Professional Teeth Whitening

More people go to their dentists looking for ways to make their teeth look whiter. It’s not hard to understand why there’s this greater emphasis on whitening products and procedures for the teeth. After all, everyday, we’re bombarded by images of people who have perfect white teeth. You see these in the movies, on television, in magazines and online. Usually, when there’s a photo of a smiling person somewhat, that model or actor is going to have pearly white teeth.

So there’s this greater expectation from people that they too should have a set of white teeth. However, the reality can be very far from that, which is why there is such a demand for teeth whitening. After all, the different kinds of food and drink that we consume may result in stains or discoloration of the teeth. Coffee is one example of such a drink, but there are many others. Other habits and activities can also result in less than perfect looking teeth. Smoking can cause teeth to be discolored, for instance.

Since there are many people who would like to have whiter teeth, companies and dentists together work to bring whitening products and procedures to the people who need them. This is something that many people can appreciate. It means that even if a person has ended up with stained or discolored teeth over time, it’s usually not too late to achieve a whiter smile.

If whitening procedures are something that you are interested in, one of the first things that you can do is ask your dentist about your options. The advantage of talking to your dentist about this is that he or she can take a first hand look at the current state of your teeth. Your dentist will very quickly be able to check how much whitening work needs to be done to achieve your desired look. He or she can then tell you which of the available whitening products and procedures may best fit your particular circumstances.

One of the first things that you are going to have to decide on is whether you want the whitening done in your dentist’s office, or if you’d rather do it yourself at home. The main reason that people choose to go with the do it yourself route is cost. Costs will tend to be more expensive if you have your dentist apply the whitening product to your teeth in the dental clinic. Things will be cheaper if you buy the product from a pharmacy or from a clinic, and then take care of the whitening application at home. So if cost is going to be an important factor for you, you’ll want to crunch the numbers.

However, even if undergoing the whitening at the dental clinic will be more expensive, there are important and compelling benefits for doing so. One benefit is speed. If you need your teeth to become whiter right away for a particular reason, such as an event that you will be attending in the near future, then your dentist may be able to offer faster results. That’s because the whitening agent that the dentist will use can be stronger and more potent. It can be applied directly to the teeth by your dentist to achieve the maximum effect. And your dentist may be able to use a laser or special light in order to make the whitening process even more effective. So this is one thing to consider.

Another thing to consider is that your dentist can help make sure that the bleaching agent will only affect your teeth, and not the surrounding soft tissue such as your gums. This can be very important because it may be possible for surrounding soft tissue to become irritated or inflamed if exposed directly to the whitening agent. For example, some bleaching agents are applied using a mouth guard like tray. However, if you purchase this type of product over the counter, it will be more difficult to have a mouth tray that fits your teeth well. This could result in the agent getting out of the tray and landing on your gums. You’re much less likely to have this problem if your dentist will create a mouth tray which is specifically adapted to whitening your teeth. So keep this in mind as well.