Do you feel like your smile isn’t the brightest amongst your social circles? Nowadays it has become increasingly popular to beautify one's appearance of their smile through different dental procedures like teeth whitening. This is a huge reason why cosmetic dentistry has grown in popularity.
Thankfully whitening your teeth is not particularly a complex procedure. While there are many home kits that you can get online or in-store, having teeth whitening performed by a dentist can give you better results that are much more effective.
Professional Teeth Whitening
Teeth whitening is a dental process that involves bleaching the enamel of teeth to brighten and whiten their appearance. Professional teeth whitening features the bleaching process, only that it is performed by a dental expert, usually in a dental clinic.
Today, many people are looking for different alternatives to whiten their teeth in the comfort of their homes. While those methods may work, there is something particularly unique about the effectiveness of teeth whitening professionally done by a dental expert.
What Does Professional Teeth Whitening Treatment Entail?
The whitening process of teeth can be accomplished in different ways. However, when done by a dentist, the following steps proceed:
- Dental cleaning – involves brushing and flossing your teeth to remove plaque and loose food debris. This way, the discoloration in your teeth as a result of poor oral hygiene will be dealt with before the bleaching process begins. At this, you should already notice an improvement in the color of your teeth.
- Bleaching – Zoom teeth whitening employs dental bleaches that work by use of hydrogen peroxide. The whitening agents contain a higher concentration of hydrogen peroxide than is present in typical toothpaste and other over-the-counter whitening materials. The whitening agents, usually in form of a paste or gel, are applied to your teeth. The dentist will then allow the bleachers to sit on your teeth for a timed period. To activate the whitening agents, your dentist will use lasers or ultraviolet light. This will speed up the rate at which hydrogen peroxide penetrates the layers of your teeth and break down the stains thereof.
- Rinsing – sometimes the dentist repeats the bleaching process a couple of times. This is typical for patients with very stubborn stains. After the bleaching, thorough rinsing of your teeth is necessary to wash out all the bleaching agents.
Why Should You Consider Professional Whitening?
You can brighten your smile by getting self-prescribed whitening products over the counter. The results of such treatments may exhibit after a while, but professionally whitened teeth are better in many ways including the following:
- Safety – the concentration of hydrogen peroxide that you expose your teeth to is a critical factor. If too much of it is used, the element may damage the structure of your teeth, causing unmerited hypersensitivity. Besides, without a dental expert, you can easily damage your gum tissue in your endeavors to whiten your teeth.
- Fast process – within a few minutes in the dentist’s chair, your whitening treatment should be complete. The process of whitening your teeth is fast, thanks to the use of lasers and ultraviolet light to activate and speed up the bleaching process.
- Effectiveness – teeth whitening in a dental clinic is very effective. Patients notice the brightness and whiteness of their teeth immediately after the treatment is complete. With other methods, you may have to keep repeating the procedure over a couple of days to see any improvements in the color of your teeth.
- Longer lasting results – while the results are not permanent, with professional whitening, the brightness of your teeth can last up to 1 year or longer. When you brighten your teeth at home without the intervention of a dental expert, you may need a repeat procedure after a few weeks, usually up to 3 months.
- Boosting oral hygiene – if you are whitening your teeth by yourself, you will never get to understand the value of a deep cleaning session with a dentist. By professionally cleaning your teeth, the brightness thereof is already noticeable. The deep cleaning also boosts your oral hygiene, improving the overall welfare of your oral cavity.
Don’t be afraid, give us a call today so we can not only help you with your oral care, but also help you with your dental care anxiety. Come in to Smiles for Health so we can assess your teeth and help you get ahead of your dental care. Also ask us about our dental whitening services!