Teeth Whitening

Modified from the Canadian/Ontario Dental Association

Although teeth are not naturally meant to be completely white, most people want whiter teeth and a brighter smile.  The commonly available "surface whiteners"  (toothpastes or chewing gums) have essentially the same ingredients as regular toothpaste.  These surface whiteners are unlikely to cause excessive tooth wear, but are only limited to surface stains.  Surface whiteners cannot substitute for a professional cleaning.

​

A number of different bleaching techniques and products are available to patients. Dr. Ing will use one of these two methods to whiten your teeth:

• Vital bleaching is done on "living" teeth and can be used to whiten your teeth if they have become stained by food or tobacco, or if they have become darkwith age.  

• Non-vital bleaching is bleaching done on "dead" teeth. If your tooth has changed colour because of a root canal, non-vital bleaching can lighten your tooth from the inside out.

These are the two main professional methods for bleaching teeth. The method that will work best for you depends on the number of teeth that need to be bleached, and on how badly they are stained (or discoloured).