I love bright, white teeth. White teeth makes your smile look better, gives you more self esteem, and makes you look younger. White teeth changes people’s attitude and personality by making them look good and feel good about themselves. Pictures always look amazing when you have white teeth. Teeth can discolor as we age, take medications and develop tartar and stains. One rule I tell my patients is “whatever stains your white shirt can stain your teeth”. For example, broccoli and rice will not stain your teeth, but a blueberry or a glass of wine will. If you drink coffee and tea, like myself you will develop stain. A solution to this problem would be to invest in a sonicare toothbrush and a good quality toothpaste such as opalesence. I love my sonicare, and I am the perfect example that it works. Come check my teeth out for yourself if you’d like.
How do you get white teeth you ask? Excellent question. If you are in rush, have a special event or need instant gratification, you can do a one hour dental office treatment. You can use custom dental whitening trays for an hour for a few days. You can brush daily with a professional quality whitening toothpaste such a opalensce and a sonicare toothbrush. You can get crowns and veneers to achieve the exact shade, shape and size of your tooth. Everyones circumstances, committments and desires will be different so your local dentist can help you choose which treatment is best for you.
For the best results, you should do the combination of the three whitening processes.
1. One hour in office whitening. This is to kick start the whitening process. It’s fast, convinient and you see the results right away. The teeth are polished to remove stains and tartar, the gums are then isolated to be protected from the bleaching solution, a solution of 28%-40% carbamide peroxide is place on the teeth for 3-4 intervals of 10-15 minutes. Our bleaching solution is very concentrated so it cannot be done at home and it can burn your skin, eyes and mouth.
2. Take home bleaching trays. Solutions range from 8%-20%. Every few weeks or months, you have to touch up, or re-whiten your teeth. Like dying you hair, you have to maintain the color. The trays are worn for about an hour per day and the bleach is placed only on teeth that are visible when you smile. The gel should cover only your teeth. If you place too much solution on the tray and it overflows to your gums, you can irritate the gums and cause yourself discomfort, so be careful not to get the gel on your gums. You will just be wasting your product.
3. The sonicare toothbrush with opalensce toothpaste. Daily brushing twice a day with this toothpaste creates amazing results.
For more questions and answers about teeth whitening visit http://www.webmd.com/oral-health/guide/teeth-whitening-faq and http://www.teethwhiteningreviews.com/faq.php
Your Family and Cosmetic Dentist
Dr. Linda Ma DMD
I am super excited to receive our Diamond clean pink sonicare toothbrush. The Sonicare Diamond clean keeps my teeth extra clean and white with its 5 speeds and sonic action. It removes plaque better than a manual toothbrush and keeps stains from accumulating. I brush twice a day with opalescence toothpaste, and floss at bedtime to make sure that my teeth are in health. No bleeding, odor, or gingival disease in my mouth. I often get asked how to get teeth white, and the best way is to remove the stains, and a monthly whitening maintainence with a whitening product. It’s just like dying your hair. If you want it to look good, you have to maintain it and invest time in it. Everyone is always looking for a quick solution when the answer is right in front of them. Visiting your dentist on a regular basis and basic oral hygiene will keep your teeth looking great. Have an amazing day! See you in the office. Dr Linda Ma
