Teeth can become discolored for a variety of reasons.
Since the enamel on our teeth is porous, it can become stained over time.
One of the most common causes is drinking darker colored liquids.
Coffee is one offender as is soda and tea and red wine among others.
Surprisingly, antibiotics can cause yellowing or graying of the tooth enamel.
Whatever the reason, teeth whitening procedures are becoming more and more the number one dental procedure requested by patients.
Let us review the available treatments out there.
Teeth Whitening Reviews: In-Office Dental Teeth Whitening Most people inquire about teeth whitening at their dentist.
Generally, the dentist has many approaches to tooth whitening, but let us take the most common for this teeth whitening review.
The dentist applies a gel to the teeth.
This gel has very potent tooth whitening agents.
The gel is applied to the teeth and then a bright light is shined on the teeth to activate and accelerate the whitening process.
This whitening procedure is done several times at the dentist's office until the desired whitening has been achieved.
The benefits include an immediate improvement and a well-controlled environment.
The downsides include the cost, and potentially tooth sensitivity after the procedure.
Be sure to discuss all costs and risks with your dentist before considering any type of dental procedure.
Teeth Whitening Reviews: At Home Whitening - Dentist Prescribed Your dentist has prescription-strength whitening kits that you can take home with you.
These kits usually consist of gel trays and the tooth-whitening gel.
You fill the trays with the gel and place them in your mouth and bite down gently until the whitening gel has time to work.
The amount of time you have the gel in your mouth varies greatly with the type of gel, anywhere from 10 minutes to an hour.
This tooth whitening approach is much less potent so it must be repeated many times to achieve the same level of whitening as the in-office procedure.
You can achieve the same results as your dentist, but it will take longer.
Teeth Whitening Reviews: At Home Whitening - Over the Counter Kits There are many teeth whitening kits available at retail stores.
Among the alternatives are tooth-whitening gels, tooth-whitening strips, tooth-whitening gum, etc.
These solutions are the cheapest.
Unfortunately, these solutions are also the least effective.
Since they are the least effective, they will take the longest to achieve any noticeable effect.
Since they are not that costly, many people try them out and they are quite popular sellers.
We cannot conclude our teeth whitening reviews without mentioning tooth-whitening toothpaste.
Toothpaste only works on the surface of the tooth.
If the stains are only on the surface, the toothpaste will help remove them.
More often than not, the stains run deep, especially for diehard coffee drinkers or smokers.
Toothpaste will not change the tooth's color so the effectiveness will be limited.
These reviews only cover some of the most commonly available options.
We discuss many more treatments and offer tips for maintaining whiter teeth on our website.