A brilliant white smile is what everybody wants. This is why so many people commit so much time and money to whiten their teeth.Today, there are a wide range of options available to those who want to brighten their smile including over-the-counter tooth whitening kits or professional whitening services courtesy of their dentist.
There are two chemicals typically used to whiten teeth: Hydrogen peroxide and carbamide peroxide. The difference between the two is the potency and power of the chemicals when applied to the teeth.Dentists generally use the more potent hydrogen peroxide in gel form the administration of which needs to be closely supervised. The "at-home" kits, feature the lower concentration carbamide gel product.Patients have to use the carbamide gel over a longer period of time than the hydrogen peroxide treatment administered by the dentist.
Why do teeth lose their whiteness? Tooth discoloration can happen as a person ages even if he/she doesn’t drink tea or coffee or smoke or grind their teeth, the most common factors affecting tooth whiteness. People are born with a unique interior tooth color that becomes gradually visible with the loss of tooth enamel through contact large doses of fluoride, and medical or physical trauma. This type of staining is known as "intrinsic staining".
Though both these types of discoloration can be improved, the final result chiefly depends on the age and level of yellowing of the patient’s teeth.
To have the process performed by a trained professional takes fifteen to twenty minutes. The patient will have to wear a mouth guard, and have a "rubber dam" painted on the gums. Next, a peroxide gel is applied to the teeth and in a few minutes the whitening work is done. Most patients are provided with take-home kits to maintain their newly brightened teeth, or to address stains that were not entirely eliminated. Dentists recommend that such patients avoid smoking, darkly colored foods and beverages, and drinking through a straw for several days after the procedure.
Some dentists provide a take-home kit containing a low-intensity peroxide gel along with other equipment required for the procedure for a cost. The many over-the-counter whitening kits, though they require a time commitment of more than a week, generally produce excellent results. The reality with these relatively inexpensive and convenient kits, though, will not be able to address deeply set or some intrinsic stains, which must be handled by a dentist.