5 Questions to Ask Yourself Before Whitening Your Teeth

Posted on: 27 May 2022

Are you thinking about whitening your teeth? Teeth-whitening treatment is an effective way of removing stains from your teeth. If you want to look your best for an upcoming wedding or social event, or you simply want to improve your appearance, whitening your teeth can help.

If you have little experience with teeth whitening, you might not know where to begin. The following questions can help you to understand what you want and need before you start whitening treatment.   

1. Will you whiten your teeth yourself?

You can choose to hire a professional such as a dentist to whiten your teeth, or you can whiten your teeth yourself. Whitening your teeth using whitening kits from a store can be difficult at first. You'll need to fill the trays with the whitening solution and then place the trays on your teeth to start the process. But because store-bought whitening kits often don't fit well, they can be hard to use.

A smart approach to teeth whitening is to have a dentist whiten your teeth. Dentists use whitening trays that fit your mouth. And dentists can protect your gums and teeth from damage during the whitening process. In-office whitening also achieves faster results than whitening done at home, using store-bought kits.  

2. What shade of white do you want your teeth to be?

How white would you like your teeth to be? Alone, choosing a shade is difficult. But a dentist can help you choose a shade of white that suits you. Dentists can also target their whitening treatments to achieve the shade of white you want.  

3. Do you have any cavities?

The whitening gel in whitening treatments contains hydrogen peroxide, a compound that removes stains from teeth. If you have any tooth cavities, the whitening gel from a teeth whitening can enter those cavities and cause you pain. Have your dentist check your teeth for cavities before you start whitening your teeth.

4. Do you have sensitive gums?

Whitening gel can irritate gum tissue, especially sensitive gum tissue. Gum irritation can lead to gum recession, which puts the roots of your teeth in danger of tooth decay and erosion.

Consider using a dentist to whiten your teeth if you want to avoid damaging your gums.

5. Will you continue to whiten your teeth in the future?

Some patients whiten their teeth for special occasions, whereas others want to keep their teeth white all the time. If you want to keep your teeth white after your treatment, your dentist can give you some trays to take home. You can use these trays to gradually whiten your teeth. 

For more information about teeth whitening, contact a local dentist. 

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