Teeth Whitening and Keeping Your Teeth Sparkling White

Teeth whitening is an age old custom, that has been carried out since man first learned that whitening his teeth makes him more attractive to the opposite sex. While we have more sophisticated ways of whitening teeth these days, the basic premise is still the same. People with whiter, brighter smiles tend to get an advantage in life. Be it in the dating scene or in a professional environment, recent studies have proven that if you have beautiful white teeth, and a confident smile you will probably do better than if you didn't. This idea, together with a craze to have a Hollywood smile, has driven the industry to record performance as more and more people are looking for a way to have their teeth whitening done and be part of that winning culture.

There are two distinct routes you can take when whitening your teeth. The first is to get a do it yourself kit and do the work at home, and the second is to come in and see us where you can get your teeth whitening done by a skilled professional without any of the fuss and bother of a home kit.  When done in our office, the procedure will produce more dramatic results.

Teeth whitening, regardless of how you chose to get it done, does not last forever. After awhile, the natural coloring in many foods, and the unnaturally added coloring in some can start to stain the teeth again. There are those who believe in teeth whitening every few months, which we do not recommend. Rather we suggest that you take active steps to prevent your teeth from starting to lose their pearly whiteness. As with most things, keeping your teeth white starts with the basics. Maintaining great oral hygiene habits, and ensuring that you minimize, avoid, or mitigate the risks to your teeth when eating foods known to have high coloring agents.

Believe it or not the biggest culprit for you losing that perfect white smile after getting your teeth whitening done, is your diet. For those who eat healthy, it is important to note that there are a lot of naturally occurring colors in foods like soy sauce and berries which can stain your teeth just as effectively as all the chemicals that are found in non-organic foods. For others, tea, coffee, cola, and energy drinks are some examples of the kinds of things we find in diets that can ruin your teeth after you have had them whitened. Coffee and tea both have natural color which, when consumed in significant quantities, will have a devastating effect on the color of your teeth. Cola and virtually any energy drink has chemical coloring added to it and the addition of large amounts of sugar which can contribute to decay. When you consider how bad candy is for you, think of cola and most energy drinks as a liquid form of that same product which, in essence, bathes your teeth in sugar. If you do eat or drink any of these products, we strongly advise rinsing your mouth immediately afterward to remove the staining agent immediately.