Am I a Good Candidate for Teeth Whitening?
If you are considering having your teeth whitened you will want to first make sure that you are a good candidate. Since everyone is different, there are going to be some people that make better candidates than others when it comes to being successful at having your teeth whitened with the use of products. The good news is that 90% of the time most people will find that they can be helped by teeth whitening. However, you will want to do your research and make sure that teeth whitening is something which would be a good option for you when it comes to getting that beautiful smile that you want. The following are some things that you will want to think about when you are wondering if teeth whitening will help you:
If you are going to be having any work done on your teeth such as crowns or composite fillings, then you may want to wait until after you have this work done to get your teeth whitened. Otherwise, all of that work may need to be replaced. However, after you have had all of your work done, then you will be able to reconsider if you are a good candidate at that point. If you don't have any other conditions, then there is no reason to think that you won't be a good candidate.
If you have gum disease or worn tooth enamel then you may not be a good candidate for teeth whitening. Gum disease will only cause your problems to reoccur. If you have worn enamel then the discoloration of your teeth is more than likely caused from you not having enough enamel on your teeth to make them white. Your natural color from underneath is simply showing through. Whitening will simply not work because the problem is coming from further down than the surface of your teeth.
If you suffer from sensitive teeth or gums then you may not want to try teeth whitening. It is not always advisable for you to put such chemicals on teeth or gums which are already sensitive. Sensitive teeth may actually become further damaged from the application of chemicals.
Teeth whitening is not advised for anyone under the age of 16 years. The reasoning for this is because a child that is under 16 has teeth that are still developing, this means that their nerves are still enlarged. By performing a teeth whitening on a child that is under 16 years of age you risk causing them to develop sensitive teeth. You may also cause permanent damage to their teeth.
If you are pregnant or breastfeeding then you should wait to have your teeth whitened. This is because swallowing a small amount of bleach may cause harm to a fetus. Rather than taking the chance of accidental ingestion, it's recommended to put off teeth whitening until the birth, or weaning of your child. Once your child is born and weaned then you can go through with the teeth whitening.
