Want To Take Your Pearly Whites To the Next Level? homewhitening

A Convenient, Take Home Whitening Kit Is a Must

A Typical Case
So you’ve had your teeth whitened by the dentist. They look brighter and whiter than ever and you couldn’t be happier. You’re brushing twice a day, flossing every day, and switching out orange juice for your morning coffee. Your teeth love you!

But six months down the road you forget to brush your teeth one night, and then you sneak a cup of coffee at work. A week later, you notice that the brightness of your teeth is beginning to fade. You ask yourself “What’s going on here? It was just one cup of coffee…and I just had my teeth whitened!”

Just like brushing your teeth, whitening your teeth is a lifelong commitment. Even after you receive professional teeth whitening treatment from your dentist, debris can still collect inside the micro-cracks in your teeth, re-staining them. To get a brilliantly white smile that endures you will need to routinely whiten your teeth, just like you routinely schedule a dental cleaning every 6 months to prevent tooth decay. With take home whitening kits, whitening can be done regularly without the need for multiple trips to the dentist.

How It Works
At-home whitening kits are often prescribed as a follow-up for in-office whitening treatments. Whitening at home can help improve the brightness of your smile and prevent your teeth from losing their shine. Below are the basic steps for at-home teeth whitening:

• Make an appointment with your dentist to be fitted for custom-fit trays. You should get the trays back in 1-2 weeks, and you will use them to apply the whitening solution.
• During your appointment, the dentist will give you instructions on how to use your whitening kit. Your dentist will show you how much whitening gel to put in the tray and how it is dispensed.
• After you receive your custom trays, you will apply the whitening gel for about an hour every day for 1-2 weeks. The results are not as fast as in-office whitening, but they can be just as dramatic – you can expect that the color of your teeth will improve by several shades.

What’s In This Stuff?
The whitening gel used in take home kits usually contains carbomide peroxide, which is a slower acting and less potent bleaching agent. The lower concentration prevents patients from damaging their gums.

Which Whitening Treatment Is Right For Me?
Whether you choose a take home whitening kit, an in-office whitening treatment, or both depends on your unique situation, your schedule, and the current shade of your teeth. In-office teeth whitening is fast and effective, and great for treating severely stained teeth. People who want to follow up with their in-office treatment, or who want to whiten on their own schedule instead of having to come in to the office for whitening treatments, usually prefer take home kits.

Why Would Someone Use a Take Home Kit?

• The patient has sensitive gums and would like to use a lower concentration peroxide.
• The patient has had in-office whitening and would like to continue whitening.
• The patient wants to save time by not making an appointment for whitening treatment.

Whatever your reason, take home whitening kits are a great option! If you’re interested in a take home whitening kit you can click here to schedule an appointment and discuss the options available for you.

Next week we will discuss the results that you can expect to see from teeth whitening. We’ll talk about how dentists measure the shade of your teeth, and what the ideal shade might be for you.