Home tooth whitening is a safe, non invasive way of improving the appearance of your teeth. It can be used to brighten the smile of all your teeth or to lighten the colour of a dead tooth. Tooth whitening has been in use for more than 30 years and has been proven to be safe and effective.

Impressions are taken of the teeth and close fitting trays are made in a laboratory. The patient loads these trays with the tooth whitening gel and wears them at night. Typically it takes about 10 days to achieve the desired effect. However it can be quicker, or occasionally it may take longer depending on the original colour and the desires of the patient.
The whitening effect will last 2 – 3 years, depending on whether you smoke and the amount of red wine or coffee that you drink.
At any time the process can be redone or topped up and once the teeth have been lightened once, it is much quicker to lighten them again.

Since the trays are reusable the effect can be maintained at any stage and at very little cost.

This less expensive option involves purchasing a box of 10 single use trays preloaded with whitening agent. Ask your dentist for further information.

When the nerve is removed from a tooth it can turn darker in colour. The whitening agent is placed inside the tooth for a number of days and the process is repeated up to twice. The colour change will last about 3 years and it can be redone.

All methods of tooth whitening have the potential to cause some sensitivity. However for the vast majority of patients this is not a problem once the appropriate method and formulation is used.
For people with very sensitive teeth specific formulations are available which will be comfortable but these will take longer to be effective.

Results are less predictable for people who smoke. The whitening effect tends not to last as long. The teeth can be more sensitve during the whitening programme. Even if the teeth become satisfactorily white, smoking stains will be more obvious than before because they will be on a lighter background.

Under current EU regulations, from October 2012, tooth whitening products containing greater than 0.1% hydrogen peroxide may only be used under the professional supervision of a dental practitioner. Tooth whitening products containing more than 6% hydrogen peroxide present or released are no longer considered safe for use for general tooth whitening because of the increased risks of acute and long-term effects. Tooth whitening products containing greater than 0.1% hydrogen peroxide may not be used on persons under 18 years of age.