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Teeth Whitening
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| • | Nature of the Enamel: The outer layer of our teeth is made up of enamel. Strong and healthy enamel is translucent and reflects light, which makes your teeth appear bright white. Beneath the enamel is a layer of softer tissue called dentin, which may be grayish or yellow-brown in color. Your genes dictate how thick and smooth your enamel is. Thin enamel allows the yellow color of the dentin to show through. Rough enamel may also not properly scatter the light off of the enamel, making it seem dull and less white. Age can also lead to thinner enamel and darker dentin which can make your teeth look discolored. Sweet, acidic food and gum disease can also erode the enamel, making your teeth appear darker. |
| • | Trauma: If you have been hit in the mouth hard enough, your tooth nerve may get severed. Your tooth will also react to the injury by overproducing dentin, which may make your tooth look darker. |
| • | Medication: Tooth darkening can also be a result of certain medication, like blood pressure control drugs, antipsychotics, and antihistamines. Young children who have been exposed to tetracycline may have bluish-grey discoloration to their teeth later in their adult life. This type of discoloration is quite difficult to lighten. Chemotherapy and radiation to the head and neck region can also darken teeth. |
| • | Stains: Consumption of darkly-pigmented foods like coffee, cola, and red wine can lead to extrinsic or surface tooth stains. Some food stains may also wear down the enamel making your teeth permanently discolored. Smoking and chewing tobacco can also darken teeth. Extrinsic stains can be removed easily at Reich Dental Center – Roswell. Intrinsic stains or stains appearing from within the teeth are also common. These stains can develop as a result of overexposure to fluoride as a child. Tetracycline antibiotics, as mentioned above, can also darken teeth if the medication is taken by an expecting mother or a young child. Sometimes teeth can darken from the inside out after a root canal filling. This type of stain can be treated by reopening the tooth chamber and applying whitening agents from the inside to bleach the tooth. |
Reich Dental Center – RoswellRobin Reich, DDS | Stacey Wingad, DMD | Megan Reich Rihan, DMD Kristin Cooney, DMD Call or Text: 770-992-33531775 Woodstock Rd, Suite 350 Roswell, GA 30075
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Over 45 million Americans have had teeth whitening procedures. Teeth whitening is one of the most popular dental