Questions to ask yourself about the use of at-home teeth whitening products.
Possibly some of the most important "right questions" to ask in regards to the use of an at-home teeth whitening system should not be directed to your dentist but instead to yourself. Here are some of them.
Are you committed to wearing your bleaching trays often enough and for sufficient lengths of time so the whitening process has an opportunity to take place?
There is no dispute that, when chosen for use with an appropriate case, tray teeth bleaching systems can be very successful. Dental publications are filled with examples of how this technique is able to produce results, often surprisingly so. You have to realize however that the results obtained with an at-home tray teeth whitening product, just like those results achieved with any peroxide-based teeth whitening system, are simply a matter of cause and effect. If you are not committed to putting in the hours of wearing your bleaching trays (the cause) you will not obtain a successful outcome (the effect).
Are you aware of what constitutes a realistic shade of white for teeth?
Some people who utilize at-home teeth whitening products become the equivalent of "bleaching junkies." Their goal seems to be to achieve an unnatural, even freakish, shade of white with their teeth. No doubt these people have been influenced by the false images they have seen in advertising and other media sources.
Unlike almost all other dental treatments the vast majority of your at-home teeth whitening activities will not be directly supervised by your dentist. Because of this, the potential for whitening product abuse does exist. You have to be smart about your use of at-home teeth whitening products. Abusing them can result in unintended complications.
Should you use an over-the-counter tray-based teeth whitening product?
Some people will be tempted to purchase the materials for at-home tray teeth whitening on their own from over-the-counter sources. Please realize that the key to the safety reputation that at-home tray teeth whitening has achieved is threefold:
- The bleaching tray is fabricated so if falls just short of resting on the wearer's gums.
- An appropriate teeth whitener is utilized (10% carbamide peroxide).
- The whitening process is monitored and its side effects are controlled.
The awkwardness associated with buying teeth whitening products from an over-the-counter source, as opposed to your own dentist, is that it's difficult for an OTC whitening system to provide all of these features for you. If you do decide to obtain whitening products on your own, use this link for a discussion about helpful tips in selecting OTC tray whitening kits.
Possibly professional teeth bleaching treatments would be a better choice than at-home whitening.
Besides tray-based teeth whitening technique, many dentists will offer their patients in-office teeth whitening treatments as another bleaching option.
What are the advantages of an at-home tray-based teeth whitening system as compared to in-office teeth whitening treatments?
- At-home tray-based teeth whiteners contain a lower concentration of peroxide than those whiteners used by dentists with in-office treatments. As a rule of thumb, the higher the concentration of peroxide that is used during the teeth whitening process the greater the likelihood that the patient will experience side effects.
- Since the whitening effects produced by a tray-based bleaching process are gradual in nature, choosing the most cosmetically pleasing end point is easier with them than with in-office whitening treatments. This can be especially important in those cases where natural teeth are being lightened so to more closely match the color of existing dental crowns. It can also be a comfort for those people who want to insure that the nature of their whitening results will be relatively subdued, as opposed to extreme.
- The cost associated with at-home tray-based teeth whitening is typically less than that fee charged for in-office teeth whitening treatments. This is because the treatments are performed by the patient on their own time at home as opposed to requiring a dentist's time and equipment.
- After a patient has completed the whitening process they will of course still have their bleaching trays. This makes it a simple matter for them to perform touch up whitening treatments whenever they feel they are needed.
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Despite all of the hype you might have heard or read, a motivated patient can achieve the same end result (the same degree of whitening) with a tray-based teeth whitening process as they can with any other peroxide-based methodology (including in-office teeth whitening treatments performed by their dentist). This is because whitening teeth with peroxide is simply a function of the cumulative exposure of the person's teeth to the whitener. Using a low concentration peroxide over a series of individual treatments (tray-based teeth whitening protocol) or a much higher concentration of peroxide over a much shorter time frame (in-office whitening treatments) can both be expected to produce the same result (if the teeth are given a similar cumulative exposure to the peroxide).
What are the disadvantages of at-home tray-based teeth whitening systems in comparison to in-office teeth whitening treatments.
- There is no question that whitening teeth using a tray-based technique will take longer (weeks to months) than in-office bleaching treatments performed by a dentist (one or two hours per whitening session). If you have a big event occurring in the near future that you're trying to get ready for, whitening your teeth at home with a tray whitening system may be out of the question.
- Whitening your teeth with a tray-based technique requires compliance on your part. You must adhere to the instructions that come with your whitening product. You must take the time to perform your whitening treatments. If a lack of available treatment time or a lack of motivation are a concern, you might be better off considering in-office bleaching treatments performed by your dentist.
