I saw a suggestion on one of my feeds for me to purchase a Premium Home Whitening Kit. I liked the idea of whitening my teeth at home for less than my dentist charges for his Zoom machine. Plus, I can do it in private. Do you know if this kit works?
Mazie
Dear Mazie,
I’m glad you wrote about this. There are some good things and some concerning things about this product. Let’s start with the good. The ingredient they use for their whitening agent is legitimate and will work. The light, however, is bogus. It won’t be powerful enough to do anything. Bottom line, it will whiten your teeth. So, if that is the case, what are my concerns?
The Whitening Trays
If you were to do at-home whitening through your dentist, the trays given to you would be custom-fitted to your bite. That means there will be no leakage. Why does that matter? Glad you asked! The trays that come with the Premium kit are generic and will not keep the gel in well. This means some gel with get out and some saliva will get in.
This not only weakens the effectiveness, which will drive your cost up purchasing more gel to attain the level of whitening you want, but it also puts your gums at risk. There is a post on mynewsmile.com about a woman who ended up needing a root canal treatment because of an over-the-counter whitening kit. If she’d been under the care of a professional, this would never have happened.
The Cost
While the cost is lower than some dentists, it is actually higher than others. The quote your dentist gave you, as you mentioned, was for the in-office Zoom Whitening. This is more expensive than take-home whitening, though it has the benefit of completely whitening your teeth in just one appointment. But, did you know that your dentist very likely does take-home whitening as well? Which would be less expensive.
In your place, I would tell your dentist that you have an offer for Premium Whitening at this price, but you’d prefer to get your teeth whitened under his care. Ask for him to do take-home and to come closer to their price. My guess is he will. If he doesn’t, there are plenty of other dentists who offer teeth whitening.
This blog is brought to you by Hoffman Estates Dentist Dr. William Becker.