We receive questions about teeth whitening all of the time here at Trade Winds Dental, so we wanted to spell out a few of the facts to all of our patients.
• In-office products are more effective and pose less risk for complications than OTC products. Why? Materials are custom made for each patients mouth, maximizing the whitening gel’s contact with the tooth and minimizing gel loss from the tray, which increases whitening gel’s effectiveness. In office materials are maximum strength and do not contain any harmful additives. Some OTC products contain additives that could potentially cause problems. Finally, In office whitening can “jump start” the whitening effect
• Whitening toothpastes do not whiten teeth significantly and could be harmful to teeth due to their high abrasiveness.
• You cannot use whitening products during conventional orthodontic treatment( metal brackets/wires). Patients can, however whiten during Invisalign treatment, and whitening is included at no charge for all Invisalign patients at Trade Winds Dental.
• Some tooth discoloration may have a genetic component, but that does not mean that tooth whitening won’t be effective on those patients.
• The best way to maintain whitening effect is to “touch up” periodically by wearing your customized whitening trays for 30-45 minutes a day for 2-3 days. How often this is necessary differs with each patient, but on average every 1-3 months is sufficient.
• Whitening products are effective only on natural teeth, not dentures or on teeth with existing crowns(caps) or veneers.