I want to whiten my teeth but I’ve been avoiding going anywhere with the surge of covid cases. I just feel like I need something to cheer me up. Looking online, one kit I see that has some positive reviews is Premium Home Whitening. How does this rank with what I’d get from my dentist? Will it actually whiten my teeth?
Gina
Dear Gina,
I’ll start with the positive about this kit. The teeth whitening ingredient is valid and will whiten your teeth. So, if you decide to use this product and really stick with it, you could get some good results. That being said, I have some concerns.
Disadvantages to Premium Home Whitening
This first one I would not call a disadvantage as much as a red flag. The light they provide does nothing. It is simply a marketing ploy. Why not just sell the kit without it and lower the price. To me, that calls into question the integrity of the company and I’d wonder if the rest of what they list is true. For instance, is the whitening ingredient really the percentage they say it is?
The second is the whitening trays. These are not custom fit the way you would get with your dentist. Instead, you DIY them at home. This causes two problems with the whitening gel. Your saliva can get into the tray, which will weaken the strength of the gel. Now it will take more kits to do the same amount of work. In addition to that, your gel can leak from the tray. Not only does this further weaken the gel, but it puts your gums at risk of irritation. There have been cases where patients needed a root canal treatment as a result of an over-the-counter whitening kit because of this type of leakage.
My Recommendation
I would get your teeth whitening done with your dentist. In the long run, you should save money and it is safer. You mentioned concerns about COVID for not wanting to go in. Dentists are all taking extra precautions to ensure the safety of their patients, especially at this time. Something you could request is to ask to come at a time when they have fewer patients, that way you are not surrounded by as many people. Also, some patients have even requested they wait in their car and the receptionist just texts them when it is time to go back.
I hope this helped.
This blog is brought to you by Gilbert Dentist Dr. Matt Roper.