Laser Teeth Whitening - Pros and Cons

At all times, man strove for ideal, dreamed of a beautiful appearance and a snow-white, radiant smile. Beautiful, even and white teeth are an increase in the chances of building a good career, gaining the attention of the opposite sex, and indeed, to feel confident and irresistible. Modern people are no longer so naive - simple and unreasonable advertising simply does not work on them. Today, an educated person will not use soda and activated charcoal for home teeth whitening, understanding perfectly how harmful these enamels are to tooth enamel. That is why, behind a snow-white smile, we go to the professionals - to the dental clinic. Fortunately, technologies in this area are developing rapidly and today experienced doctors can offer patients not only effective, but also safe tooth whitening. One of such methods is laser whitening, which today is very popular.

Why do teeth turn yellow and black?

Everyone knows that a tooth is a multilayer structure, the basis of which is dentin. It is quite soft, nerve fibers are located in its body, as well as other tubules, through which the tooth will receive nutrients. Healthy dentin has a yellow tint, this is normal. But the tooth enamel is quite light and very strong - this is the hardest part in the body. But a person leads such a wrong way of life that even tooth enamel is unable to withstand and chip, crack and turn yellow. Before you go to the whitening procedure, you need to know what affects the color of the tooth and protect yourself from this negative impact. So what makes our teeth yellow, black and unsightly?

1. Coffee and caffeinated drinks.
2. A yellow tint appears after prolonged exposure to nicotine.
3. Regular consumption of alcohol.
4. Physical damage to tooth enamel - the use of abrasive pastes, home whitening methods, hard brushes, etc.
5. High fluoride drugs.
6. Frequent use of foods with a high content of dyes, for example, sweet soda.
7. Inadequate or irregular oral hygiene.
8. Mechanical damage to the tooth - chips that were not treated in a timely manner.

If you decide to carry out whitening, it is necessary to eliminate all these factors so that the color of the dentition does not become the same in a short period of time. By the way, you don’t need to completely refuse coffee, just take in the habit of drinking it through a tube and be sure to rinse your mouth after drinking. This will help you not to give up the habit, but to keep the smile snow-white. If you are ready to take this step, it's time to talk about the procedure.

What is laser teeth whitening?

In fact, bleaching does not occur due to the laser itself, but due to a special solution, which contains simple hydrogen peroxide - it is familiar even to patients. A laser is only needed to help this solution penetrate deeper into the dentin and brighten the yellow pigment in the deep areas of the tooth. To understand the principle of the procedure, we will consider how laser bleaching proceeds in stages.

1. First of all, the patient's oral cavity must be examined for caries and other injuries. Before bleaching, it is better to eliminate all carious cavities. By the way, if you are going to whiten your teeth after treatment, be sure to tell your doctor in advance.In this case, the dentist will choose the color of the fillings or dentures not according to the existing shade of the teeth, but to the desired color that you want to achieve after clarification. You can not lighten teeth that need treatment - it is not only useless, but also dangerous, it can lead to unpleasant consequences.
2. When the oral cavity is ready, the teeth and gums are cured, you can start the bleaching procedure. The patient's lips are fixed with a special tool so that they do not interfere. Gums and other soft tissues must be hidden under a protective film, otherwise they may be damaged by laser exposure.
3. Next, a special solution of hydrogen peroxide is applied to the teeth, which we have already talked about. There is no complicated chemistry in it, which is very important for teeth - they remain safe and sound.
4. After everything is ready, the doctor begins a laser exposure - about 30 seconds for each tooth.
5. When each tooth is processed, the protective layers are removed, the oral cavity is cleaned.
6. In conclusion, the teeth are treated with fluorine-containing preparations that mineralize the enamel and, as it were, fix the result obtained from the procedure.

In general, the procedure without special deviations from an experienced doctor is about an hour. The bleaching result is immediately noticeable. If necessary, several procedures are carried out in order to achieve the desired effect. The time interval between the procedures is determined by the doctor.

Pros and cons of laser whitening

Like any cosmetic, and especially medical procedure, laser whitening has several advantages and disadvantages. Let's start with the pros, because there are undoubtedly more of them.

1. Laser whitening is really able to improve the color of teeth by 8-10 tones on the Vita scale. This is a very real and noticeable result for the eye.
2. No need to wait for the effect of the procedure - it is noticeable immediately.
3. Laser whitening is much faster than, for example, light whitening.
4. Laser teeth whitening preserves the result for a year or more, depending on the quality of life and dental care. For comparison, LED whitening lasts a maximum of 3-4 months.
5. Hydrogen peroxide is quite dangerous for tooth enamel, especially with prolonged exposure. However, the laser helps the solution penetrate the dentin structure, avoiding exposure to the protective layer of the tooth. This allows you to get not just an effective, but really safe way of whitening.
6. Laser irradiation has another wonderful effect - it perfectly disinfects, inhibits the development of bacteria in the oral cavity. This is an excellent prevention of carious cavities.
7. After the laser whitening procedure, carried out in several stages, the teeth become not just white, but also smooth with a smooth glossy surface.
8. After laser whitening, the sensitivity of the enamel does not increase, on the contrary, mineralization at the end of the procedure allows you to make tooth enamel stronger and healthier.
9. The laser whitening procedure is absolutely painless, which is an important factor.

The numerous advantages of laser whitening make the procedure not only popular, but also really popular, both among patients and among dentists. But before exposing your teeth to similar effects, you need to familiarize yourself with the disadvantages of laser whitening.

1. The cost of the procedure is quite high and not accessible to everyone, the price varies from 15 to 30 thousand rubles.
2. If you smoke, after several procedures, the effect of laser whitening will be lost.
3. No matter how well you take care of your teeth after the procedure, the whitening effect will end in a year and a half. If you want to return a snow-white smile, the procedure will have to be repeated.
4. For any dental disorders and pathologies, laser whitening is contraindicated.Contraindications include wearing braces, gum disease, caries, veneers and dentures on the front teeth, cracks and erosion on tooth enamel, exposure of the root part of the teeth, etc.
5. If the doctor is not qualified enough, a solution with a caustic composition can get on the gums and soft tissues, and when exposed to a laser, this can cause serious pain and burns to the mucous membrane.
6. Abuse of the procedure leads to the fact that the teeth lose their glossy gloss, become porous and matte.
7. If you do not carry out sufficient mineralization of the teeth after the procedure, laser whitening can be the cause of increased tooth sensitivity.

In order for the procedure to bring you only benefit, you need to contact professionals who will help you achieve the expected result.

How to care for teeth after whitening?

Teeth is a gift of nature that is given to us only twice in life. Molar teeth should be protected from the very beginning - observe hygiene, regularly visit a doctor, care for your teeth and gums. This will help to maintain a healthy and snow-white smile until old age!

Video: 5 best ways to whiten your teeth at home