Whitening
Everyone wants a bright white smile. When it comes to tooth-whitening, you've had two options: in-office based teeth bleaching, or at-home care. Tooth bleaching can make teeth temporarily sensitive and can be uncomfortable for people who already have sensitive teeth. When used incorrectly, home kits can also lead to burned and even temporarily bleached gums.
Because of the potential risks of using home whitening kits we recommend a supervised approach to whitening your teeth. Another reason to choose in-office teeth whitening done by your dentist is your teeth get brighter faster.
How Does Teeth Whitening Work?
Stains on teeth can be classified in one of two ways: extrinsic or intrinsic. Extrinsic stains appear on the surface of your teeth. Intrinsic stains live between the micro-cracks in your enamel and deep within your dentin (the layer of your tooth underneath your enamel). Whitening toothpastes and mouth rinses may be able to remove some of the extrinsic stains on your teeth. But only teeth whitening agents can remove the stubborn extrinsic stains and the unsightly intrinsic stains that cause your teeth to look discolored.
Opalescence gels contain an active whitening ingredient (either carbamide peroxide or hydrogen peroxide) that penetrates your enamel to get to discolored molecules. Oxygen molecules from the whitening agents react with the discolored molecules in your teeth, breaking the bonds that hold them together. The oxygen molecules spread, whitening the entire tooth. As a result, you are left with a brighter, whiter smile.
What is the In-Office Process?
We will take impressions of your teeth that will be used to construct custom trays for your at home use. Our whitening gel contains carbamide peroxide (stronger than at-home systems) which you will place in the custom-made trays that have been fitted for your teeth. You will be instructed on the length of time and frequency of use to achieve your desired results. The custom trays are reusable for future applications as needed.