What’s the best way to whiten teeth?
If you’re someone who loves coffee, colas, teas and red wine, hopefully
not all at once, chances are your teeth are…. a little discolored.
You want to get them whiter but you don’t want to drop a few
hundo at the dentist’s office for customized treatment.
There’s lots of over-the-counter whitening products out there
but do any of them work?
Let’s put the chemistry to the test!
Reactions Splash Intro
Your teeth are coated with enamel, the hardest
substance in the human body.
Enamel is almost entirely made up of a mineral called
hydroxyapatite, which is a network of calcium and phosphate ions
bundled into tough crystalline rods to give bones and teeth rigidity.
But in between those rods, there’s plenty of space for
food, coffee, wine, all those big stainy things to set up shop.
Regular brushing and flossing will take care of a lot of these
foreign substances on your teeth.
But once those stains settle in all cozy in the enamel, you’re
going to need something stronger… like a whitening strip.
Most over the counter whitening strips use a gel with either
carbamide peroxide or hydrogen peroxide to clean your teeth.
The gel is placed on a polyethylene strip that goes on top of your chompers.
Then the peroxide gets to workin’.
Peroxide is an excellent oxidizer, otherwise known as an electron thief.
It dives into those molecules that are discoloring your
teeth and rips away electrons.
That action breaks the chemical bonds that make up what’s called
the chromophore, the part of the molecule that gives the color.
Disrupt the chromophore and guess what you get?
Whiter teeth.
This is actually the same method and active
ingredient in color-safe bleach.
So whether you spill coffee on your shirt or into your mouth,
the stain’s coming out the same way.
Just don’t get confused and put bleach in your mouth.
EVER.
There are other methods out there for whitening teeth.
There are gels that you can paint on with a little brush
and even whitening mouthwashes.
But guess what?
The active ingredient in all of them?
Hydrogen peroxide.
And, it will take longer to see results with a mouthwash than a
strip, because the contact time with whitening strips is much
longer than that of a mouthwash.
The most important way to keep your teeth looking sparkly is
to brush every day, obviously.
So what about whitening toothpastes? Do they work?
Kind of. Whitening toothpastes have an extra, more abrasive
compound, like silica, in addition to the ones
found in regular ol’ toothpaste.
But just like in any toothpaste, these abrasives only clean the
surface of your teeth, they don’t dig down into
the enamel like peroxide does.
Some also have a cool-sounding substance called “blue covarine”.
This binds to the surface of your teeth, adding a bit of blue to
balance the yellow-ish gunk on your not-so pearly whites.
This supposedly gives you whiter teeth right away.
For you film buffs, it’s color-correction for your teeth.
But again, it doesn’t actually clean.
And how about safety?
All of the commercially-available peroxide-based whitening products
are safe.
The American Dental Association says some people may get sore
gums or more sensitive teeth from whitening treatments, so it is
best to always check with your dentist before
you do any whitening at home.
Or just bite the bullet and actually get your dentist to do
it they just use a much more concentrated hydrogen peroxide
treatment, so they have to protect your gums.
But really, all the over-the counter strips gels and
toothpastes are safe when correctly used.
Just be sure not to swallow any of the peroxide.
So what’s the BEST way to whiten your teeth?
Well, really all of them involve peroxide.
And remember, your results will depend on
the KIND of discoloration.
Some teeth are dark because of developmental defects,
cavities, root canals, etc. - which
obviously need other types of treatment from an actual dentist.
It also depends on how quickly you want to see results, and how
much you’re willing to spend.
If you want the fastest, whitest teeth, spend the
money and head to the dentist.
They can use the highest concentration
of hydrogen peroxide and it doesn’t take long.
Plus free travel toothpaste.
So you learned about your teeth, now learn how to clean your
contacts and check out what happens when you eat too much.
See you soon chemheads.