Tooth Whitening

Commonly performed in cosmetic dentistry, tooth whitening is the procedure of lightening dark coloured teeth. White teeth are seen as a sign of health, social stature, and youth. But as we grow older, our teeth require more care to maintain the whiteness we once had as children. The enamel on older teeth becomes less porous through time, or become stained from tobacco use, coffee, food, and other bacteria.

To remove stains or just lighten teeth colour for cosmetic reasons, people can employ the use of tooth whitening procedures at a dentist, or tooth whitening products purchased over the counter. Tooth whitening procedures and/or over-the-counter products use oxidizers, which applied regularly over time, will bleach and remove discoloration. Hydrogen peroxide is one example of an oxidizer. Oxidizers cross the enamel to bleach stains that reside in both the enamel layer and the dentine layer under it.

Tooth whitening can be accomplished in two ways and if you're interested in lightening the colour of your teeth, you should become familiar with both. First, teeth colour may be lightened by repeatedly covering the enamel with high concentrations of an oxidizing agent. This is the fastest way to obtain a set of white teeth, however because the dosage of bleach is very high, users run the risk of burning soft tissues in and around the mouth. This burning is actually chemical burning occuring from carbamide peroxide (the oxidizing agent). This agent must not be kept on the teeth for long periods of time.

The second way to whiten teeth is to secure a less potent dosage of an oxidizing agent over the teeth for longer periods of time (like overnight for example). This chemical is secured in one place with a mouth-guard and because the chemical is less potent than that used for short periods of time, it's much safer.

In addition to the potential damage caused to soft tissues, other events could happened that surprise both dentists and recipients of tooth whitening procedures. Some stains simply can't be removed from tooth whitening procedures and/or over-the-counter products. Tooth whitening may also inadvertently bring out existing white spots. And not all recipients of tooth whitening procedures accept the process in a healthy way. Some teeth become sensitive after the process while other's teeth actually become darker. It's a peculiar but ironic phenomenon. In an effort to make tooth whitening a quicker process, some dentists employ the use of light as a bleaching accelerator, however studies have shown that this procedure can lose its effect thirty days after treatment.

For some people, it's only a matter of time (usually thirty days) before the results of tooth whitening procedures and/or products fail (also known as "rebound").

Recent news reports have claimed tooth whitening as dangerous and some products on the shelves have been removed. In Europe, some American tooth whitening procedures and/or products have been banned altogether.

You can examine the alternatives yourself and make your own decisions to see if it's something that you want to do.