Teeth Whitening Safety

Should you be concerned about teeth whitening safety? Are you the right candidate for it?

As a matter of fact, teeth whitening has been proven to be a safe procedure when following the users manuals' of all the various products out there. Procedures performed at the dentists clinics are safe too and show no damage or harm to the teeth on both short term and long term.

The active materials being used are bleaching chemicals that affect the color of the outer layers of the teeth and don't harm the tooth itself. The bleaching material "eats up" the natural coating of the teeth and penetrates into the tooth. The lack of this natural coating makes the teeth more sensitive and can cause discomfort to people who have sensitive teeth to begin with!

The question you should ask yourself however, is - Am I the right candidate for teeth whitening? Here are some of the considerations that should be taken :

• Age - The recommended age for teeth whitening is 12 and older. At younger ages our teeth are not settled in and they are still growing. Any interference with Mother Nature's work and our biology can cause long term problems with our teeth - that is why it is recommended not to attempt teeth whitening before the mouth has finished growing and the teeth have settled in (At young ages - teeth whitening safety is a factor!).
• Sensitivity - our teeth sensitivity is big factor we should take into account when thinking whether or not to have our teeth whitened. It is well known that teeth bleaching increases teeth sensitivity and if you suffer from sensitive teeth to begin with you might face unbearable pain after the procedures. If you're one of those unfortunate people I recommend trying the home teeth whitening kits first and see how you handle the pain.
• Natural teeth - The bleaching materials used for teeth whitening work only on natural teeth. If you have some filings or any glue or compounds - their colors will not be changed. Dentists use artificial materials to fill up a crack or a missing part of the tooth and these materials cannot be bleached. The result might not be esthetic when half of your tooth is white and the other half is noticeably much darker.
• Caps bridges - As said above any artificial tooth replacement will not change its color while bleaching your teeth. If your original cap/s or bridge is the same color shade as the rest of your teeth, you must realize that there will be a color shade difference when you finish the process. Your options will be to - 1) live with it (if it's not in a visible area - like the back of your mouth then it's not a big deal) 2)Go to dentist and get cap/s or bridge work that will have the same color shade as your new smile.
• Dental implants - Implants are tooth root replacements. The part that is built on top of the implant and is visible to the eye (the crown) will not change its color during bleaching. So you are facing the same problem as said above.

Oral hygiene health - if you suffer from periodontal problems (Gum diseases) you shouldn't attempt teeth whitening until you see a dentists/periodonthist and solve the problem first.

Since teeth bleaching is not a harmful procedure, teeth whitening safety is not the right term to be used but rather: Am I the right candidate for teeth whitening? So after checking out the factors above - Are you?!

Read more about the procedures:

• Blue Light Whitening
• Laser Light Whitening
• Whitening Strips
• Whitening Pen
• Tooth pastes

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