Tooth Whitening

Tooth whitening for brighter and whiter teeth in Christchurch

Most people recognise that their smile is one of their greatest assets… and they are right! Nothing beats a bright and healthy smile.

The debate over how bright your teeth should be depends on two things: your personal preference, and how responsive your teeth are to teeth whitening treatments. These factors will vary between people of course.

There are two basic systems for tooth whitening:

• In-Office Whitening Kit

In-office whitening is a popular option as the results are obtained after about an hour in our chair. The advantages of this system are good results and a one-off appointment meaning less time involved. Most people find this to be a convenient and effective method to whiten their teeth. Results do vary between people but most will notice an improvement of at least one or two shades.The longevity of any whitening treatment depends on your lifestyle habits because things like drinking coffee/tea, smoking and several foods or spices can stain teeth, it is normal for teeth to get darker over time. If you want to make sure this doesn’t happen we can provide a touch-up kit for use at home to help maintain the colour of your whitened teeth.

• Home Whitening Kit

Home whitening kits require impressions of your upper and lower teeth which are then used to make precision-fit whitening trays. These trays are then loaded with whitening gel and worn for around 30 minutes each day for about two weeks. Your teeth should whiten gradually over this time. If they are whitening slower than expected then you can carry one for more days. As long as you keep the trays and have no fillings, crowns etc done in the meantime, your whitening trays will continue to fit and we would generally recommend using them on an annual basis for a few days to help keep your smile bright.

Internal Bleaching of Root Filled Teeth

Some teeth that are root filled can sometimes darken over time and become very unsightly especially if it’s a front tooth which affects your smile composition. In many cases, we can place bleach inside the tooth and improve this appearance with great results. Even if a ceramic crown is planned, it is often advisable to bleach the tooth beforehand to improve the overall aesthetic outcome of the crown. Teeth which have had root fillings as a result of an ACC-related accident may also be covered for internal bleaching, so please free to discuss this with us.