Advice on Teeth Whitening Discussion Thread

silvertree

I would love a bit of advice. I have been wondering about a couple of Blanx products and whether you know if there is any substance in their claims? Blanx Whitening and Intensive Stain Removal - are these really any good? Also, I am interested in Biorepair toothpaste which claims to rebuild tooth enamel - is there any truth in this or is it market speak? Thanks in advance.

welshdent

Once enamel goes ... as far as i know it goes. I suspect what they say is it helps to remineralise the enamel before it is lost.

Toothsmith

There are things like Tooth Mousse and to some extent Sensodyne Pronamel which can 'rebuild' enamel on a microscopic level. That is, help demineralised enamel remineralise again.

But on any visible level, you can't rebuild tooth enamel.

silvercar

help demineralised enamel remineralise again

Can you explain what this means please.

welshdent

silvercar wrote: »

Can you explain what this means please.

When you eat, the bacteria in your mouth metabolise the sugars in the food to create acid. This acid lowers the pH in your mouth to a point where enamel will soften or demineralise. On a macro level this is not noticible but over time it is visible as gradually making the tooth in effect smaller as the layers are softened and wear away. This softening means it is easier to wear down with normal use compared to normal use with the pH in your mouth is normal. Remineralisation means just that ... it remineralises the tooth making them strong again and harder to wear away... but once you wear it away it isnt coming back. I usually do not recommend brushing your tooth straight after food because the action of the brushing increases wear. Your saliva naturally helps to remineralise teeth.

pinkneonmartini

hi guys, i've sort of scanned the thread, and was seriously considering getting my teeth whitened professionally, as my dentist will do it for £399 and offers a 0% interest monthly payment plan very:money:but what i'm wondering is if it's really worth it???

My teeth aren't exactly black, but they are yellowing, and they are quite stained, yes i smoke, yes i drink black coffee, yes i drink red wine, sometimes i even do all three in one day lol but if i can get a decent sparkle at home with some bicarb then do i really need to shell out £399????

It's the stains that bug me more than anything, i tried an abbrasive thing on a stick, bit like a toothpick with a blob of pummice stone on the end, and it was rubbish! But i'm far to aprehensive to even attempt using bleach gels at home.

Does bicarb really work? and is it safe? I have a fair few fillings, and for some reason recently have become prone to teeny tiny cavities, and i don't like the idea of anything fizzy getting into the holes IYKWIM.

I currently use Pearl Drops for smokers toothpaste and mouthwash. But when my teeth have bugged me before ive used the theramed £5 whitening/bleaching toothpaste, with decent results (but not brilliant).

Any suggestions would be great.

Toothsmith

Of course you don't NEED to spend £399 on whitening your teeth.

It has no health benefit whatsoever, and doesn't improve the function of your teeth.

It is a purely cosmetic CHOICE which you can have done if you want them to look a bit whiter.

The thing that always beats me is why people choose to risk the HEALTH and FUNCTION of their teeth by trying to do a completely unnecessary cosmetic proceedure using dubious chemicals.

In the case of smokers though, it doesn't really matter what you do as your teeth are pretty doomed anyway.

Toothfairy4

George_Bray wrote: »

Well, as I said, I didn't suffer any bad effects. I tried to keep the peroxide off my gums and certainly avoided swallowing any. You make it sound as though the similar chemicals used by professionals are entirely safe and inert.

I thought i'd seen it all but this is just insane! Is this guy actually serious??

Salster278

Toothsmith wrote: »

Of course you don't NEED to spend £399 on whitening your teeth.

It has no health benefit whatsoever, and doesn't improve the function of your teeth.

It is a purely cosmetic CHOICE which you can have done if you want them to look a bit whiter.

The thing that always beats me is why people choose to risk the HEALTH and FUNCTION of their teeth by trying to do a completely unnecessary cosmetic proceedure using dubious chemicals.

In the case of smokers though, it doesn't really matter what you do as your teeth are pretty doomed anyway.

I posted earlier that I had started tooth whitening through my dentist. Well, my 4 weeks are almost up (2 weeks top, 2 weeks bottom) and I'm absolutely thrilled. I never had really white teeth anyway (my mum used to say really white teeth weren't so strong) but I'm amazed at the difference.

I'm 53, I don't smoke but am (was) a red wine drinker in amounts that were not good for me plus a coffee drinker. I gave up red wine during the process but didn't substitute it with white wine so I reckon I have cut my alcohol consumption down by 75%. I've lost 8 pounds in weight and feel a million dollars. I haven't really had any of the painful/ sensitive side effects either and found the 'made to measure' trays very comfortable. I paid 345.00 in total and TBH would have paid more if I'd known the result was going to so good.

I can't imagine why anyone would take matters into their own hands though and try to do it with hairdressers peroxide

lilie

I have used theeth whitening strips before and found them just ok, I wanted to get a good natural look as i am so consious about my teeth, i broused the net an came across smilethatsuitsu.com, I wasn sure if i wanted to use this type of method, but after a week i decided to give them ago, i ordered them an had them within two working days, i have been using them just over a week and the results are brill, i will say to ne one looking teeth whitening products to give these a try, they are good and results are excellent. im not afraid to show of my smile..:)