.

"We can now use this protein to build that bone back up again," said Jensen. "People with dental implants -- this is a big advance."

For more information on the gum regeneration surgery, visit www.codydental.com.