In-Office Vs. At-Home Teeth Whitening Treatments

Most people seek to have a bright white smile. The ones who don’t are probably the ones who already have that bright white smile. Some people are naturally blessed with incredibly white teeth. Other people live very careful lifestyles, avoiding anything that might dull the colour of their teeth. For everyone else, there are teeth whitening treatments. Teeth whitening treatments come in two basic varieties: treatments in a dentist’s office or treatments at home. Each choice has advantages and disadvantages. Here are the pros and cons of the three different kinds of treatments:

Over-the-Counter Treatments

The pros and cons of over-the-counter treatments are actually mostly just cons. One could argue that they are the least expensive option, which is only true depending on your insurance. But since they are not very effective, any money spent on something that doesn’t work is money wasted. Over-the-counter treatments either aren’t effective because they don’t have effective whitening agents or because they don’t have high enough concentrations of the whitening agents.

Moreover, the whitening trays are often not well-fitted to your mouth. They’re made to be one-size-fits-all, which just doesn’t work for teeth. You’re better off saving your money on over-the-counter treatments and heading to one of the skilled Tauranga dentists who can set you up with an appropriate treatment plan.

In-Office Treatment

With an in-office treatment, you head to the dentist. You’ll have your teeth cleaned by a dental hygienist or perhaps the dentist. They will apply a whitening agent, usually hydrogen peroxide, to your teeth. In some rare cases, this hydrogen peroxide treatment stings. For those with very sensitive teeth, the dentist can work with you to find an effective pain-free solution.

Once the doctor has applied the whitening gel, he or she will activate it with a blue light. That will incite the peroxide to lift away stains. After about an hour, you’ll have whiter teeth. The entire visit should take about two hours. In some cases, the patient goes home with a whitener to enhance the effects of the in-office treatment. If you don’t want to do that, you can do an at-home, dentist-supervised treatment.

At-Home Treatment

This is actually similar to the over-the-counter treatment option, but supervised by a dentist. The difference is that these dentist-supervised treatments tend to have a more effective mixture of chemicals, and the trays tend to fit better. Also, if you have sensitive teeth, you can tell your dentist and he/she will adjust the chemical mixture. These tend to take about two weeks instead of the two hours of the in-office treatment. Since they take longer, that is the biggest con of the at-home treatment.

The question is whether you would put a tray on your teeth each night for two weeks or whether you’d like to sit in a dentist chair for a couple of hours. Some people prefer doing it themselves.