Pearls of Wisdom: Teeth Whitening

WHITENING – is one of the most popular words in Vietnam, you can see it everywhere: skin creams, sprays, SPAs and of course the dental clinic. While it is not very popular for westerners to whiten their skin, it is quite the opposite with teeth whitening… It is an easy cost effective way to change your smile while working/ traveling in Vietnam…

There are many foods and drinks that influence the color of our teeth and leave unwanted marks, such as coffee, tea, nuoc mam (fish sauce), soy sauce, red wine and smoking. If you think the color of your teeth is not as white as when you were younger. You’re probably right! Teeth whitening is a quick and easy way to make your teeth youthful, bright and healthy looking. Literally take off all the years of stain built up inside of the teeth. When done by a professional, teeth whitening is completely safe.

How Does Teeth Whitening Work ?

Teeth tend to change shades, usually yellow, with age. This yellowness and other stains can be eliminated with the whitening processes. The active agents used in teeth bleaching are hydrogen peroxide and carbamide peroxide. When these agents come in contact with the teeth, they release oxygen, this process removes stains from the teeth.

There are many ways to whiten your teeth, for the best results:

• Take Home Professional Teeth Whitening

• In-Office Teeth Whitening

If you want dramatic results – use both!

What is In-Office Teeth Whitening?

In-Office teeth whitening offers the fastest results in the shortest time period if you want to whiten your teeth. The dentist carefully applies the peroxide to your teeth, and a heat or light source is used to activate and accelerate the whitening process. These treatments take about an hour to complete and depending on the stains. For dark teeth, additional visits or a Take-home maintenance method may also be recommended.

What is Take-Home Whitening?

The Take-home whitening method is the most simple and common technique to whiten teeth. Impression molds are taken of the upper and lower teeth in order to fabricate custom fitted trays that fit to the patient’s teeth extremely well. Dentist should check the fit of these mouth trays and provides the patient with instructions. The patient then places a small amount of the whitening material into the trays and wears them for approximately 4 to 8 hours per day for about one to two weeks.

As long as you have teeth in good shape, teeth whitening is an effective and safe way to lighten teeth. This is supported by over 30 years of Clinical research and endorsed by all Western dental associations.