Peroxide for Teeth Whitening
I understand that the teeth whitening gel that dentists use are made of peroxide. I was thinking about saving some time going back and forth to the dentist by just whitening with the peroxide I have at home. How long would I have to keep it on? Do you have any recommendations for how to go about it?
Laurie
Dear Laurie,
While it is true that dentists use a peroxide to whiten teeth, it is not the peroxide you are purchasing over the counter. Using over-the-counter peroxide That is a liquid 3% solution, which is very weak. What your dentist uses is a gel that is at least 33% peroxide. It’s significantly stronger.
If you were to try to do this yourself, you would need to keep the peroxide on your teeth for a minimum of fifteen minutes at a time for it to penetrate the teeth. Because it would be liquid that would mean that you would have to keep swishing it around in your mouth for that length of time. Not only would that be uncomfortable for you and impractical, but there is a negative medical side effect, too.
This is because peroxide is great at killing bacteria. The only problem with that is it does not distinguish between good an bad bacteria. As a result, you will end up with an oral yeast infection on the soft tissue in your mouth.
The safest thing for you to do is to have professional teeth whitening done. Not only is the whitening more effective because it is stronger and in gel form, but your dentist will provide you with a custom fitted tray that you will wear over your teeth. This will keep the gel on your teeth while protecting your mouth and gums. You won’t have to go back and forth, You can wear the trays at home and your dentist will provide you with the gel to take with you.
This blog is brought to you by Moline Dentist Dr. Thomas Goebel.
Click here to learn about in office Zoom Whitening where you can get brilliantly white teeth in just one appointment.
Will Lemon Peels Whiten My Teeth?
I read something that said rubbing lemon essential oils on my teeth or even just lemon peels would help to whiten my teeth, but my sister thinks it is a bad idea because it could damage my teeth. I love my sister but she is sort of a know-it-all. However, I don’t want to ignore her if she is right. So…am I going to have to admit to my sister that she is right or do I have something one up on her finally?
Harriet
Dear Harriet,
I am glad you wrote. So, I don’t know if you will consider this good news, but your sister is right. It is a bad idea to try to whiten your teeth with lemons. As a citrus fruit, it contains citric acid. This will etch the enamel. While that will temporarily make them look a bit whiter, the etching will cause your teeth to pick up stains more quickly. In the long run, it is a bad idea.
DIY is not the best way to go. If you are looking for something over the counter, then I would recommend Crest Whitestrips. They do work but there are some things to consider. First, it will only cover the front six teeth. Most smiles are eight to ten teeth wide. This means you will have to double up on the number of strips you use.
A second issue is that the strength of the whitening is only a fraction of what you would get with your dentist. This also translates to having to use more strips to get the same amount of results. To give you an idea of what I mean, professional teeth whitening is usually about a 33% concentration of the whitening ingredient. Crest Whitestrips is about 6%. I am not trying to discourage you from getting them. I just want you to be realistic about what you’ll get out of the purchase.
If cost is the only reason you are trying to go DIY, I might suggest talking to your dentist and asking if he would allow you to make payments so you can get your teeth whitened under a dentist’s supervision.
This blog is brought to you by Moline Dentist Dr. Goebel.