When to Consider Dental Bonding for Your Child
As one of the most popular offerings of cosmetic dentistry, bonding is the go-to treatment for a wide range of minor dental repairs and improvements. Here’s when we may recommend it for your child.
A bright, luminous smile is a whole lot more than a sign of healthy teeth and gums — it’s a beacon of confidence that makes you seem more youthful, attractive, trustworthy, and even financially successful, at least according to a recent survey on the social and professional effects of whiter teeth.
But most people don’t need a study to tell them that a white, fresh smile always looks better than a dull, dingy, or yellowed one. Perhaps that’s why professional, in-office teeth whitening treatments and store-bought whitening kits and dental products have enduring popularity.
As a cosmetic dentistry expert who offers Zoom! light-accelerated teeth whitening at Smiles in Springfield, Dr. Quang Tran is often asked what makes in-office whitening treatments better than store-bought whitening kits. Here are five definitive ways that they are:
Store-bought teeth whitening kits are one-size-fits-all in every respect, from their generically shaped trays or strips to the diluted whitening power they offer. But as you might guess, what may work well for one smile doesn’t necessarily work for every smile.
When you come to Smiles in Springfield for a professional tooth whitening session with Dr. Tran, he customizes your treatment to your specific needs. This means preparing your smile for optimal whitening by removing any plaque or tartar and polishing your teeth ahead of time; it also means meticulously applying the whitening gel across every millimeter of enamel to ensure flawlessly even whitening results.
With store-bought whitening kits, you simply follow directions and hope for the best; the level of whitening you attain is relatively arbitrary. While most people feel content with a moderate improvement in the brightness of their smile, not being able to set or control the whitening bar with off-the-shelf kits can certainly make the experience feel less than transformative.
Professional whitening, on the other hand, gives you the latitude to choose how many shades brighter you’d like your teeth to be, and to pick the shade of white that best compliments your natural coloring.
Whether you’re looking for a subtle boost or a dramatic change, Dr. Tran can help you get a beautifully whiter smile that’s up to eight shades brighter on the VITA enamel color scale.
Store-bought whitening kits are considered safe for at-home use because they don’t contain clinical-strength whitening agents that require skilled application by a pro. Because they don’t work through strength, however, they must work through time — that’s why you have to apply at-home whitening products multiple times over the course of many days to get results.
All professional whitening techniques work much faster than store-bought kits, providing immediate rather than gradual results. The method used by Dr. Tran — light-accelerated whitening — is especially quick.
After applying a thin layer of clinical-strength, non-abrasive whitening gel across your enamel, Dr. Tran uses a special LED blue light to activate the gel’s whitening agents and accelerate the breakdown of stain molecules. He repeats this easy 15-minute process three times, applying the gel and activating it with light, until your teeth reach the desired shade of white.
When you choose to whiten with store-bought kits, your results may last anywhere from a few weeks to a few months. Most people who maintain whiter teeth with off-the-shelf kits use them with relative frequency — some people whiten seasonally, or about four times per year, while others opt to do it as often as once a month.
With professional whitening, you don’t have to worry about fading results that require periodic touch-up sessions, because in-office whitening is a highly effective cosmetic treatment with real staying power. Depending on your daily oral hygiene habits, dietary choices, and other factors, you can expect your professional whitening results to last at least 12 months — and up to three years!
If you still prefer to brighten your smile more gradually in the comfort of your own home, Dr. Tran also offers custom take-home whitening kits. Unlike store-bought whitening kits, these clinical-strength products are only available from dental professionals.
As with an in-office whitening treatment, Dr. Tran starts by cleaning your teeth and evaluating your discoloration. Then, he selects the best product for your smile goals, formulates a detailed treatment plan, and creates custom whitening trays that fit perfectly over your teeth.
If you’re ready to revitalize your smile, we can make it happen with a single 45-minute whitening session. Call 703-595-2403 to schedule your next professional whitening treatment at Smiles in Springfield in Springfield, Virginia today.
