Everyone would like a whiter and brighter smile. But what is the best way to achieve that? Teeth whitening systems are one of the easiest way to brighten your teeth for that pearly white smile.
Things to consider before you choose what whitening system to choose. Do you eat and drink a lot of staining foods? Red wine, coffee, and tomato based foods will all act to stain your teeth. Your age will also effect how whitening works for you. As we age we loose some of the enamel on our teeth. This will allow the dentin(inner part of the tooth) to show through. Dentin is darker in color and will make the tooth appear darker as enamel is lost.
There are four main ways to whiten your teeth
Whitening strips
At-home trays
In office system
In office and at home combination
Whitening strips work mostly on surface stain and most likely will not last. You will need to use them repeatedly some times as often as every month.
At home tray systems use a professional gel but at a lower concentration. This is because the gel will get in your gums and at higher concentrations can burn.
In office systems are designed where we can isolate the gums. This allows for us to use a much higher concentration of bleaching agent. This will get optimal whitening.
The system we like best is a combination of in office and at-home. This gives you the highest concentration of gel and allows you to follow up at home. This stops what is known as rebound. That is where the whitening effect rebounds when the teeth rehydrate. It also allows you to do touch-ups when you feel your teeth are not a white as they used to be.