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I short: When placed in the mouth bleaching gels release tiny Oxygen bubbles. Oxygen is good right? These bubbles penetrate the surface of your teeth. Once inside, Oxygen chemically alters the dirt in your teeth. The result is white dirt. The good thing about a small amount of Oxygen is that it does not damage your teeth. Tada!
I don’t want to sound like a chemistry professor here so I will put the expert level knowledge to another page.
Money saving tip
The fact is tooth whitening gels are relatively inexpensive. Many companies sell gels in syringes for little money. If you have a quality whitening tray you can buy or replace gels inexpensively. I think it is great because it can save you some money in the long run. You will most probably repeat the whitening treatment in a few years (3 to 5 years on average). Custom fitted whitening trays can be saved for next time. All you have to do is buy new gel and you are ready for bleaching.
Almost forgot: Custom fitted tooth whitening trays use less gel too. That saves even more money for Tooth Fairy.
Not all bleaching gels are created equal.
First and foremost they come with different concentrations. The higher the percent content of the bleaching agent the more powerful the gel is.
Tooth whitening gel comes in two kinds:
- Carbamide Peroxide gels are the most popular for home whitening kits because these are more stable. 22% concentration is the most common, but you can find 16%, even 10% gels. Anything less would be virtually ineffective. Beware of higher concentrations. Those bite!
- Hydrogen peroxide gels are also available. Dentists use these kinds of gels. Hydrogen peroxide is the active ingredient even in Carbamide peroxide gels. These are equally good but only a few companies sell them because of their shorter shelf life.
Remember this: a 6% hydrogen peroxide gel is just as strong as a 22% Carbamide peroxide gel. So do not be alarmed if you see lower concentrations.
Read this note on tooth whitening gel debate
– it may help you choose between carbamide perodixe and hydrogen peroxide gels.
Now the bells and whistles:
Gels contain additional ingredients like glycerin, carbopol, potassium nitrate, artificial flavor, etc.
I personally think flavor is an important factor. You will be holding that gel in your mouth time after time. I have friends who stopped their whitening treatment because of bad tasting gels. Custom fitted trays hold the gel better so even if you don’t like the taste it may be easier to tolerate the taste.
What’s in your gel?
Unfortunately companies don’t like to share the ingredients of their gels on their websites. It takes some time and effort to find out what kind of gels they sell.
Glycerin is the usual filler that gives thickness to the gel so it doesn’t just wash out of your tray. It is a good place to mention that custom fitted trays leak less too.
Carbopol is used to enhance the whitening power of carbamide peroxide gels. If you choose carbamide peroxide make sure it also has carbopol in it.
Potassium nitrate is used as a desensitizer agent to reduce tooth sensitivity. If you worry about sensitiveness then look for a gel with 5% potassium nitrate. Good luck finding out which one has it!
A good alternative is to buy potassium nitrate desensitizer separately to apply before or after each treatment.
What pH is your tooth whitening gel?
The acidity or pH level of whitening gels is rarely discussed but it is quite important.
You probably remember how your teeth feel after you eat a lemon. You can almost feel the destruction on the surface of your teeth. Lemon juice is a strong acid (it has low pH level). Acids and sugar weaken the outer layer – the enamel – of your teeth. Over time your body restores the strength of your enamel. That is why eating a lemon won’t cause cavities immediately.
To avoid weakening your enamel it is better to choose a tooth whitening gel with higher pH level.
Get the best tooth whitening gel you can find.
The tooth whitening gel is truly is the most important component of a good whitening kit. The price you pay is not going to be any less for an average gel.
I know it is hard to determine the components of whitening gels. Kids just don’t like to share anymore. Be patient and search or ask for that information.
