If your smile has started to look dull and dingy, you may be thinking about whitening your teeth to brighten them up. You also may be considering using a whitening kit that you can pick up at the store, thinking it will be just as effective as having it done at your dentist's office while saving you money and time. However, before you buy an at-home kit, consider the potential problems that come with whitening your teeth yourself.
1. Using the Kits Too Often Can Damage Your Teeth
After you buy an at-home kit and read the instructions, there is a recommended time period on which you should keep the whitener, as well as the frequency you should do the treatments. However, since you have the product readily available at home, you may decide that more is better, causing you to either leave the whitener on too long or using it several times a week.
However, the chemicals that bleach your teeth can also destroy them if you are not careful. While the time recommended on the package should be safe, if you use the whitener too often, you will wind up breaking down your enamel. This breakdown can then lead to tooth sensitivity and even cavities or tooth decay if the damage is severe.
If you do decide to whiten your teeth at home, make sure you follow the directions to the letter. Or, for a safe alternative, ditch the over-the-counter products and have your teeth professionally whitened.
2. Applying the Whitener Improperly Could Damage Your Gums
Another potential issue when you whiten your teeth at home is that you could end up damaging your gums. While the whitener is generally safe to use on your teeth when you follow the instructions, the chemicals can be detrimental to the gum tissue.
When you use at-home products, there is a good chance that the whitener will end up on your gums. Even if the kit comes with trays, they are not conformed to your teeth, which will make any excess run over onto your gums.
If your gums are constantly exposed to the active agents in the whitener, they will become inflamed and irritated. Eventually, the surface tissue may thin, allowing bacteria to infiltrate your gums and possibly lead to gum disease.
While whitening your teeth at home may seem to be a more economical and convenient method, you run the risk of harming your teeth and gums. Instead of using over-the-counter methods, speak with a cosmetic dentist about having your teeth professionally whitened.
Share26 April 2019
My name is Cicely Davenport and if you need to get dentures, but you have questions about them, I invite you to read my blog to learn the answers. I too needed to get dentures but I wanted to find out everything I could about them before I committed. I read all about full dentures and partial dentures, and the difference between each of the two kinds. I went ahead and got a full set of dentures and I really like how they look and feel. I want to help others who are also thinking about dentures and you can learn a lot about them when you read my blog.
