Laser Teeth Whitening

Teeth can discolor for a variety of reasons:

• A love of tea, coffee or red wine, or other highly colored foods and beverages can stain teeth over time.
• Lifestyle habits like smoking or using tobacco products are well known for discoloring teeth.
• Teeth gradually darken with age as tooth enamel thins, exposing more of the dentin underneath.
• Some people naturally have darker colored teeth than others.
• Teeth can appear stained and discolored because of tetracycline use.
• Excess exposure to fluoride can cause dental fluorosis, creating brown spots or lacy white specks on teeth.

We often associate a whiter smile with youthfulness because if you look at a child’s or a younger person’s teeth, they are generally whiter as their tooth enamel is naturally thicker. When tooth enamel is thicker, it masks the natural color of the tooth in the dentin underneath, which is darker. Stained and discolored teeth can be prematurely aging.

Zoom teeth whitening is a zoom whitening system, where we use a dental zoom to activate the whitening gel, allowing it to penetrate teeth more effectively and to lift more deep-seated stains. After first protecting your lips and gums, we carefully coat your teeth with the whitening gel. The gel is activated with the Zoom laser and visibly whitens your teeth. We might remove and reapply the gel several times during your treatment, which typically lasts an hour. Once complete, your teeth will be several shades whiter.

It will take your teeth forty-eight hours to settle down after an in-office Zoom whitening treatment. This is because the treatment removes the acquired pellicle, a protective layer over your teeth. Until the layer reforms, your teeth are more vulnerable to staining. You only need to be especially vigilant during this time. Until then, it’s best to avoid very strongly colored foods and beverages and to stick to eating pale-colored foods. Foods best avoided include red wine, tea and coffee, tomatoes, berries, and condiments like mustard, soy sauce, and ketchup. You should also avoid soda and juice. We can advise you on which foods are best to eat. Otherwise, you will be able to brush and floss your teeth normally immediately after treatment.

Some people prefer to whiten their teeth more slowly, and this can be useful if you have more sensitive teeth. With a custom home whitening kit, you can whiten your teeth at a pace that suits you.

The kit contains custom whitening trays made to fit perfectly over your teeth. We supply the professional-strength bleaching gel for you to whiten safely and comfortably and will show you how to fill the trays and how to insert and remove them. You simply need to wear the trays for a few hours each day, or overnight and your teeth will gradually brighten over a couple of weeks. You can also use these kits when you want to top up the results of your zoom teeth whitening treatment.

We want to make sure teeth whitening is safe and appropriate for you, so we will need to examine your teeth before you can receive treatment. Zoom whitening in Queens may be less suitable for pregnant women or while breastfeeding. For ethical reasons, there is no real research into the safety of teeth whitening during pregnancy.

During this quick checkup, we will make sure you don’t have signs of active gum disease or untreated tooth decay or dental restorations that are leaking or crumbling. Aging restorations and untreated dental disease allow the teeth whitening gel to penetrate your teeth more deeply than is desirable, potentially causing sensitivity and tooth pain. Existing dental restorations like crowns, bridges, veneers, and composite resin fillings will not change color during teeth whitening. You may need to replace these restorations to create a whiter and evenly colored smile.

Some teeth might whiten less effectively than others. For example, a tooth that is internally stained by an older root canal treatment may need another method to whiten it effectively. Sometimes it is possible to bleach teeth internally, but we may suggest covering the tooth entirely with a restoration like a crown or a veneer.

Patients often use Zoom whitening with other cosmetic dental treatments to create the best teeth whitening effects. For example, some patients will whiten their teeth before placing veneers or crowns, so the color is matched precisely to their new smile. Zoom whitening doesn’t cost a fortune and is one of the most affordable ways to brighten your smile.