Tooth Whitening Options

This is the time of year many patients start asking about tooth whitening. Whether you had too much coffee over the cold winter months or would like to improve the over-all appearance of your smile, there are options out there to brighten and whiten your teeth.

You may have heard commercial advertisements for whitening strips and whitening kinds of toothpaste. These at-home solutions do offer affordable results but do not have the immediate results received from in-office whitening. Whitening kinds of toothpaste are an option, but the whitening effect is very small due to the small exposure to the teeth when brushing. Whitening kinds of toothpaste also have abrasive qualities, making them more harmful to your teeth and gums than other whitening products. This would be the least recommended form of whitening if you are looking for dramatic differences in color.

Whitening strips are preferred to kinds of toothpaste because they stay on your teeth for an extended period of time, allowing the whitening ingredients to do their job. The average user sees results after approximately seven days of using the treatment. This is ideal for wanting teeth whiter for a special event- if you want a result more dramatic or permanent, other options need to be considered.

We offer in-office whitening options. Although these are more costly, results are dramatic. The first option is to make custom at-home whitening trays. Bleach, sold in-office, is applied to the trays and worn anywhere from 1 hour to overnight. These trays can be used for many years, as long as you keep it away from your dog!

Lastly, we offer Zoom whitening. We use a specialized light to aid the whitening process. Patients generally see up to 6 shades lighter on their teeth when they leave our office! This is BEFORE they do at-home follow-up whitening with the custom trays, included in the cost of a Zoom whitening procedure. A common complaint of this procedure is tooth sensitivity during, and the day after, the appointment. We recommend our patients use a sensitivity toothpaste for two weeks prior to their Zoom whitening appointment.

Please let us know if you have questions regarding at-home or in-office whitening! We would be happy to schedule you an appointment if you prefer a quick, custom whitening experience!