Teeth Whitening

Teeth whitening procedures are commonly used to create a whiter, brighter smile. People want to have whiter teeth to show a more attractive smile where their teeth look good and where they can feel confident in showing off their teeth. The basics of teeth whitening involve having a chemical applied to the teeth to dissolve organic material from them. Such material can include the effects of consuming wine, soda, tea, and coffee, as well as the effects of aging, which affect the overall color of teeth. There are different ways and technologies to whiten teeth, the most common being take home dental trays or having a stronger solution administered at the dental office.

A take home system is one way of whitening teeth. First, we take impressions of the patient’s mouth and create custom trays which they use at home. A gel is placed into the tray, and the patient wears the trays for a specific amount of time. The amount of time that they wear it depends on how much whiter their teeth need to be. This process of teeth whitening can’t be reversed and doesn’t affect the teeth negatively. Our Whitening for Life! Program is a unique way in which we thank our patients for their loyalty. After joining the program, patients receive free whitening at each of their six month hygiene visits. As long as you are a patient of the Advanced Dental Group and stay current with your scheduled hygiene program, you will receive free whitening forever!

Another method of whitening teeth is through utilizing an in office treatment called Zoom! For this procedure, the patient comes into the dental office, and we complete the entire treatment in one appointment. First, we cover the gum tissue area and seal it off so that the chemical does not touch those areas. Then we paint the chemical onto the teeth and expose the teeth to a special light source, which accelerates the whitening process. The light interacts with the chemical to whiten the teeth much faster than with using take home trays. In this procedure, we also give the patient trays to take home and administer the gel when they require touch ups, as the teeth may darken slightly.

We also show our patients a shade guide where they can see the level of whitening they want. When a person needs immediate results, they can opt for the Zoom! option or if they would like a more gradual lightening of shade, we can provide at home whitening solutions.