What are teeth whitening products?
As you’ve probably seen in drugstore aisles, there are multiple different over-the-counter products that claim to whiten the teeth, and many of these at-home treatments can help brighten your smile if your teeth have grown dull or discolored over time. There are also clinical whitening products available to dental patients, which allow for the safe application of higher percentages of bleaching agents; such clinical procedures can be performed by a dentist in-office, or with custom-crafted application trays for use at home with a dentist’s guidance. These teeth whitening products can help reduce tooth discoloration, lifting the accumulated stains caused by external forces over time. This type of extrinsic tooth discoloration is common among smokers and people who use tobacco, which builds up on the teeth, and it can also be caused by certain foods and drinks, including acidic and dark-colored foods like tomato sauces and berries. Beverages that discolor the teeth include black coffee or tea, dark sodas, and red wine; the more often you drink these things, the more the stains accumulate.
One of the easiest ways to whiten mildly stained teeth is with whitening toothpaste, which contains mild abrasives that scrub stains from the teeth, and with whitening rinses that use hydrogen peroxide or other safe whitening agents to gradually bleach the teeth. Some toothbrushes can even help polish the teeth more effectively than others, based on the positioning and density of their bristles; be sure to brush gently and protect the gums, though, and never try to scrub the teeth excessively or with too much force. You may have also seen sugar-free gum that’s labeled as whitening gum, and this can be a beneficial addition to your routine for a few different reasons. While the gum’s whitening ingredients coat the teeth and help prevent staining, the act of chewing sugar-free gum, especially after meals, helps clean the mouth of bacteria and food debris and stimulates saliva production, contributing to the health of the oral cavity.
Over-the-counter teeth whitening kits may include plastic strips, pens, brushes, or other methods for applying hydrogen peroxide gel to the teeth. The most popular of these over-the-counter treatments include whitening strips and whitening trays, which are applied to the teeth for 30 minutes to an hour at a time, once per day, until desired results are achieved. Many people report satisfactory results with just a week or two of using whitening strips or trays, though many patients also report increased sensitivity in the teeth or irritation in the gums following these treatments. This is largely due to incorrect application, which isn’t an issue with custom whitening kits and in-office whitening treatments.
Custom teeth whitening kits use prescribed amounts of higher concentrations of peroxide, and the trays are sculpted from an impression of the patient’s mouth, ensuring accurate application and concentrated whitening and reducing the likelihood of whitening gel irritating the oral tissues. The highest concentrations of whitening agent can only be applied in a clinical setting, and in-office dental whitening treatments create the most dramatic results, but if the cost of in-office dental whitening isn’t an option for you, the good news is that you have lots of other options to help whiten your teeth and brighten your smile.
