Background:
Aesthetics is one of the most important elements in dental treatment. Currently, color measurement is possible using a number of methods, not only through visual assessment with shade guides, but also using a microscope equipped with an image analysis system.

Aim:
Due to frequent discoloration of dental fillings, an experiment was carried out to examine whether polymeric dental materials are susceptible to absorption of food dyes contained in selected beverages, such as coffee and red wine.

Material and methods:
Two types of composites based on urethane dimethacrylate (UDMA) and polymeric material of the Flow type in A1 colors were used in the work. These two types of fillings are often used in conservative dentistry. In addition, these composites have been doped with hydroxyapatite of two different sizes: manometric size of 100-200 nm and a micro size of about 30µm. The powders were added in amounts of 2.5 and 8%

Results:
Tests carried out to assess the susceptibility to discoloration of dental composites have shown that coffee and wine cause a significant change in the color of dental fillings in vitro. It has been observed that the increase in the amount of HAp, decreases the tendency to discoloration. Hybrid composites containing 2% nHAp have the lowest tendency to discoloration.

Conclusions:
Research has shown a diverse level of susceptibility of composite materials with hydroxyapatite to external factors that change their colour. The hydroxyapatite contained in dental fillings reduces discoloration of the fillings. The dyes present in red wine colour much more than the tannins found in coffee.