Have you ever been watched a show or movie and noticed how perfect the actors looked? Somehow, even in the middle of an apocalypse, their characters always manage to have perfectly shaped eyebrows and a bright white smile. It used to be that these perfect smiles were mostly reserved for the on-screen elite.
But that’s no longer the case.
Thanks to advances in cosmetics and dentistry, a healthy, glowing smile is more attainable now than ever before. These days, there are countless ads for different at-home teeth whitening kits. They all claim to deliver the best results… but if they sometimes seem too good to be true, well, they just might be.
What these ads always fail to mention is that the fastest, safest, and most effective way to whiten your teeth can’t be bought in a store – it can only be found in a dentist’s office.
Why Whiten Your Teeth?
Over time, a person’s teeth become stained and discolored. It happens to everyone, even those with impeccable oral hygiene habits. This discoloration can be due to many factors such as overall health and diet. Coffee, tea, and red wine are some of the biggest stain culprits, as are smoking, drug use, tooth damage, and age.
Stained, dull, and discolored teeth can be hard to live with. It can lead to feelings of embarrassment or self-consciousness every time you simply open your mouth. You’ll probably find yourself smiling less, avoiding conversations, and trying to find ways to cover your mouth any time you speak. Having your teeth whitened by a professional is the quickest and easiest way to fix the problem.
How It Works
Any tooth whitening agent – be it an over-the-counter, at-home kit, or one used in a dentist’s office – will use the same basic ingredients. The bleaching agent is usually a peroxide, and the concentration will vary depending on the product. The higher the concentration, the stronger the bleach, and the less time you need to leave it on.
At-home kits have a wide range of peroxide concentrations, all the way from 3%-20%. Professional systems have much higher concentrations (15%-43%), which allow them to work faster and produce whiter results. Professional tooth whitening treatments are usually done in a short series of sessions, but newer systems are now emerging that can complete the whole treatment in one sitting.
After the in-office treatments, most dentists will prescribe an at-home maintenance kit to keep your teeth looking their best. In most cases, any at-home kit will suffice as a maintenance treatment after the completion of the professional sessions. However, at-home kits alone don’t yield the dramatic results most people are looking for.
5 Reasons In-Office Whitening Is Best
So, what is it, exactly, about professional teeth whitening systems that make them so much better than at-home systems? Well, there are a lot of reasons, but we’ve narrowed them down to the five biggest:
1. Fastest Way to Get Results
Professional treatments are just the fastest way to get results, hands down. No at-home kit has been able to rival the speed of a professional one – both in the length of the individual applications and the entire course of treatment.
Professional treatments are usually done in a few sessions, which can range from 30-60 minutes long. They also can be completed in their entirety in one, two-hour session when using newer systems. This is an advantage over at-home kits, which often require multiple applications throughout the day for an average of 15 to 20 minutes at a time.
2. Easy and Convenient
Professional treatments save you the hassle and stress that comes with many at-home kits. You don’t have to fumble with the pieces and gels; you don’t have to worry about remembering to apply them multiple times a day, and you don’t have to fret that they will cause undue damage to your teeth and mouth.
All you have to do is go to your appointment, sit back in the chair, relax, and let the dentist do all the work for you.
3. Effective
No at-home kit can produce the same results that a professional treatment can – none. Even some of the newer at-home kits that are starting to incorporate UV light and heat just can’t compare to the results produced by professional grade equipment and years of training.
4. Safer Than At-Home Kits
In additional to being more effective, professional teeth whitening procedures are safer than doing it on your own. All teeth whitening kits use a form of bleach, which is diluted enough to be safe for use, but it can still cause damage over time, even if it is used correctly.
Bleach damage can cause teeth to dry out and become dehydrated, which can cause painful inflammation of the nerves in the teeth as well as damage to the tissues. It can also cause pain and discoloration to the gums and other soft parts of the mouth and has even been known to cause mild chemical burns.
While there is a risk of having some of these side effects with professional treatments, it is much lower because you have a highly trained individual to monitor you the entire time.
5. Confidence and Peace of Mind
Going the professional route will give you confidence and peace of mind in the treatments – the knowledge that they are the right treatment for your body and your desired results. Not all stains can be removed by bleaching. Take discoloration from injury, for example, which requires different procedures. Plus, certain health conditions can be exacerbated by the process as well.
Consulting with a dentist about the best course of treatment will save you money in the long run by preventing you from investing in kits that won’t deliver the results you are looking for.
These are just 5 reasons why a professional teeth-whitening service is preferable to at-home solutions. If you’re hoping to brighten and whiten your smile sooner rather than later and in a safe and effective way, contact us at Vellore Woods Dentistry today!