Advice on Teeth Whitening Discussion Thread

wdw2003

Thanks brook2jack, but it's actually brown patches she has. Is that a different problem?

welshdent

IMHO if your daughter wants to throw away money then go right ahead and have the laser whitening (followed with the inevitable "top up trays" the clinics recommend which are a lesser version of the home whitening kits and cost extra!!!) . If she wants something that works go for the home kits from a dentist. Also she really should see a dentist because a) she may not be suitable and b) http://www.gdc-uk.org/General+public/Tooth+Whitening/

If the name of the practitioner does not appear on the search option of that site then they are not registered to be doing it no matter what they tell you

wdw2003

Thanks welshdent. Luckily our dentist is on that list, which is encouraging. Like a lot of celebrity-obsessed youngsters, she wants a Simon Cowell smile after a 1-hour session, forgetting that you really need about £20,000, plenty of patience and a good make-up artist to look like that.

I'll try to get her to slow down and speak rationally to the dentist, although she thinks that all the dentist wants to do is flog her the system they happen to offer, and as it's not laser she reckons it's no better that something you get off the internet. How would I counter that argument?

brook2jack

Having teeth whitened is not like having your hair cut..... it may cause permanent damage with lifelong consequences if done by wrong person, in wrong way , with wrong technique.

Brown stains are unlikely to whiten and indeed may look even worse as rest of teeth lighten. With one hour "laser" whitening you have little control over degree of whitening, but you do with trays.

What you pay for with a dentist is their expertise and the fact that they will give you a result that is healthy for your teeth and deal with anything quickly such as sensitivity.

Laser treatments mostly whiten by drying out the teeth. Once the teeth rehydrate there is alot of "fadeback". All the research would indicate a tray system gives better lasting , more predictable results, with far less sensitivity.

Simon Cowell is doomed to a lifetime of replacing his veneers,each time taking more tooth off until there is none of his own teeth left or he starts to have multiple abcesses. Hollywood smiles are the graveyard of healthy teeth.

welshdent

wdw2003 wrote: »

Thanks welshdent. Luckily our dentist is on that list, which is encouraging. Like a lot of celebrity-obsessed youngsters, she wants a Simon Cowell smile after a 1-hour session, forgetting that you really need about £20,000, plenty of patience and a good make-up artist to look like that.

I'll try to get her to slow down and speak rationally to the dentist, although she thinks that all the dentist wants to do is flog her the system they happen to offer, and as it's not laser she reckons it's no better that something you get off the internet. How would I counter that argument?

With all due respect I would suggest you tell her she is talking nonsense about a procedure she knows very little about. It isnt like buying something in tescos it is about a procedure that carries risks. No dentist worth their salt will provide something harmful. Almost all take home systems are identical with the only difference being the name on the whitening gel and the type of tray used. optident, voco, pola all of them are carbamide peroxide based gels and all of them work by penetrating over time to dentine and bleaching it by slow release of the active hydrogen peroxide. There is no quick fix. A "laser" based system gives an initial wow factor for one main reason - it dehydrates your teeth. Once they rehydrate a few hours later they are pretty much back to normal. Hence why these "salons" usually sell you " top up trays". These are stock sized trays filled with the same gel we use anyway. the difference being the trays are not custom to your mouth and as such are less efficient, require a higher potentially more harmful concentration. It is also a lot harder to tollerate.

Most of the marketers of these salon bleaching systems are well aware they do not work. Thats why they make it so cheap. People will use it thinking "well its cheap so if it doesnt work I havent spent that much money".

wdw2003

All good advice, brook2jack and welshdent, and much appreciated. My daughter of course is much wiser in the ways of the world than I or anyone else over the age of 25 could ever hope to be. A constant diet of celebrity pap on tv and in magazines, invariably involving people with millions to burn on their appearance, has left her with a warped sense of reality and what's really important in life.

She's booked in for the dentist in a couple of weeks, so here's hoping she's capable of talking sensibly about it and accepting informed advice from a professional.

welshdent

She is lucky to have a sensible parent! Hope it goes well for her she is at least going to the best place for advice

Amy83

Just a quick question - I've been to the dentist for the first time in over 2 years (naughty I know, but I'm back on the right path now!) and I was initially saying that I wanted braces (my teeth are pretty wonky..). The dentist that saw me today said that he thought that if my teeth were whiter he didn't think I'd want braces any more. Does this sound right?

I've been quoted £580 for the custom trays and the take home kit, which does seem quite expensive - is this pretty much what I should expect to pay?

He's also said that I could benefit from microdermabrasion on my teeth, which I'd never even heard of in relation to teeth! Any dentists that can lend a hand with this, is it normal?

Thanks in advance

Salster278

Amy83 wrote: »

Just a quick question - I've been to the dentist for the first time in over 2 years (naughty I know, but I'm back on the right path now!) and I was initially saying that I wanted braces (my teeth are pretty wonky..). The dentist that saw me today said that he thought that if my teeth were whiter he didn't think I'd want braces any more. Does this sound right?

I've been quoted £580 for the custom trays and the take home kit, which does seem quite expensive - is this pretty much what I should expect to pay?

He's also said that I could benefit from microdermabrasion on my teeth, which I'd never even heard of in relation to teeth! Any dentists that can lend a hand with this, is it normal?

Thanks in advance

I paid 300 for custom trays and 10 syringes of polanight. I am absolutely thrilled with the result (over a year ago now and have only done one 'top up') but my friend's dentist had a 199.00 special offer so 580.00 does seem a bit expensive. The custom trays were great for me because I have a crown (which doenst need bleaching) but also one tooth that is darker than the others so when I got the desired whiteness for the majority, i just filled the space for that tooth for a few extra days. Can't help re dermabrasion though!

brook2jack

Microabrasion is a technique where using a slurry of polish and acid very small targeted amounts of enamel are removed. It is normally used where people have White or yellow spots on their teeth and can be successful in lessening the appearence of these spots.