How to brighten dull teeth - Whitening | bleaching teeth

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You can read and read about the different things that will make your teeth dull. Expore and think about the solutions.
But first come and see us and ask.
We love smiles and we love to see the joy a bright smile can bring to others. Contemporary dentistry offers lots of different options and exploring them together may save you stress and precious worrytime.

What determines the color of our teeth?
Why are my teeth are getting darker!
Find out about tooth whitening
At-home bleaching

What determines the color of our teeth?

• The thickness of the enamel and its opacity help determine the colour of your teeth as it determines how much of the inner yellow/grey dentine color shows through. The part of the tooth closed to the gum is the darkest as the enamel is thinnest at this point.
• Baby teeth are lighter than permanent teeth. There is a genetic reason for this. It makes parents tell their children that they should be cleaning their teeth better in the crucial age of 6 - 8 years. Once all the permanent teeth have erupted the contrast is no longer present.
• Blonde haired people usually have white/grey teeth.
• Brunettes usually have white/yellow teeth.
• The colour of your lipstick will also influence the colour of your teeth. Try a pink-based lipstick verses an orange-based lipstick. There can be a quite noticeable change in your tooth colouring.

Ask the dentist to show you the large range of colours we can select from when making an artificial tooth - such as a crown. You will be quite surprised in the range of 'normal.'

Why are my teeth are getting darker!
Some of the reasons for this are
1. External stains. Eg medications, tea, coffee, colas, red wine, smoking and even extended periods in the swimming pool!
2. Thinning of the enamel. Sorry, age and excessive tooth brushing (too little brushing will cause gum problems and external staining!) can do this.
3. Drugs. Some antibiotics taken when the teeth are forming cause an internal layer of the tooth to become quite darkly coloured.

Find out about tooth whitening

• Come and see us for a complete dental examination and ask us about whitening your teeth. External stains may be removed by our professional cleaning. Options for tooth whitening can include: renewing white restorations (fillings), veneers, crowns and bleaching. Bleaching will be great for lots of people but we really need to discuss aspects of it. White restorations, veneers, porcelain and crowns are not made whiter with bleaching and often drug-stained teeth are difficult to bleach.
• Bleaching is not recommended for pregnant or lactating women, children under the age of 14 years or smokers.

At-home bleaching
If this treatment is undertaken we need to

• Provide you with a custom-sized mouth tray (this holds the whitening gel against your teeth). We aim to minimise the contact between the gel and the gums. The customised mouth tray is a bit like a thin mouthguard.
• Provide the whitening gel. (There are lots of different brands so make sure you read the instructions that come with your supplied gel.)

General instructions:

• Clean and floss your teeth.
• Apply small amounts of whitening solution towards front of each tooth impression of the teeth that need whitening on the tray; overfilling tray will result in unnecessary waste of product and you may not have enough material to complete treatment correctly.
• Place the tray in your mouth (as we will have discussed) and wipe away any paste from the gums or gum line.
• Leave tray in your mouth for the recommended time (this will probably be 30 minutes to one hour but will depend on the product we select for you.)
• Remove the tray and brush your teeth with a wet toothbrush to remove any whitening gel. Rinse the tray in running water using your wet toothbrush to remove any remaining gel. Between treatments store your tray in its storage tray.
• Refrain from eating and drinking during, and for thirty minutes after treatment.
• avoid any food or drink with strong colours during treatment. eg coffee, tea, red wine and soft drink or coloured lollies
• Use only under the supervision of a dental professional.
• Store whitening syringes and mouth trays under 25 degrees.
• DO NOT rinse trays in hot or warm water.
• DO NOT freeze trays or bleaching solution.
• If discomfort or sensitivity occurs contact the dentist for advice.

Revised: 1 June 2017