We are all aware of signs of aging such as gray hair, wrinkles and sun spots, but did you know your teeth may be giving away clues about how many trips around the sun you’ve taken?
With time, our teeth can become dull, stained and crowded. I recall always noticing how yellow my grandparents teeth were and how especially on the bottom their teeth were overlapping and crooked. Human nature has evolved over time so that we have developed a natural attraction to features that are bright and symmetrical since these are indicators of good health and vitality. Luckily, when it comes to color, attaining a youthful white smile has never been easier. In fact, whitening is in most cases the easiest, least expensive and most impactful cosmetic procedure you can do, literally taking years off your smile and restoring it back to that bright white smile you remember. If you are also dealing with issues related to crowding, a fantastic solution to restore alignment and improve your bite is Invisalign, which you can read more about HERE
So how does whitening work?
Whitening works by applying a whitening solution that typically has hydrogen peroxide as the main ingredient. The hydrogen peroxide breaks down in your mouth releasing water, hydrogen and oxygen ions that that work on a molecular level to break up stains.
What are the best options?
There a lot of whitening products our there and they almost all contain the same active ingredients, so they probably all work about the same, right? Actually, wrong! Whitening is one of those things where the devil is in the details. If you’re reasonably satisfied with your smile, an over the counter whitening kit that can improve things by a few shades might be sufficient, but if your goal is to get that perfect celebrity white smile, a professional strength product is your best option.
At Deering Dental I have tested many whitening systems over the years and have yet to find anything that comes close to the results I’ve seen with KoR. In fact I use KoR exclusively, because it is the only system I’ve found that consistently gives my patients the results they’re looking for with little to no sensitivity.
So what makes KoR special?
Remember those details I mentioned? Whitening solution degrades with time and heat. KoR is always shipped fresh and is refrigerated from the moment it is manufactured, to the moment we use it. This insures that you are getting a full potency product. KoR is also different in how it is used. Typical professional whitening is usually done in one or two intense sessions that can cause sensitivity and pain. Many systems also use a light or laser which has little impact on your final results and can cause extreme sensitivity due to drying your teeth out. KoR on the other hand is a hybrid system that uses a combination of at-home trays and an in office session with no light. Doing it this way gives the solution more time to reach deep seated stains and avoids the sensitivity that a single intense session can cause. My husband has incredibly sensitive teeth and winces with pain at the mere thought of biting into something cold, but I convinced him to try KoR and he reported no pain, minimal sensitivity and was ecstatic with his results. Here he is smiling, (show pic of peter)
Is whitening the right option for me?
Almost everyone is a candidate for whitening but there are some things to consider. If you have dental work on your front teeth that is visible when you smile, the dental work will not whiten. This means that for example if you have a crown on a front tooth and do whitening, the crown will stay the same dark color and will no longer match your new white smile. Replacing the crown with a new one made to match your new shade is your best solution in this case. If you are in need of dental work that may be visible when you smile, I highly recommend you do whitening before hand so that any dental work that is done, can be made to match your new brighter smile.
How can I get started?
Call my office and ask to set up a personalized smile consult with me. At your consult I’ll sit down with you to discuss your goals and desired outcome and we will take some pictures so that I can digitally create your smile using your criteria and show you what the final results will look like. Once you’re happy with the intended outcome, we’ll work together to create a treatment plan to get you there.
