The two
questions my friends ask me are “Does bleaching work?” and “Will
bleaching damage teeth?” All of the bleaching systems work. However
some work better and faster than others and some are safer. The
American Dental Association has published new standards for acceptance of products as “Safe” and
“Effective”. At the present time, only one product has met those standards.
ADA Accepted At-home Bleaching Products:
Product |
Whitening Agent |
Manufacturer |
Opalescence Whitening Gel 10% |
10% Carbamide peroxide |
Ultradent Products, Inc. |
Dentist Prescribed At-Home Bleaching
You should
first have an evaluation by a dentist to determine if there are any
reasons you should not bleach. Tooth colored restorations will not
change color, while the teeth around them may lighten. Some
discolorations may be very stubborn and your dentist will be able to
tell you how likely you are to have a pleasing outcome.
If you
elect to have at-home bleaching the dentist will take an impression of
your teeth so he/she can make a tray that fits over your teeth as
snuggly as contact lenses. On the next appointment he/she will show you
how to place the gel into the tray. You only place the gel into the
cheek side of the tray, as that is where the reservoirs will have been
placed. Then place the tray in the mouth and clean off the excess gel.
This will be done every evening after brushing the teeth. After
removal of the tray, you will be shown how to remove the gel from the
inside of the tray, using the front end of the toothbrush. You will be
given a tray holder into which to place the tray during non-use.
Over-the-counter At-Home Bleaching
There are
many products on the supermarket for Tooth Whitening. None of those
products are approved as “safe” and “effective” by the American Dental
Association (ADA). Unfortunately the manufactures do not list the
concentrations of the products on the label. Here is a table of the
concentration of Carbamide Peroxide or Hydrogen Peroxide for some of the
most common over-the-counter products:
Product |
Whitening Agent |
Manufacturer |
Simply White |
18% Carbamide Peroxide |
Colgate Oral Pharmaceuticals |
Whitestrips |
6% Hydrogen Peroxide |
Procter & Gamble |
Extreme |
10% Carbamide Peroxide |
Natural White |
Rembrandt Plus |
10% Carbamide Peroxide |
Den-Mat Corporation |
Metadent System |
0.7 Hydrogen Peroxide |
Unilever |
Plus+White |
5% Hydrogen Peroxide |
CCA Industries |
I consider
these over-the-counter products as “entry level” bleaching products.
Some of them have the same concentration as the ADA recommends, but most
of the products contain gels that are of a higher concentration than
recommended by the ADA.
In-Office
Bleaching
The last
type of bleaching is the In-Office bleaching procedure. During such a
procedure the dentist will cover the gum tissue with a barrier of resin,
so the high concentration of bleaching agent does not come in contact
with tissue. Sometimes dentists will use a light to activate the
bleaching agent. We researchers are not convinced the light makes the
product whiten teeth any faster. This method is more expensive than the
professionally prescribed At-Home bleaching procedure.
If you have
any other questions about tooth whitening do not hesitate to contact me. |