Teeth Whitening in Washington

Not every dark or dull tooth is a whitening problem. Before you spend money on it, it's worth finding out why your teeth look the way they do. A quick exam answers that. Sometimes the answer is whitening. Sometimes it's something simpler, and sometimes it's something whitening can't touch.

Whitening does its best work on surface stains and the slow yellowing most of us get from coffee, tea, red wine, and time. Other kinds of color change don't respond as well:

A single tooth that turned gray or dark after an old injury or a root canal. The color often comes from inside the tooth.

Gray or banded staining that some people get from certain medications taken while their teeth were forming.

White or brown spots in the enamel. Whitening can make these stand out more, not less.

Teeth that look yellow because the enamel has worn thin and the darker layer underneath shows through.

If one of these is behind your color, whitening may leave you disappointed. That's good to know before you start, not after.

Some people come in thinking they need whitening when they need a cleaning. Tartar and built-up stains can make teeth look darker than they are. A professional cleaning can take a lot of that off. You might like how your teeth look afterward and decide to skip whitening, or you'll at least start from a cleaner baseline.

An exam also checks whether your mouth is ready. Whitening gel on a tooth with an open cavity, a cracked filling, or gums that have pulled back can be uncomfortable. If your teeth already feel sensitive to cold, that's worth mentioning too. It's better to fix a cavity or calm down sore gums first, then whiten when things are healthy. Our office offers exams, cleanings, fillings, and periodontal treatment, so those steps can happen in the same place.

And if whitening isn't the right fix, there are other ways to change how a tooth looks. Cosmetic bonding can cover a spot or a chip. Veneers can cover teeth that won't lighten. Those are both part of cosmetic dentistry in Washington at our office, and an exam is how you find out which one, if any, makes sense for you.

Here's a common situation. Your teeth look fine overall, but one front tooth has slowly gone grayer than the rest. Whitening all of your teeth won't even that out. It may even make the gray tooth stand out more. Getting that tooth looked at first saves you from paying for the wrong thing.

At our office, you'll see Dr. Dennis Burton or Dr. Jonathan Gifford. Dr. Burton has been with the practice since 1988. They'll look at your teeth, tell you what's causing the color, and give you a plain answer about whether whitening will help. If it won't, they'll say so.

A lot of the color people want to whiten away isn't in the tooth at all. It's sitting on top of it. Coffee, tea, red wine, cola, berries, and tobacco all leave stains that cling to the outside of your teeth. Those stains grab onto plaque and tartar more than onto smooth enamel. Once tartar hardens, your toothbrush can't get it off, and the stain just keeps building.

That kind of stain is a cleaning job, not a whitening job. Whitening gel works inside the enamel. Surface stains get polished off. If most of what bothers you is on the outside, a cleaning may give you the change you were hoping for.

So how do you tell which kind you have? Surface stains tend to show up in certain spots:

Brown or tan lines along the gumline

Dark spots in the small gaps between teeth

Stains on the back side of your lower front teeth, where tartar likes to collect

Patchy color that's worse in places your brush has trouble reaching

A rough or gritty feel when you run your tongue over the stained area

Deeper yellowing looks different. It's usually even across the whole tooth, and the tooth feels smooth. That's the kind of color whitening is made for.

Here's how it often goes. You have coffee every morning and maybe iced tea in the afternoon. Over the past year, you notice brown edges between your bottom front teeth. They don't come off no matter how well you brush. You start pricing whitening. But those brown edges are often tartar that's soaked up the stain. Once it's cleaned off, the teeth underneath may look a lot brighter than you expected.

Sometimes a cleaning is all you need. Other times, you'll like the improvement but still want a lighter shade. That's fine too. Getting the surface clean first means you'll know how your teeth look without the buildup. Then you can decide if whitening is worth it. If you do go ahead, the gel can reach clean enamel instead of working around tartar.

There's also a cost side worth thinking about. Cleanings are part of routine dental care, and whitening is a cosmetic choice. Our practice accepts and bills most insurance plans, so it's worth checking how yours treats each one. Starting with a cleaning can keep you from paying for something you didn't need.

Surface stains do come back if the habits behind them don't change. You don't have to give up your morning coffee. Rinsing with water after dark drinks, brushing well along the gumline, and keeping up with regular cleanings all help slow the buildup. Our office offers routine dental cleanings, so you can keep surface stains in check whether or not you ever decide to whiten.

Most people want to know two things before they whiten. Will it hurt? And how white will my teeth get? The plain answer to both is that it depends on your teeth. Knowing what's normal helps you decide if whitening is worth it for you.

Sensitivity is the most common side effect of whitening. Many people notice their teeth feel a little touchy for a short time afterward. It often shows up as a quick zing when you sip something cold or breathe in cold air. Some people feel nothing at all. Others feel it for a day or two. For most people, it fades once whitening is done.

Some people are more likely to feel it than others. That includes people who:

Already have teeth that are sensitive to cold

Have gums that have pulled back and left part of the root showing

Have worn enamel or small cracks in their teeth

Have a cavity or a leaky filling that hasn't been fixed yet

If any of those sound like you, tell your dentist before you start. That's part of why the exam we talked about earlier matters. If you know about a weak spot ahead of time, you can deal with it first. If your teeth stay sore, or if one tooth hurts more than the rest, call us. A tooth that won't settle down may have something else going on.

Results vary from person to person. Teeth that have yellowed slowly over the years from coffee, tea, and age tend to respond well. Gray or deep inside stains often change less, as covered above. Your starting shade matters too. Someone with fairly light teeth may see a small change. Someone with more yellowing may notice a bigger one. Nobody can promise an exact shade before you begin, and you should be wary of anyone who does.

It also helps to know what "white" will look like on you. Whitening lightens your own natural color. It won't give everyone the same bright shade you see in ads. For most people, the goal is teeth that look clean, fresh, and a few shades lighter. That's a change people around you will notice, without looking fake.

Whitening also isn't permanent. Your teeth will slowly pick up color again over time. How fast that happens depends a lot on your habits. Daily coffee, tea, red wine, and tobacco bring color back sooner. Brushing well and keeping up with regular cleanings help your results last longer. Some people choose to touch up their whitening now and then to keep the shade they like.

Think of a busy parent who drinks two cups of coffee every morning. Their teeth may look great a few weeks after whitening, then slowly start to dull. That doesn't mean the whitening failed. It just means the coffee is still doing what coffee does. A good cleaning routine and a touch-up later can keep things where they want them.

At our office, Dr. Dennis Burton and Dr. Jonathan Gifford will look at your teeth and talk with you about how much change is likely for you. They'll also tell you if sensitivity might be a concern. That way you know what to expect before you spend a dime.