A Guide to Using Teeth Whiteners

A person’s teeth can change colours over time; that is, from pristine white to something a little bit darker. This is caused by changes in the enamel’s chemical composition as well as ingestion of certain foods and drinks.

A tooth’s primary whiteness is due to the thick enamel coating (enamel being hardest substance on a human body) but certain bacterial actions from leftover food in the mouth can cause a discolouration. The enamel’s chemical composition also changes as a person ages, starting from a white deciduous set of teeth (baby teeth) causing the next underlying layer, the dentin, to become discoloured too. Those who have a habit a drinking dark-coloured liquids like coffee, tea, chocolate and red wines run the risk of having less than white teeth.

Although there are home remedies available for this seemingly cosmetic problem, the best way to do it is consult your family dentist first. This medical service professional can give valuable advice on the best and safest way to achieve white teeth without the accompanying risks. Teeth whitening procedures are alternatively known as tooth bleaching, in which the very small particles causing the discolouration are removed by oxidation. On the whole, there are two types of bleaching: the at-home and the professional bleaching procedures performed at the dental office.

For those who are confident enough to do it themselves, the main procedure is simply to brush the teeth using a toothbrush dipped in bleaching gel placed in thin trays. An alternative way is to use small strips (like Band-Aids) but these go over the front portion of the teeth only, as it difficult and also impractical to whiten the back portion of the teeth. However, this home remedy cannot hope to replace a job done by a dentist, as most teeth discolouration eventually seeps into the inner layers of the dentin.

When this happens, it is necessary to seek professional medical help using some blue-light (like a sort of X-rays or ultraviolet light) to cure the bleaching material and make the whitening effective. If done by the dentist, there are three general ways of doing this: using laser technology, bonding and last is using veneer (like applying a thin layer of white lacquer on the enamel).

In practically all procedures, the main active ingredient used to achieve white teeth is an oxidizing agent which could be using either hydrogen peroxide or carbamide peroxide. Both peroxides are actually mild forms of acids that occur often naturally which the body then breaks down into oxygen and water harmlessly. The most popular used today is the bleaching gel contained in teeth whitening kits available in drug stores or even online.

Please bear in mind that teeth whitening should take a little time (not those very fast within the hour only) since care must be taken not to unintentionally damage the enamel using very strong acids. The very minute deposits causing the discolouration had gathered over time, and should likewise be removed only gradually. Highly-concentrated acid gels should be used with caution to avoid possible burns while low-concentration gels are virtually safe to use by anyone.

At home treatments may not quite compare with those you might receive from a dentist, but they are a good deal cheaper. That said, both are extremely effective and can provide decent, safe results when done correctly.

Derek Rogers is a freelance writer who represents a number of UK businesses. To buy Teeth Whitening Gel online, he recommends Direct Whitening.