Brightening your smile
with teeth whitening
Teeth whitening is a simple procedure that can make a big difference to your smile. Through removing stains and brightening your teeth, whitening lifts your smile quickly and economically. As our teeth become stained over time through what you eat and drink, removing stains gives your smile a more youthful and attractive look with minimal intervention.
How does teeth whitening work?
Our teeth come into contact with a variety of substances that cause staining and discolouration. Common examples are coffee, tea, red wine and cigarette smoke. Over time, the stains from these substances penetrate into the teeth. This limits light reflection from the teeth and makes teeth look darker.
- Your dentist will take impressions of your teeth and these will be used to make custom fitted trays that carry the tooth whitening gel.
- The trays and gel are used at night for approximately ten days. Once in contact with the teeth, the whitening gel breaks down and passes into the tooth, breaking up stains and flushing them out.
- After several days the stains are removed and light reflects back off the teeth making them look brighter.
- The custom trays can be reused to top-up your whitening using professionally formulated gels
The limitations of teeth whitening
- Crowns, veneers, and fillings will not lighten.
- It is not effective with certain stains such as those caused by Tetracycline antibiotics. However, there are other options to deal with such stains such as veneers which can be discussed during your consultation.
- It is associated with sensitivity, however this only lasts whilst the treatment is being carried out.
Do my teeth need any preparation?
If your teeth are stained, removing any surface stains of the teeth prior to teeth whitening will enhance the results from teeth whitening. If we notice any oral disease, these should be addressed first.
Is teeth whitening safe?
Yes, tooth whitening is the most commonly used cosmetic procedure world-wide and has been proven to be safe and effective if carried out correctly. However it should only be carried out by a trained dental practitioner.