Local Dental Care - Yellow Teeth

Tooth Whitening Basics: Recapture Your Smile!

From unusual ointments to hydrogen peroxide injections (yikes!), people have sought the secret to longevity for decades. Now, more than ever, people are willing to go to extremes to retain their youthful looks. While many of these strategies are risky or downright unsafe, there is one relatively simple way turn back the years: teeth whitening. Sure, whitening your teeth may not help you live longer, but it can restore your smile, rolling back years of coffee and other stains. While there are a variety of professional tooth whitening and bleaching methods available today, most of them are safe and relatively effective. Those carried out under the supervision of a dentist will ensure maximum results and optimum safety! Here are a few of your options.

Teeth Whitening Toothpastes

While using a tooth bleaching toothpaste may be the easiest, most affordable way to brighten your smile, it isn't ideal for those searching for a significant improvement. Some produce marginal improvement, while others produce none at all. They are relatively safe, but be sure to contact our office if you find your teeth are more sensitive than usual. Some lightening chemicals can actually erode tooth enamel, damaging your teeth.

Over-the-Counter Tooth Whitening and Bleaching Agents, Strips

Whitening agents and strips are more popular than ever before, and vary dramatically in price and effectiveness. While most are generally safe, it's important to follow the manufacturer's instructions carefully. As with whitening toothpastes, some agents and whitening strips can be too harsh, damaging your teeth and increasing their sensitivity.

Dentist-Managed Teeth Bleaching Trays

One of the safest, most effective ways to whiten your teeth is through dentist-managed tooth bleaching trays and whitening agents. If you choose to go this route, your dentist will begin by taking a mold of your mouth to design a plastic tray that will fit snug against your teeth. You'll spread tooth whitening gel through the tray, slip it over your teeth, and let it do its job! Continue to do this over a course of a few days to acquire the results you were looking for. Once again, please report any sensitivity to your dentist.

Chair-Side Teeth Whitening

Also one of the safest, most effective whitening techniques, chair-side whitening is chemical teeth bleaching done by your dentist, in-office, in about an hour or so. There are a variety of options available today - your dentist can steer you in the right direction. While chair-side professional tooth whitening and bleaching can be a bit more expensive than other alternatives, it's done under the supervision of a professional and delivers fast results.

+Jim Du Molin is a leading Internet search expert helping individuals and families connect with the right dentist in their area. Visit his author page.

Create The Smile That You Always Wanted With Tooth Whitening

Since the beginning of time, people have battled the effects of aging in order to look and feel younger. History has repeatedly shown us that people will journey to the far ends of the earth for ways to improve and maintain a youthful appearance - whether it is in search of the fountain of youth or to find a plastic surgeon or cosmetic dentist to surgically enhance their facial structures. Plastic surgeons have been instrumental in making facelifts and other related procedures more common to the mainstream population. As a result, a paradigm shift has occurred in how we view ourselves as we get older.

Dentists can now use laser tooth whitening to whiten teeth.

The shift has made the average person more knowledgeable of the link between lifestyle and appearance. Consequently, people are changing their habits, attitudes and preconceived perceptions of aging.

More than ever, people are more willing to dedicate the resources necessary to find the balance between their image, spirituality and life choices. In response to the shift in people's thought processes, the medical community has developed newer and more predictable anti-aging techniques to slow the affect of aging on the human body.

With a large segment of the population reaching the significant milestone of 50, the increase in appearance-enhancement therapies will continue to rise significantly in coming years.

Everyone knows that if you want to cheat the aging process, the person you go to for help is a plastic surgeon. However, if you only consider a surgeon for help, you could leave out an integral part of the rejuvenation equation. Your laser tooth whitening dentist must be included in your quest for a youthful appearance because you will not maximize the benefits of your anti-aging procedures without a smile analysis.

Your Smile Affects How Old You Look

Laser tooth whitening dentistry procedures are like great paintings and sculptures. Your body is the canvas or clay, your face and bone structure are the frame, and at the center of the painting is your smile. In order to make masterpieces appear life-like, artisans must have an understanding of general anatomy and bone structure.

Equating those concepts to aging, you can say that your youthful appearance is as dependent upon how much support you have for your soft tissues. The old adage "Beauty is only skin deep" does not apply to plastic surgery and cosmetic dentistry. Time has a way of shrinking the underlying bone and teeth. If surgeons and cosmetic dentists do not restore what is lost, they will not be able to achieve a natural look.

Using cheek and chin implants in conjunction with facelifts are just some of the ways surgeons restore facial support and beauty. Cosmetic dentists use laser tooth whitening, bonding and porcelain veneers to create a more youthful smile.

By Benjamin O. Watkins, III, DDS

+Jim Du Molin is a leading Internet search expert helping individuals and families connect with the right dentist in their area. Visit his author page.