Tooth Whitening

Tooth whitening can be a very effective way of lightening the natural colour of your teeth without removing any of the tooth surfaces. There are a number of reasons why you might get your teeth whitened. Everyone is different; and just as our hair, skin colour varies, so do your teeth. Very few people have brilliant-white teeth, and our teeth can also become more discoloured as we get older. Teeth also become discoloured and stained because of food and drink such as; tea, coffee, red wine etc. Smoking can also stain your teeth. Not only do food and drinks stain our teeth, calculus or tartar can affect the colour of our teeth.

The method of tooth whitening we use is the home bleaching; this is the most used and most effective way to bleach your teeth. Firstly, we will take impressions of your upper and lower teeth to create a mould of them, following this we will then be able to make you some retainers which are where you will put the bleaching solution.

We have two different types of bleaching we can offer; Day whitening or Night whitening The day bleaching is recommended if you have sensitive teeth or if you do not like wearing retainers overnight. You wear the retainers for an hour a day. With the day bleaching you will see results within a month. The night bleaching is a faster process as you are wearing them for longer; results are seen within 2 weeks. You wear them for about 5 hours at night, we recommend swilling your mouth with water in the morning to recoat and protect your teeth.

Both methods of whitening will last the same amount of time; however this can vary from person to person. If you smoke, drink or eat products that are high in staining your teeth will stain faster. An average time is about 12-16 months.
The best thing about the home bleaching is that you are able to control how white your teeth go. So, if you feel like your teeth are getting too white then stop whitening and put the solution in to the fridge - this gives you the option that if you feel your teeth are becoming stained again, get your solution out of the fridge and re-whiten. If you run out of the solution make sure you keep your retainers. You can come back to the surgery and ask for another whitening syringe which is £25.
Please note: The bleaching will not work on porcelain. This includes; bridges, veneers, implants bridges.