 |
|
When looking for the best tooth whitening method you will hear the term tooth bleaching. Tooth whitening sounds much more comforting doesn’t it? Not to worry, bleaching isn’t that harsh at all.
In fact, with the exception of porcelain veneers tooth bleaching is the only choice you have to whiten your teeth.
In general, there are two different ways you can achieve whiter teeth.
- Cover your existing teeth with something whiter. Porcelain veneers do exactly this. Although it is very costly it provides the best possible results money can buy these days.
- Change the color of your own teeth to be whiter. This is when tooth bleaching comes to help.
I hear you saying: “Haven’t you heard of laser tooth whitening? And how about those pretty blue lamps I have seen somewhere else? Those look pretty darn good!”
The truth is, if you look into these “whitening with light” methods you will find out very soon that these are no different from tooth bleaching. They still put chemicals onto your teeth to do the whitening. The light is there to activate the bleach and speed up the process a little bit.
How does tooth bleaching work?
Over the years everything you eat or drink will leave a thin layer of residue on your teeth. This layer of dirt slowly penetrates the surface of your teeth and causes discoloration. Certain things like coffee and tea can cause more discoloration.
Tooth bleaching is the process of whitening this residue. While regularly brushing your teeth will remove the residue from the surface, toothpaste can not penetrate your teeth deep enough.
You need something stronger that can do the job. The answer is hydrogen peroxide. Yes, there are other chemicals on the market. However the available professional and at-home tooth whitening products are all based on the whitening power of hydrogen peroxide.
Most likely you have low concentration hydrogen peroxide in your house today. Remember that bottle of clear liquid you use to disinfect small cuts and bruises? That’s it. Hydrogen peroxide is a common bleaching chemical used all over the place.
Back to tooth bleaching.
When you put hydrogen peroxide based gel on your teeth the cleaning process begins. Tiny oxygen bubbles penetrate your teeth and change the color of the residue to white.
More potent tooth whitening gels will penetrate the tooth faster and deeper. Dentists apply a gel that has a very high concentration (at least 10% even higher) of hydrogen peroxide.
There is one catch. Hydrogen peroxide in high concentration causes skin irritation and burns. And that is not even mentioning the possibility of more damage when swallowed.
Professional tooth bleaching certainly means more stress to the teeth and the gum line. In fact dentists must use a protective rubber dam or pain-on dam around the gum line to prevent tissue damage.
At-home tooth bleaching works just as well.
Home tooth whitening gels are less potent (definitely under 10% hydrogen peroxide) but that doesn’t necessarily mean less whitening power.
In-office treatments usually take less than an hour. Since dentists use very potent chemicals longer applications wouldn’t be wise.
At-home treatments on the other hand leave the whitening gel on the tooth for longer time periods. And time buys you quality. Longer application gives more time for the gel to penetrate the tooth, resulting in similar or even whiter results.
Personally, when it comes to chemicals I prefer lower concentration as opposed to very potent gels. Maybe it takes more time but I certainly feel safer. But that’s just me. You decide for yourself.
Find out how to make the best home made tooth bleaching soup and serve your guests with a white smile.
How about crowns and fillings?
Well, here is the bad news. Crowns and fillings don’t get whiter. If your front teeth have crowns or color matched fillings you may have to replace these to match your new white set of teeth.
If you are considering tooth bleaching do it before your dentist orders that crown. Otherwise you may end up with white teeth with yellowish crowns and fillings. That would be really embarrassing.
