Question:
Has anyone had success with over the counter brands? Is it true that it's
the same stuff that dentists charge several hundred dollars for? Lets hear
your questions & stories!
Answer:
I tried over the counter products for several years and could tell very
little whitening progress. I probably spent hundreds of dollars trying to
save hundreds of dollars and lots of waiting and waiting for it to work.
Well, last year, I just had it done at the dentist fot $200.00 total, and
they were sparkly white in a week, and I still have plenty of spare
bleaching gel for touch up treatments which I only need to do about once a
year. So, if I were you I would save some time and money and just go to the
dentist and have it done...instant gratification is always worth the money.
I've been using over the counter whitening toothpaste for a long time now
(almost two years) and honestly, I think they *do not* work . I once tried the
bleaching kit from a dentist, but got too lazy and stopped using it. From what
i know, they work very well for a couple of hundred dollars. I'm thinking of
going back again.
could you tell me what brand you got from the dentist's office and how
long you used it for? Did your teeth become sensitive to hot or cold
beverages?
from what I have learned, some precaution should be exercised when
you bleach your teeth, aesthetically speaking. This is because if you have
any restorations on your front teeth (or the teeth that show when you smile),
they will show up much more after bleaching.
This means that if you have had any work done on those teeth (crowns, chipped
teeth that were fixed with composite, which is that white stuff that matches
your teeth), the patches and crowns will be more obvious after bleaching.
Crooked teeth, or spaces between teeth will be accentuated too. After
bleaching, your teeth will be much whiter. Thus, the crowns and composite
patches may not match your new tooth color. There will be bigger contrasts
between the darker spaces btn. teeth and the whiter teeth.
Over the counter toothpastes (Rembrant, Aquafresh, etc) do not work as well as
bleaching agents provided to you by your dentist, or bleaching procedures done
in the dentist's office. Many of the toothpastes have an acidic solution as
their primary ingredients, which can actually dissolve tooth structure.
Another bad ingredient is titanium dioxide, a polishing cream also found in
paint. This ingredient has been found to be upsetting to our stomachs.
You can also get your teeth bleached in the dentist's office. An advantage to
this is you get immediate results. Bleaching usually works best on teeth that
are stained orange, yellow, or light brown. It works worst on teeth that are
stained dark grey and blue. My professor said that the going rate for
bleaching is about $200.00 for the top teeth, and $200.00 for the bottom
teeth. It is unknown how long the bleach will last though. 8 out of 10
patients can expect to retain the lighter color for at least 1 year.
Normally, it depends on whether the patient smokes, doesn't brush often, etc.
