What You Should Know About Teeth Bleaching

By Marla Mills


It is natural for tooth discoloration or staining to take place over the years due to various reasons. Some of them include eating habits, taking certain medication and oral hygiene. If you are a victim of tooth discoloration, you can take advantage of professional teeth bleaching. This procedure seeks to improve the appearance of each tooth by using oxidizing agents such as carbamide peroxide to whiten it.

Tooth whitening can also be performed by utilizing a special gel that is put into a flexible tray. A person needs to wear the custom tray in his or her mouth for a certain period. The tray is then removed and a second whitening agent in addition to a special light is used to activate the chemical reaction. The whitening agent reacts with the enamel of teeth and oxidizes the stain deposits in the process.

When the tooth whitening procedure is performed repeatedly, the bleach gets into the dentine layer. When complete, this process removes all the signs of discoloration and the outcome is a dazzling white smile. Dentists perform this procedure in two ways. One of them involves applying a layer of oxidizing agents to the teeth and flushing this layer away after a short period.

Generally, a 35 percent hydrogen peroxide equivalent is used to perform tooth whitening. This method is effective and the results are seen within a short period. However, it involves some risk such as soft tissue damage. This is not something to worry about if you have the procedure performed by an experienced dentist. This professional will do his or her best to ensure that your soft tissues do not get damaged.

The other bleaching method that a dentist can use involves placing the whitening agent in a strip that is then attached to the teeth. This strip is not removed right away. It has to stay in place for some hours or days depending on what a dentist recommends. Even if it takes a while to work, it is safe because the risk of soft tissue damage is significantly reduced.

Certain kinds of stains like those caused by the prolonged intake of antibiotics like tetracycline usually take a while to respond to whitening procedures. If your tooth discoloration is caused by taking antibiotics for extended periods, you need to go through several bleaching procedures so that the bleach can get into the dentine layer to bring about the results you want. The recently introduced tooth whitening procedures use light to increase the whitening effects of bleach

The results of bleaching procedures vary from one person to another even though they are effective in getting rid of discoloration and stains. After undergoing the procedure, most people find that their teeth have become fairly sensitive. Dentists advise their patients to refrain from drinking hot or cold beverages for a certain period of time. At times, dentists provide their patients with fluoride treatment after the procedure to lessen sensitivity.

Typical dental insurance does not cover teeth bleaching procedures. If you find it too expensive to have the procedure performed by a dentist, you can purchase tooth whitening kits which are sold at most drug stores. You can easily use these kits at home and they are effective. However, you should be patient when using these kits because you may not get immediate results.




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