If you are considering whitening your smile, you've probably noticed you have a few different options to choose from. Here, our Toronto dentists discuss your teeth whitening options.
Whitening Strips
Dental whitening strips are small strips of plastic coated with a peroxide-based gel that you can purchase at your pharmacy. The strips are applied to the teeth, allowing the peroxide reduce the appearance of surface stains.
Whitening strips should not be worn for more than 30 minutes at a time, and they are typically applied daily for a two or three week period.
This product contains only a small amount of peroxide, so the end results are usually quite subtle.
Whitening Toothpastes
Whitening toothpaste can lighten the colour of your teeth slightly by minimizing surface stains. They will not lighten the natural colour of your teeth, and they also cannot lighten stains that have penetrated beneath the surface enamel.
Enamel strengthening toothpastes can also make teeth appear whiter because they help ‘remineralize’ tooth enamel. This seals cracks that tend to pick up stains.
With regular use of an enamel strengthening toothpaste, you can help protect your enamel from sustaining further damage, which can help prevent stains from forming in the first place.
In-Office Teeth Bleaching
You can have your teeth whitened in a single, hour-long session at your dentist’s office with in-office teeth whitening. Your dentist will use a concentrated whitening solution available only for professional use to lighten the natural colour of your teeth and remove surface stains.
Our in-office whitening system allows for more efficient results in comparison to at-home whitening systems, which are completed over days or weeks. Your teeth will also appear significantly whiter because the professional grade solution allows for stain removal and lightening of the natural enamel colour.
At-Home Whitening Trays
At home teeth whitening is professional whitening, supervised by a dentist, that you can do at home. It requires an initial visit to the dentist, and dental impressions from which your whitening trays will be made.
Your dentist will explain the process to you, and tell you how frequently and how long you should wear the trays. You will then take the trays and whitening solution home, and manage the treatment process yourself. The gel is usually worn for between 30 minutes to few hours a day for a period of one to three weeks.
Over time, the whitening solution will remove surface stains from your teeth, and lighten their natural colour as well.
Porcelain Veneers
Porcelain veneers are very thin strips of tooth-shaped porcelain that are adhered to the fronts of the teeth to alter their symmetry, shape, and colour.
If you only have one or a few teeth that are discoloured, veneers may be a practical solution to make the colour of your teeth look more consistent.