What are teeth whitening kits?
With effective oral hygiene, it’s possible to keep your teeth and gums healthy and strong throughout your lifetime. However, even with daily brushing and flossing, along with regular dental visits, staining and dulling of the teeth is often an inevitable result of aging. Dental dulling and discoloration is more common, and may appear more severely, in people who smoke or use tobacco and in people who regularly drink darker drinks like black coffee or red wine. At your regular visits to the dentist, your dental hygienist will thoroughly clean your teeth, scraping off stained areas and polishing the teeth with a mild abrasive to restore their shine. The reality is, however, that dental enamel thins as we age, and, as it thins, the teeth reflect less light and appear more drab. If your teeth aren’t as white as you’d like them to be, even after a professional cleaning, you have a few options for whitening and brightening your smile. Three of the most common types of treatment are over-the-counter whitening products, including teeth whitening kits; at-home custom bleaching kits made by your dentist; and in-office whitening procedures.
Based on the cause of your tooth discoloration, your dentist can tell you if your teeth might respond well to these dental bleaching treatments or if you’ll require a different type of cosmetic dental solution. You and your dentist can also review your options for at-home bleaching kits and in-office procedures. Over-the-counter treatments like whitening toothpastes, gel strips, or bleaching pens are affordable but will only help achieve moderate results, as there are legal limits to the amount of hydrogen peroxide bleaching agent that can be sold to the general public. These methods can also irritate the gums when applied imprecisely, which can be easy to do. In-office whitening procedures that use high concentrations of precisely applied peroxide can accomplish astonishing results, but at a higher cost. At-home teeth whitening kits offer a good balance for many patients; they’re moderately priced and convenient, and, because they’re custom-made by your dentist, they’re highly effective and pose far fewer risks to the gums and other soft tissues in the mouth.
Teeth whitening kits are used under guidance from your dentist, who prescribes and assembles them specifically for you. Because they are provided by a medical professional, these kits can safely use higher concentrations of peroxide than over-the-counter treatments, and, because this bleaching agent is applied in prescribed amounts in a custom-fitted tray, there’s far less likelihood of medication oozing onto the gums and causing irritation. The whitening gel stays concentrated on the surfaces of the teeth, where it belongs, as the tray is held in the mouth. Most patients report seeing clear results from teeth whitening kits within a week or two, if not sooner.
Some medications and medical treatments include tooth discoloration as a possible side effect, and, if the tooth is damaged underneath the enamel, this fracture may appear more visible as the enamel wears thinner with age. If you’re frustrated by your stained or discolored smile and are looking for a solution, check in with your dentist first; if the flaw is caused by trauma or because of the systemic changes caused by medical treatment, alternative dental treatments might be recommended and could include crowns, bonding, or dental veneers. These issues are less common than the typical dulling of teeth over time, however, so for many patients, teeth whitening kits can help bring some sparkle back to their smile.
