Teeth Whitening near Ottewell
The best way to brighten your smile is by undergoing teeth whitening treatment. You can do so by booking an appointment at our community dental clinic or you can purchase pre-packaged kits and do it in your own home. Both routes have their pros and cons, so, if you’re unsure which path is best for you, talk to a dentist about teeth whitening near you today.
Why Do My Teeth Get Stained?
Over time, our teeth start to darken. This can be caused by a variety of factors like lifestyle habits. Noted below are some of the most common reasons why our smiles become discolored:
- Oral trauma, specifically one that damages your enamel and dentin.
- Using tobacco. The nicotine and tar found in tobacco will lead to prominent stains especially if you’re an avid smoker.
- Genetics.
- Aging.
- Food and drinks – mainly dark berries, curry, beer, coffee, red wine, and tea.
- Medications, namely antihistamines and antipsychotics. Chemotherapy will lead to visible stains too.
Which is Better: In-Office or At-Home Treatments?
Depending on your preferences, you can go about enhancing your smile in several ways. Even though dentists will recommend professional or in-office whitening, it can be expensive to do this, so at-home whitening may be the way to go.
Described below are what each method entails so you can understand them better.
In-office
One of two bleaching agents can be used to whiten your teeth at a dental clinic: hydrogen peroxide and carbamide peroxide. Each substance is extremely adept at removing stains from beneath your enamel. Your dentist will make sure that your smile is exposed to the appropriate amount of bleach, since too much can end up damaging your teeth instead of helping them shine.
The chemicals will be wiped off your smile after a minute; your dentist will reapply it after. Such a cycle is continued until the color of white that you want is obtained.
Overall, this process doesn’t hurt, but you may experience some minor sensitivity. If you have concerns about teeth whitening near you, let your dental team know.
At-home
These treatments are available at most pharmacies and provide you with multiple choices including whitening toothpaste, mouthwashes, gels, strips, and trays. If you want to take a more alternative route, you can also try swishing with coconut or sesame oil; this is said to extract or “pull” bacteria from your gums though there isn’t any research to officially prove this. Applying a mixture of baking soda and toothpaste to your teeth is also effective.
Simple methods to make your smile shine include brushing your teeth each day and eating less food that cause stains.
At Holyrood Dental, we provide teeth whitening in Edmonton to new and returning patients. Send us an email or stop by our location to set up a consultation.
