Ultimate smile beauty combo: whiter teeth and a straighter smile

One thing that sits right alongside straighter teeth on many people’s “Perfect Smile Checklist” is whiter teeth. A staple of the rich and famous, achieving a brighter smile has never been more en vogue. With so many options out there promising to give you that million dollar smile, we thought we’d clear you up on a few things. So, if you want to learn more about how effective these options are, how long the results will last, and more, keep reading!

#1 Your options for whiter teeth

We all know that drinking coffee, red wine and smoking cigarettes does our tooth colour no good. If it stains your white shirt, there’s a good chance it’ll stain your teeth! So, the first step towards a whiter smile is cutting down on the above and sticking to proper oral hygiene. We’re talking brushing at least twice a day with an enamel protecting toothpaste such as Regenerate™ and flossing regularly.

Now, on to whitening. From special toothpaste to whitening strips, blue light technology to charcoal powder, the options whiter teeth on the market are quite overwhelming. So, let’s break it down so you can understand what it’s all about.

1) Whitening Toothpaste

There are hundreds of toothpastes out there claiming to give you whiter teeth within so and so many weeks, and the way this works in some cases is by using an abrasive to remove surface stains others may contain a very mild active ingredient for whitening. All toothpastes do this to some extent, as a mild abrasive is required to effectively clean your teeth and keep them healthy. Whitening toothpastes achieve additional stain removal by including gentle polishing agents or chemicals alongside the mild abrasive. They may be good at surface stain removal, but it’s unlikely that your tooth colour will lighten by more than one shade as any active whitening ingredients are in such tiny doses. That being said, these toothpastes can be effective in maintaining a white smile after using a more effective whitening method.

2) Whitening Strips

These are already a more effective teeth whitening solution, as the small strips contain a layer of peroxide bleaching gel that is very effective at improving enamel colour. They are quite easy to use and the results should last several months, provided you stick to your regular oral hygiene routine. The strips are generally made out of plastic and work quite well for straight teeth. However, if your teeth are skew or crowded, the strip can’t adhere properly to all of them, resulting in uneven whitening – we want perfectly whiter teeth, so, moving on…

3) Blue Light Technology

The theory behind this method is that the light emitted by LEDs will speed up teeth whitening when it comes into contact with a peroxide whitening gel.

There are two important elements for effective teeth whitening:

> The gel used

> The time it’s applied for.

These two factors determine how your teeth will whiten. Lamps, lasers and lights have no actual role in the whitening process.

Research shows that “the use of light activator sources with bleaching treatment of vital teeth did not increase the efficacy of bleaching or accelerate the bleaching”.

What does all this mean? If the blue light whitening kit contains a peroxide gel, the colour of your teeth will improve as a result of the same process used in whitening strips. The light, however, has nothing to do with this process.

4) Charcoal Powder

Over the past year, charcoal powder has taken the internet by storm as an all-round beauty miracle in skin products, hair treatments and, you guessed it, teeth whitening. Much like the whitening toothpaste above, charcoal powder is an abrasive that removes surface stains. It’s just a much coarser abrasive, so it’s more aggressive on the stains than regular toothpaste.

It can only remove stains at the expense of damaging your enamel, the intrinsic colour of the teeth won’t change.

5) Bleaching at the Dentist

As with the other effective teeth whitening methods, peroxide gel is the key to this option, too.

The difference is that the bleach concentration used is much higher in order to achieve dramatic results within a short amount of time (usually about an hour).

A dentist will apply the bleach to your teeth while keeping your mouth open throughout the process. In this way, the gel reaches all surfaces evenly to achieve uniform whitening (unlike the strips).

While a very effective and generally safe method, the high concentration of the gel can cause your teeth to become quite sensitive and the reduced time the gel is on the teeth means it can’t penetrate to achieve a deeper whitening, so it only lifts the enamel colour.

Results should last for well over a year or much longer, but again, this depends on how well you treat your teeth on a daily basis.

#2 The most effective method is…

None of the above! At least not exactly. Our top pick is a combination of at-home and dentist approved teeth whitening.

1) Professional at-home whitening gel by KöR Whitening

This is a safe, dentist approved teeth whitening solution, which is a gel applied overnight so that it has enough time to gently and effectively remove all both surface and deeper stains, the gel is able to penetrate deeper inside the tooth to enable a more profound colour change.

The gel is placed inside a tray fitted to your tooth shape so that it can evenly whiten all surfaces. Kör Whitening is the most powerful dentist prescribed teeth whitening solution on the market, is extremely easy to use, and requires no extra time or appointments. Results last for well over 12 months, provided you stick to a proper oral hygiene regimen.

2) Simultaneous Teeth Straightening & Whitening

The beauty of this method is that you can get whiter teeth while you straighten your teeth too!

The aligners you receive from Straight Teeth Direct™ are the perfect tray to apply the gel to, as they fit your teeth like a glove and will make sure all your teeth get the upgrade they deserve. That’s why we’ve put together the Premium Whitening Upgrade for those of you who want to go for the double whammy of straighter and whiter teeth.

3) When is the best time to whiten?

You can choose to whiten your teeth at any point during your treatment. If your teeth are significantly crowded or overlapping, you may want to wait until they have been straightened to a point where they are straighter and the gel can easily reach all the surfaces. If the edge of one tooth is pushing against the surface of another, the point of contact may be too tight for the gel to properly act on underlying stains.
Hot tip: When you go ahead with your Straight Teeth Direct™ treatment plan, you will have received a smile simulation showing how your teeth will move. If you have crowded teeth and you’re looking for the right time to start the whitening treatment, just watch that simulation to pinpoint the stage at which your teeth are no longer leaning into each other. If you have any questions, feel free to message us through the message centre in your app.

Whether teeth straightening or whitening, overcomplicating things is a waste of time and money, two things we work very hard on saving you! If you’re ready to get your best smile, head over to the free e-consultation to find out how close your goal is!