In the last 10 years, the field of teeth whitening san diego, both in the dental office and at home, has changed enormously. There are basically two different methods of getting whiter teeth: teeth whitening (in the office) and home treatment. Discover some secrets about teeth whitening that your dentist hopes you will never tell!
Method # 1: Teeth Whitening (In the Office)
I can tell you from first-hand experience that dentists LOVE the patient who wants to undergo a teeth whitening procedure in the dental office. In the early 90s, there was only one option available.
Your dentist would make molds of your teeth, send them to a lab, and in 5-10 days you would receive your custom teeth whitening nozzle. Then she would sit in the dental chair for 1-2 hours, with these peroxide-filled (very low concentration) plastic teeth whitening molds pressed against her teeth and gums.
After 3-4 visits, her teeth would be officially declared whiter (and they usually were), and he would be sent home with a nice $ 500 to $ 1,000 bill to pay. And with whiter teeth of course.
I’ll be the first to admit that dental office teeth whitening has come a long way in the last 10 years. Now the most popular dental office teeth whitening procedure known as laser whitening (or teeth whitening san diego, argon whitening, etc.) is a shorter process. Basically, this teeth whitening procedure consists of applying a concentrated peroxide gel to your teeth, then for the next hour you sit in a dental chair with your mouth wide open, while the whitening paste is illuminated with a light. special (usually argon). which in turn chemically reacts with peroxide to complete the teeth whitening process in the shortest time possible.
This teeth whitening procedure works. However, many dentists say that you get a whiter smile with repeated applications of the tray because the tooth whitening peroxide stays in contact with your teeth for longer periods of time. The downside is that you still get stuck with that fat $ 500- $ 1,000 bill (at least for the good teeth whitening procedure) AND you still need to come back 6 months later for another teeth whitening (excuse me, a touch-up!), Or They give you some bleaching items to take home. So why did you spend between $ 500 and $ 1,000 on an in-office teeth whitening procedure?
Fortunately, like most things in life, technology stepped in to make teeth whitening easier and more affordable.
Method # 2: Teeth Whitening at Home
I’ll say it once just to get you out there, it is now possible (in almost all cases) to achieve ‘dental office’ quality teeth whitening, from the comfort of your home! “At-home” teeth whitening has taken a bite out of (sorry for the pun) powerful “in-office” whitening systems, where millions of dollars of corporate advertising now compete with the convenience of at-home teeth whitening. .
That’s right…
Until a few years ago, teeth whitening was quite a complex process. The hard part was making those mouthpieces fitted for each patient, for this reason alone, home teeth whitening was not an option for most people.
Essentially There Are 3 Different Home Teeth Whitening Options Available
Teeth Whitening Option # 1 – Brush Whitening
Brush teeth whitening in principle is a great concept, just brush the formula, let it dry on your teeth, and let it stay on your teeth overnight. Sounds simple right?
In reality, tooth whitening with a brush is designed for the segment of the public that is in love with shortcuts (that is, for those people who do not want to waste time to get it right the first time). Brush teeth whitening has TWO MAIN DEFECTS:
1. When you brush your teeth with the whitening formula, it is based on the premise that it will dry out your teeth. This is great in principle, but if you get your teeth whitening formula wet (i.e. from saliva or licking your teeth) then it becomes REALLY easy to rub parts of the formula. And guess what happens if you just rub one part of the teeth whitening formula? You have it, you don’t get a uniform whitening result! It is irregular and blotchy.
Teeth Whitening Option # 2 – Strips That You Stick on Your Teeth
The second most common type of home teeth whitening is the use of whitening strips. The main attraction of this home teeth whitening option is the simplicity of use of the strips, they are easy to apply and no preparation is necessary. Again, everyone loves shortcuts, right? Unfortunately, once again, that’s exactly the kind of teeth whitening that you end up getting! Let me explain …
The strips that adhere to the teeth generally consist of an upper strip and a lower strip, each pressed against the outer surface of the teeth. Now think about this for a second … Are your teeth completely flat? Of course not, they have gaps and grooves, particularly between each tooth. Well, imagine that you are painting a fence and you simply put paint on the outside, without taking the time to paint in the grooves between each wooden plank. That fence would look a lot of fun, right? Very nicely painted on the outside, but in the grooves between each wooden board, still dark and dingy, with all the old paint showing.
When you use teeth whitening strips, the same can easily happen to your teeth if you are not careful. The whiter your teeth get, the more pronounced those dirty cracks appear! Over time, it may appear that you have small gaps between your teeth. Definitely not the desired result!
Teeth Whitening Option # 3 – Whitening Gel Trays
Trays with whitening gels still provide the best combination of the most affordable and efficient tooth whitening available. Since I’m a dentist, I can tell you some little secrets (some secrets that most dentists would fire me for telling you, as it costs them thousands of dollars in lost income).
First, most of the tooth whitening gels available from your dentist are exactly the same. There is very little difference from one dentist to another, that’s because the gels are formulated by a small number of manufacturers.
Second, most of the tooth whitening gels available in retail stores are of very poor quality. They have been sitting in a warehouse or truck for who knows how long, and because they are designed to be “low cost” they have very low concentrations of active ingredients. Older tooth whitening gels use a concentration of only 16% carbamide peroxide.
Third, the only thing in common between the dental office and “stored” tooth whitening gels is that they both use glycerin as a carrier agent. Now, there is nothing wrong with glycerin alone. It is not dangerous in any way. However, when mixed with carbamide peroxide, glycerin is used to extract water from the enamel in order to speed up the whitening process. This is what causes the most common side effect of teeth whitening: sensitive teeth! Therefore, you will want to find a teeth whitening product that does not use a glycerin base.
